Mì Quảng

Since mì Quảng originated from Quảng Nam province right here, all the more we ought to taste a few versions of the rice noodles tinted yellow with turmeric. Udon-like, but thinner. Almost like a thick kway teow. Eating the noodles at the eateries in other Vietnamese cities or good eateries outside of Vietnam doesn't count. I already know that the tastebuds prefer this any day over phở. I'd love to know how the locals cook it and set out to eat a couple of versions.

The meat can be either shrimp, pork, chicken, beef or fish. Versatile. The broth is usually boiled from a mix of pork and chicken bones and dried shrimp. That broth is just poured in 2cm thick at the bottom, enough to moisten the noodles and that's all. It's not meant to be soup, although towns in southern Vietnam tend to prefer the noodles to sit in more soup. There's a local couplet about this mì Quảng. Something about a girl inviting her lover to a cup of green tea and making him a bowl of noodles. Don't look at me. As much as I love this dish, I'm not inspired to make it yet.

Thương nhau múc bát chè xanh, Làm tô mì Quảng anh xơi cho cùng.

There're many little stalls offering different versions, with the most common being pork, then chicken. This is Central Vietnam, so often, the broth is minimal, as opposed to what the South prefers. This is definitely my favorite type of Vietnamese rice noodles. Love all the toasted peanuts, rice crackers and greens. And THOSE GREEN CHILLIES. It's a big satisfying spicy chilli that I like just biting like that with every slurp of noodles. I usually leave the meat aside, opting to finish the noodles to the last strand. But at seafood eateries in the Son Tra District, especially those along My Khe Beach (yes, of that 'China Beach' 80s soap), mì Quảng topped with fish or big prawns are easily done if you ask for it. Or just shrimp and pork as the usual mì Quảng tôm thịt trứng is great too.

There's a version with eel- mì quảng lươn. I'm not a fan of sea or river eels because of those weird tiny bones I can't get over. So didn't try that. If I can avoid pork, I will. My favorite is the fish- mì Quảng cá lóc. It's apparently a specialty from Gia An commune in the Tánh Linh district of Bình Thuận Province, close to Ho Chi Minh City. Of course the fish used is the snakehead. IF I ever re-create this, I'll experiment with a broth of daikon and mushrooms, and other types of fish. Maybe the kurau or ikan parang. Or even monkfish. We'll see. Where can I get fresh Quảng noodles in Singapore?

mì Quảng cá lóc.