The distinct texture of handmade wheat noodles instantly elevates any noodle dish because they are fresh, springy, tender, and chewy. The best part is that it only calls for three ingredients and a handful of easy steps—even the pasta maker is optional!
I love fresh handmade noodles. The noodles and beef in a bowl of Taiwanese beef noodle soup are equally important to me. No matter how flavorful and tender the beef is, the dish will be a failure if the noodles are soggy or lack that springy bite.
I used to get up early and go get fresh noodles from the open market when I was a college student in Taiwan. When I needed a quick meal, all I had to do was quickly boil some noodles, add some blanched leafy greens, and top it all off with a generous serving of Taiwanese minced pork that my mother had made for me. This remains one of my all-time favorite dishes.
Dishes to Make With These Handmade Noodles
Briefly stated, you can use your handmade Chinese noodles in any noodle soup or sauced noodle dish of your choice!
How to Make Chinese Noodles: Key Tips
Everything you need to make these homemade Chinese noodles is probably already in your kitchen: bread flour, salt, and water.
It will be simple if you have a mixer with a dough hook attachment, but if not, it doesn’t matter. With a little elbow grease, you can prepare noodles in the same manner as Chinese chefs have for centuries.
Here are some key tips for success:
Can I Successfully Make Chinese Egg Noodles at Home?
Yes you can! My kids did and so can you.
Like when making ramen noodles, you will require an alkaline agent, such as lye water (also known as “kansui,” which is sold in bottles at Asian grocery stores) or *baked* baking soda. For my step-by-step instructions on how to make *baked* baking soda at home, click here.
While you aren’t required to use an alkaline agent, doing so will prevent the noodles from becoming mushy and disintegrating when you add them to your soup broth or sauce. Who want’s mushy noodles? Not I.
I also highly recommend using a pasta machine for this dough. You can certainly knead by hand and I did so the first time I made these Chinese egg noodles.
Although the first hand-made noodling experience was enjoyable, it took a lot of time and was challenging for the children to complete on their own. Now that we use our pasta maker, we no longer have to do any of the work, and every time the results are fantastic.
If you’re unsure which pasta maker to purchase, click here to read my comparison of two well-known Italian manufacturers: the Marcato Atlas and the Cucina Pro Imperia.
FAQ
How are Asian noodles made?
Chinese noodles are typically prepared by making a dough with flour, salt, and water, kneading the dough by hand to form bars, bending the bars for proofing, pulling the strips into strips, and dropping the strips into a pot of boiling water. When the noodles are done cooking, the strips are removed.
What types of flour are used to make Asian noodles?
This low-ash patent flour is perfect for use in all kinds of Asian noodles because of its bright white color, superior absorption, color stability, and handling qualities. It can also be used for the skins of wontons, egg rolls, and dumplings in addition to noodles.
What are traditional Asian noodles made of?
In addition to wheat flour, rice, yam, and mung beans can also be used to make Asian noodles, though even that wheat is a different variety than the durum wheat used to make pasta. Due to all of these texture and flavor differences, Asian noodles cannot usually be substituted for Italian pasta.
How do you make Asian flour noodles?
To make: Put the noodles in a heat-resistant bowl and cover them with boiling water. Noodles can either be left to stand for 5 to 7 minutes or submerged in cold water for 25 to 30 minutes. Rinse, drain, and then add to boiling water. Cooking Time: Cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
