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A super easy one-pan stir-fried noodles perfect for any day of the week, pot lucks, or any gathering to feed the crowd. Don’t let the pale white color fools you. White bee hoon is anything but pale!
Stir-fried bee hoon (thin rice vermicelli noodles) was one of the food mom made often for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It’s more of a breakfast food in our house, to be honest. We call this bihun goreng putih in Indonesia. For simplicity or quick breakfast, mom would just stir-fried the noodles with eggs for protein and some Chinese greens like choy sum (chai sim) and we would polish it off faster than she made it. The appearance of the overall dish is usually white pale in color.
FRIED WHITE BEE HOON
I learned about this term “fried white bee hoon” in Singapore. It is a very popular fried noodles in Singapore, from homecooks, Zi Char places (food stalls), all the way to restaurants dining will have this dish. Singaporean loves this dish. In Chinese we call it “chao (stir-fried) bai (white) mi fen (rice vermicelli noodles)”. Named as such simply because of the white pale overall appearance.
FLAVORFUL DESPITE ITS PALE APPEARANCE
Please don’t let its humble pale appearance fools you. The key to making a good fried white bee hoon is in the stock. You can use your best homemade chicken bone stock to cook this dish, which I did this round. I don’t always have bone stock available, and I have cooked this fried white bee hoon with store-bought chicken stock too and the dish still turns out delicious.
This is the rice vermicelli noodles I used. It’s thinner than regular rice vermicelli noodles. Some companies label it as angel hair rice vermicelli noodles.
PROTEIN CHOICES TO USE FOR FRIED WHITE BEE HOON
You can use any of the following and not limited to just one. You can combine seafood with meat too if you fancy that.
Seafood: Shrimp, clams, squid, firm white fish slices
Meat: boneless skinless chicken, pork, beef
Vegan or vegetarian: dried bean curd slices, extra-firm tofu
VEGETABLES TO USE FOR FRIED WHITE BEE HOON
I used shredded cabbage and carrots for some contrast of color. You can use any of the following:
Baby bok choy, choy sum, and beansprouts are perfect to use for this dish
A COUPLE OF KEYS TO MAKE AMAZING FRIED WHITE BEE HOON AT HOME
1. If you are using thin noodles like mine, do not soak the noodles. If your rice noodles are thick-type, then soak for 5-10 minutes. We will simmer the noodles in the stock later and we don’t want them to turn to a mush
2. Cook the seafood and/or meat first and then dish out to prevent overcooking
3. If you are not familiar with stir-frying noodles, I suggest halving the recipe portion instead of doing a big batch as I did. It’s easier for you to manage
So, what do you think? Pretty simple to make aye? If you make a big batch like I did, it can surely feed many.
Stir-fried White Bee Hoon (Bihun Goreng Putih)
Ingredients
- 500 gr dried thin vermicelli noodles
- 4 dried bean curd slices optional
- 3 Tbsp cooking oil divided
To marinate the shrimp:
- 300 gr large shrimp peeled, deveined
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp ground white pepper
Aromatics:
- 5 cloves garlic peeled, finely minced
- 5 stalks green onion separate green and white parts
Vegetables:
- 1 carrot julienned
- 2 cups cabbage shredded or other veggies of your choice
Seasonings:
- 2 cups chicken stock or more as needed
- 1 Tbsp Better than bouillon or use 1 cube of bouillon
- 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce or more to taste
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce or more to taste
- 1 tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp salt to taste
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
Instructions
- You will get a large amount with this recipe. If you are new to stir-frying noodles, I suggest half the recipe. It's easier to manage when you stir-fry a smaller portion. This is something to keep in mind
Things to prepare before cooking:
- Marinate the shrimp and set aside while you prepare other things
- Update: If you are using very thin rice noodles like mine, do not soak them in water as we will braise them in a stock later. If you use thick rice noodles, soak for 5-10 minutes just until they are soft
- Soak the dried bean curd slices (if using) in hot water until soft. Separate the white and green part of the green onion. Cut into about 3-inch pieces
- Mix all ingredients for seasonings together and set aside
Cooking:
- Preheat a large wok or skillet over high heat. Add 1 Tbsp of cooking oil. Add the shrimp and stir fry until they turn pink and cooked through. Dish out and set aside
- Bring the wok or skillet back to hot. Add the rest of the cooking oil. Add garlic and white part of scallions and stir fry until aromatic, about 1 minute
- Add carrots and cabbage (if using0 and stir fry for about 3 minutes.
- Add bean curd sticks (if using)
- Pour about 1/4 cup of chicken stock
- Cover with a lid and cook for the next 2 minutes or until cabbage is soft
- Uncover the lid and add noodles and seasonings. Add 2 cups of the chicken stock. Stir to mix everything. Bring to a simmer and cover with a lid to let the noodles absorb the stock and almost dry up
- Add the shrimp back. Have a final taste and add more soy sauce to your taste if needed
- Scatter in the green part of green onion and stir to mix everything. Turn off the heat. The residual heat will continue to soften the green onion
- Serve immediately with pickled green chili or your favorite sambal chili
RECOMMEDED TOOLS
*Nutrition facts are just estimates and calculated using online tools*
Did you make this stir-fried white bee hoon recipe?
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6 comments
I have tried this updated version. I personally don’t like it.
I liked when I had to soak the noodles for a few minutes because I could taste the flavors when mixed with the sauces. My noodles came out moist when the liquid dried up.
This updated version left my noodles dry. I did not feel the sauces absorbed into the noodles. And because it was dry, I felt it was hard to swallow without drinking a bit of water.
Would you be able to post the former version in your recipes as well, please?
Way too much water. Didn’t work out for us. Smell was nice though
Sorry for the trouble you had. If you use a very thin rice noodles like mine, you can skip soaking the noodles. I have updated the recipe accordingly. Since different brand of rice noodles may be used, I suggest starting with 2 cups of chicken stock and add as needed.
At the end of the recipe, you say to add more soy sauce to your taste if necessary, but I do not see where soy sauce is in the recipe. Am I missing it? It definitely needs soy sauce. I have made this recipe a couple of times now, and find that I have better success without soaking the noodles before adding. Flavor is good though.
I have added soy sauce in the ingredients. It was missing from the ingredient list. Thank you for letting me know.
I am adding this recipe to our menu for next week. Looks great. We all love vermicelli noodles at home, two nights ago I made green shrimp curry with them. They are the best! Absolutely can see why you ate them really fast as a kid:)