Mie Rebus Medan (Emie – Noodles in Shrimp Gravy)

Noodles served in umami-rich shrimp-based gravy topped with delicious toppings. Making mie rebus Medan is one of my mom’s expertise and you will love this authentic mie rebus Medan for real!

My favorite thing to eat for supper when we were young was this mie rebus Medan or famously known as emie at my hometown. I remembered I often walked to the nearby street food vendor near our house for this mee rebus.

There are many varieties of mie rebus out there. There is also a dish call mie rebus Jawa or more often known as mie godog but with totally different stock base. There are also mee rebus in Malaysia and Singapore, which also have several different varieties like gravy with peanut-base, tomato-base, dahl-base, etc. I’m sharing the one that is famous in Medan where I grew up.

Mie rebus Medan is one of the famous foods in my hometown, Medan, and hence the name mie rebus Medan. The boiled egg noodle is served with shrimps and/or dried shrimp, slices of boiled potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and topped with crispy fried shallots, Chinese celery, prawn/emping crackers (optional) and green chili. If you are looking for mie rebus recipe, you gotta try this one for real. My mom is known for her mie rebus. It is one of her signature foods that family and friends enjoy a lot. It is so good that it really knocked my socks off and I couldn’t be more excited to share this recipe with everyone.

THE GRAVY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT IN MAKING MIE REBUS MEDAN

Medan mie rebus is served in thick gravy made of shrimp stock. When the expert tastes the gravy itself, they will know whether that’s a good mee rebus or not. So, the bulk of the work mainly lies on preparing the shrimp stock, which is made of shrimp shells and other aromatic spices

INGREDIENTS FOR MIE REBUS MEDAN

1. YELLOW EGG NOODLES (MIE TELOR)
You can get this fresh at any Asian grocery store, but feel free to use the dried version too. You can also substitute with spaghetti or lo mein noodles if you want.
2. SHRIMP
Get fresh or previously frozen raw shrimp with shells and head still intact if possible. At least have shells on if you can’t find any with heads on.
3. GARLIC AND SHALLOTS
These two are almost inevitable when it comes to Asian cooking, especially Indonesian cooking. You can substitute shallot with large purple onion, it’s perfectly fine.
4. LEMONGRASS STALKS
Be sure to bruise the stalks with heavy objects. This helps to release the amazing aroma. Fresh lemongrass stalks can be found in any Asian store or even some Western stores that carries some ethnic ingredients.
5. GALANGAL (LENGKUAS)
Galangal is one of the important ingredients in making mie rebus Medan. The aroma is what makes mie rebus medan distinctive. Do not substitute with ginger as it doesn’t have the same aroma at all. If you must, you can use galangal powder, but the aroma is weaker and you need about 3-4 Tbsp of the powder.
6. BAY LEAVES (DAUN SALAM)
Besides lengkuas, daun salam also lend its distinctive flavor to mie rebus Medan. Gotta have this in the stock!
7. COCONUT SUGAR (GULA JAWA) and KECAP MANIS
These two ingredients contribute to sweetness and their dark brown color to the gravy.
8. OTHER SPICES AND HERBS
Star anise (bunga lawang), white cardamom pods (kapulaga), cloves (cengkeh), cinnamon stick
9. THICKENING AGENTS: TAPIOCA AND MASHED POTATO
The gravy of mie rebus is usually thickened with tapioca starch and mashed potato.

HOW TO MAKE MIE REBUS MEDAN (EMIE)

PREPARE THE SHRIMP STOCK

1. Preheat a large pot with 1 Tbsp of oil. Add in the shrimp shells and heads and saute until really fragrant and slightly char. My mom said to make sure it’s slightly char as this really amplifies the aroma, about 10 minutes or so. Turn off the heat and set aside.

