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Thursday, November 18, 2010

The Ham & Macaroni Noodles Soup (Hong Kong Style)

Ham & macaroni soup noodle is a popular dish in Asia, especially Hong Kong. You will find this dish on the menu at any Café Style Restaurants. Some people like to eat this as part of their breakfast where some like to eat like congee with a dinner bun. It is very light and easy to intake. This dish is also known as “the recovery” food for the one who is feeling under the weather or just recovered from illness This dish is so common that the majority of all Asian mothers know how to cook this for their love one at home.

Lala's Ham & Macaroni Noodle Soup
In my family, we eat this dish very often. My son likes noodle in soup and not too keen on rice in general. I prefer not to use the instant can soup for the broth because they are so high in sodium and MSG. I like to make my own broth from scratch.
The vegetables I used are: peas, corns and carrots. Turkey neck bones and 1/2lbs of pork is what I used to make my broth with and high quality black forest ham for meat. Occasionally, I would add an fried egg for extra protein but this is optional. This is atypical home cooked meal with full of nutrients. In a simple dish like this we've covered; calcium, carbohydrates, proteins and fibers. It is much better and healthier than a pack of instant noodle. My family loves this dish and it is easy for me to make. The cooking time for this is approx. 45 minutes and we will have ourselves a nice tasty dinner.
*Lala’s own recipe:
Ingredients: (serving for 4)
·         4  cups of dry macaroni noodle (Scoobidoo noodles in the picture)
·         1/2lb of black forest ham
·         4 cups of Green Giant frozen mixed vegetables (carrots, corns, and peas)
·         ¼ bunch of Chinese Cilantro (diced)
·         ½ lbs pork (sliced)
·         1 pack of turkey neck soup bone
·         2 tps of salt
·         1 tbps of fish sauce
·         1 tps of chicken stock powder
·         1 pinch of pepper (the pepper is optional if made for children)

Preparation:

Create the soup based with turkey neck soup bones and the pork. Cook for about 30 minutes until its more favorable.  Put on a separate pot of hot water, boil the frozen vegetables on the side (don’t over cooked the vegetables or it will get soggy). Set the vegetables aside, do not mix with the broth. Boil the macaroni noodles separately. Once the noodles are cooked, drain it well and run it under cold tap water for about 3 minutes so that the noodles won’t stick together. Cut the ham into slices and place them on the noodle at the end. To serve this, place the noodles in a bowl, put the cooked veggies on top than place the ham and cilantro on last. Finally, pour the broth over the whole thing. The macaroni and ham noodle soup is ready. Enjoy!