Bee Hoon – Cynthia’s Version

I literally have to wrest the recipe of this simple healthy tasting home cooked bee hoon (i.e. rice vermicelli) from Cynthia in order to have it published in my site.  She is just not comfortable with the limelight, which I reassured her that not many people visit my site anyway.  Perhaps I should re-brand my site as: where I’ll go all the way to get things that you want to read.  Except, I don’t really know what you want to read.

To be fair, this bee hoon recipe does belong to my family’s treasure box, a well-kept secret of the Wong’s family.  One fine year, my mother visited my home and like how the kung fu master finds his disciples, my mother taught Cynthia how to make some of my favorite dishes that I don’t seem to have the talent to learn.  What is amazing is that my mother speaks in Cantonese (that Cynthia doesn’t understand) and Cynthia transcripts in Bahasa Indonesia (that I don’t understand).  Maybe cooking recipes transcend languages.  Maybe all one needs is the patience to record.

Armed with my camera, here is my attempt to record how this dish is made.  From left to right, top to bottom …

1. Cynthia’s secret cookbook with my mother’s well-kept recipes written in Bahasa Indonesia that I can’t comprehend.
2. Chop the pork into bite size.  For the Muslim readers, feel free to use chicken instead.  For the vegetarian readers, I wonder if replacing fried bean curd yields the same result.
3. Marinate the meat with the usual ingredients (soy source, sugar, salt, and corn flour).  There is no scientific rule in how much ingredients to add to the meat.  Marination is an art and I usually go with the feel.  If the meat turns out to be too salty, add less soy source and salt next time and vice versa. Pay attention to the distinct taste of each ingredient and adjust accordingly.
4. Smash the dry scallop into pieces using a chopper.
5. Boil the dry scallop with the right amount of water as that will be your soup base.
6. Wash the vegetable of your choice.
7. When your soup base is boiling, throw in the marinated meat.  There is no need to add salt or whatsoever at this stage.
8. Meanwhile, prepare another pan of hot water to cook the bee hoon (or rice vermicelli).  Upon my request, Cynthia used the Japanese thin flat noodle instead.  Somehow I prefer that to bee hoon.
9. When the been hoon is cooked, run it under cold water to rinse away the extra starch that may cloud your soup.
10. Throw in the vegetable after the dry scallop becomes soft to the mouth (usually about half an hour or more).
11. Divide the bee hoon.
12. Pour the soup onto the bee hoon!

I like the way this dish is cooked because it tastes healthy – subtle and not too overwhelming.  The soup base has a distinct taste of meat, dry scallop, and vegetable.  You can always add a few drops of Maggi (Chinese seasoning source) if the taste is too healthy for you.  Alternatively, add a few pieces of abalone will definitely enhance the dish in a big way.

Note: The 1-800 number advertised is invalid.  Please don’t waste your money.