2. You can use a different pot or to the same pot you saute the shrimp shells earlier (remove the shells and set aside), preheat another 1 Tbsp of oil. Add the paste you ground earlier. Saute until aromatic, about 3 minutes. Add the herbs and spices and saute for another 2 minutes. Add the sauteed shrimp shells back followed by the seasonings. Add 10 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to let the stock gently simmer for the next 30 minutes

3. Strain the stock into a clean pot and discard all the solids

PREPARE THE SHRIMP

Preheat about 1/2 Tbsp of cooking oil in a small skillet. Add shrimp and stir fry until they turn pink and cooked through, about 1 minute or less. Set aside. There will be some juice ooze out from the shrimp, add this back to the shrimp stock, don’t throw it away.

THICKEN THE GRAVY

1. Blend the mashed potato with about 2 cups some shrimp stock to combine them. You can use a blender or immersion blender.
2. Mix the tapioca with the shrimp stock. Make sure the stock is not hot when you mix or it will be lumpy. Bring the shrimp stock back to a boil. When the stock comes to a boil, add the mashed potato mixture and stir to combine. When they are well combined, with one hand stirring, the other hand slowly pours in the tapioca mixture and stir vigorously to make sure they do not curdle up. If the gravy doesn’t thicken up enough for you, add a bit more tapioca starch mixed with a bit of water

HOW TO SERVE MIE REBUS MEDAN

1. Portion the noodles
2. Toppings: Top with some boiled potatoes, shrimp, boiled eggs, beansprouts
3. Sprinkle in some celery leaves, squeeze of limes for some juice
4. Top with crispy shallots and crackers (if using)
5. Serve with green chili

DID YOU MAKE THIS MIE REBUS MEDAN RECIPE?

I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag to show me what you’ve made 🙂 Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!

This recipe was last published in 2016 and has been updated with an improved version on March 10, 2023.

Mie Rebus Medan (Emie – Noodles in Shrimp Gravy)

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Servings 6 servings

5 from 3 reviews

REVIEW & RATE PRINT

Ingredients

0.5x1x2x

US CustomaryMetric

• ▢ 800 g fresh yellow egg noodles or use 400 grams dried egg noodles

For the shrimp stock:

• ▢ 2 ½ Tbsp cooking oil divided
• ▢ 1 kg large shrimp with shells and heads on if possible
• ▢ 10 cups water

Ingredients to grind:

• ▢ 50 g dried shrimp soak in warm water
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic
• ▢ 8 large shallots
• ▢ 5 candlenuts
• ▢ 1 thumb-size galangal Cut into 1/4 inch slices

Herbs and spices:

• ▢ 3 stalks lemongrass remove few inches of the bottom and smash with heavy objects to release flavor
• ▢ 5 bay leaves/ daun salam
• ▢ 1 star anise
• ▢ 4 white cardamom pods
• ▢ 10 cloves
• ▢ 1 cinnamon stick

Seasonings:

• ▢ 4 Tbsp coconut sugar you may substitute with Thai palm sugar but you need to add dark soy sauce so the gravy will look dark brown
• ▢ 3 Tbsp Kecap manis to taste
• ▢ Salt to taste

Thickening agent:

• ▢ 6 Tbsp Tapioca starch you may need more
• ▢ 300 g mashed red potatoes
• ▢ 300 ml shrimp stock

Toppings:

• ▢ 1 cup fresh bean sprouts
• ▢ 400 g potatoes (I use red potatoes) boiled until cooked and sliced thinly
• ▢ 2 hard-boiled eggs slice each in half
• ▢ 1 cup Chinese celery leaves finely chopped, you can substitute with regular celery leaves
• ▢ 3 limes quartered
• ▢ Crispy fried shallots / bawang goreng

Chili:

• ▢ 8-9 long green chilis or use jalapeno peppers
• ▢ 2 Thai red chili or more if you want it spicier

Instructions

 

Prepare the green chili:

• Boil the chili in water briefly until soft. Transfer to a food processor and you can either grind it finely or coarsely chop them. Set aside. They can be kept in the fridge for up to 1 week

Preparing the noodles:

• Cook the noodles in boiling water according to the package. Set aside and covered with plastic wrap until ready to serve

Preparing the shrimp stock:

• Place all ingredients for grinding in a food processor and grind into a fine paste. Add a bit of water to help it goes if needed
• Soak the dried shrimp in warm water for 10-15 minutes
• Wash the shrimp with cold running water. Pat them dry with a paper towel. Peel the shrimp and save all the shells and heads to make the stock. You only need half of the shrimp, keep the other half for other use. Cut each shrimp into about 3-4 pieces. Place the shells in a colander to make sure they are pretty dry and don't wash it anymore. Pat them dry as much as you can
• Preheat a large pot with 1 Tbsp of oil. Add in the shrimp shells and heads and saute until really fragrant and slightly char. My mom said to make sure it's slightly char as this really amplifies the aroma, about 10 minutes or so. Remove the sauteed shrimp shells onto a plate
• To the same pot, add another 1 Tbsp of oil. Add the paste you ground earlier. Saute until aromatic, about 3 minutes. Add the herbs and spices and saute for another 2 minutes. Add the sauteed shrimp shells back followed by the seasonings. Add 10 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to let the stock gently simmer for the next 30 minutes
• Strain the stock into a clean pot and discard all the solids

Preparing the toppings:

• Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Blanch the beansprouts in the water for 10 seconds and run them through a cold water. You want it to be still crunchy. Set aside
• Boil 3 large potatoes in water until fork tender. Let cool and then peel the skin and cut into slices or cubes, it's up to you. Set about 300 grams of boiled potato and mash it finely to add to the gravy later
• Blend the mashed potato with about 2 cups some shrimp stock to combine them. You can use a blender or immersion blender.
• Preheat about 1 Tbsp of cooking oil in a small skillet. Add shrimp and stir fry until they turn pink and cooked through, about 1 minute or less. Set aside. There will be some juice ooze out from the shrimp, add this back to the shrimp stock, don't throw it away

Thickening the gravy:

• Mix the tapioca with the shrimp stock. Make sure the stock is not hot when you mix or it will be lumpy
• Bring the shrimp stock back to a boil. When the stock comes to a boil, add the mashed potato mixture and stir to combine. When they are well combined, with one hand stirring, the other hand slowly pours in the tapioca mixture and stir vigorously to make sure they do not curdle up. If the gravy doesn't thicken up enough for you, add a bit more tapioca starch mixed with a bit of water
• Have a taste and adjust by adding more salt or other seasonings to suit your taste

When ready to serve :

• Portion the noodles out into an individual serving bowl. Place a few slices of boiled potatoes, some shrimp, boiled egg, sprinkle on some celery leaves and bean sprouts on top of each serving bowl. Ladle the gravy generously over the noodles. Squeeze some limes on top
• Top with crispy fried shallots. Place the crackers on the side of the bowl if using. Do this last so you don't pour the gravy over the crispy stuff. Serve with the green chili

Marv’s Recipe Notes

Thicken the gravy only when you are ready to serve, the whole dish must be served immediately after that

*Nutrition facts are just estimates and calculated using online tools*

Nutrition Facts

Mie Rebus Medan (Emie – Noodles in Shrimp Gravy)

Serving Size

 

1 serving

Amount per Serving

Calories

583

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

12

g

18

%

Saturated Fat

 

2

g

13

%

Trans Fat

 

0.03

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

2

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

5

g

Cholesterol

 

157

mg

52

%

Sodium

 

1163

mg

51

%

Potassium

 

947

mg

27

%

Carbohydrates

 

101

g

34

%

Fiber

 

9

g

38

%

Sugar

 

21

g

23

%

Protein

 

21

g

42

%

Vitamin A

 

514

IU

10

%

Vitamin C

 

51

mg

62

%

Calcium

 

139

mg

14

%

Iron

 

6

mg

33

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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