Although I have yet to try the original Mi Quang from its birthplace of Quang Nam Province of Vietnam, my mom’s Mi Quang is so much tastier than any that I’ve had at restaurants. My mom was born and raised in Quang Ngai (within Quang Nam province), so I take it that I’ve got a good mi quang recipe source to backup my take on what it should taste like.
What is Mi Quang?
This flat rice noodle in Mi Quang is from rice noodle, and dyed yellow using tumeric. I am not sure to why it is called “mi” which translate to “wheat noodles or egg noodles”, when it is made from rice noodles.
This is a pork and shrimp broth dish. It is supposedly be eaten with very little soup as compared to pho or other Vietnamese noodle soup dish. The broth is salty, sweet, with aromatic of shellfish flavor and boldness of pork ribs.
Mi quang is so much easier to cook compared to Pho. Also, it would be a bit cheaper to make when compared to pho or bun rieu.
Do they serve Mi Quang in Vietnamese restaurants in the States?
There are not too many restaurant in the States that serves up Mi Quang. It is because only Vietnamese are familiar to the dish. I’ve had it a few times at different restaurants, but it always is a disappointment. I am not sure how they fail to serve up this simple noodle bowl.
I can only imagine that the shrimp shells does gets a bit hard from the sugar caramelization if left too long. It is a bit hard to maintain the freshness and quality of this noodle dish when served at a restaurant. It’s probably better to make it at home anyways. 🙂
Mi Quang
Ingredients
- 5-6 lbs Pork Ribs Cleaned and chopped to cubes/chunks.
- 3 lbs Pork Belly Cleaned and sliced square pieces.
- 4 lbs Shrimps (head on) Cleaned and leave whole (cut off legs and horn)
- 3 tbsp Garlic Finely Minced.
- 3 tbsp Large Shallots FInely Minced.
- 4 oz Mi Quang Seasoning (2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp Salt, 2 tbsp cayen, 2 tbsp paprika, 2 tsp MSG)
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 4 tsp Turmeric Powder
- 3 tsp Ground Black pepper
- 6-8 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 4 tbsp Chicken Granulated Seasoning (1 tbsp MSG)
- 2 cans Boiled Quail Eggs
- 2 Liters Coconut Water
- 2 cans VEgetable Broth
- 3 oz Dried Shrimp soak in cold water for 30 min
- Vegetable Oil
- Flat Rice Noodles (Dyed yellow with turmeric)
- Lettuce & Mints chopped to strings.
- Crushed Toasted Peanuts
- Black Sesame Toasted Rice Crackers
- Shredded Banana Flowers
Instructions
Marinade Pork Ribs
- Marinade pork ribs chunks with: 2 oz Mi Quang Seasoning (or half of the mixture using the separate ingredients)1/2 of minced garlic, 1/2 of minced shallots, 2 tbsp sugar, 3 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp ground black peppers, 2 tsp turmeric powder, 2 tsp chicken granulated seasoning.
- Give good mix, then add a bit of cooking oil to keep meat moist. cover and let marinade outside for 1 hour.
Marinade Pork Belly and Shrimp
- Marinade the same for each SEPARATELY. Different cooking time.1 oz mi quang seasoning, 1/4 minced garlic, 1/4 minced shallots, 1 tbsp sugar, 1.5 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp ground black peppers, 1 tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp chicken granulated seasoning.
- mix well, then add bit of oil and mix again. Cover and let marinade for at least 1 hr.
Broth
- In a pot, add a bit of oil and fry up some minced shallots and garlic till aromatic.
- Add in the marinated pork ribs and stir fry until evely seared.
- add in 2 liters coconut water
- add in 2 cans vegetable broth
- add in 1 liter of water
- bring to boil and add in dried shrimp (in container pod/pouch).skim off any foam that comes to the top.
- Let simmer on Medium heat for 1 hr
- add in 1 cans boiled quail eggs.Taste and adjust broth to your taste. (add fish sauce, chicken granulate, water if too salty, ect.)simmer for another 30 min or until ribs is tender to your liking. (don't let it be too tender)
Toppings
- In a deep pan,add a bit of oil, minced shallots, and garlic – fry till aromatic.
- add in the marinated pork belly slices.stir fry until pork is evenly cooked. Add in the marinated shrimps. Make sure the pork is about cooked first before adding the shrimp since shrimps cook very fast.stir fry until all shrimps have turned a solid orange.
- add in 1 cups of our cooked broth. taste and adjust to your liking.simmer on medium for another 2-3 min.turn off heat and ready to serve!
Putting it All Together
- Put flat wide rice noodles in bowl.Top off with the stir fried sliced pork and shrimps.Add in broth. Traditionally the broth for this dish is not abundant. Only pour broth a bit under the noodles. You can add more broth if you choose to after you start eating.Top off with crushed peanuts, lettuce, banana flower shreds, mints, and rice crackers. (chili oil or spicy if you wish)ENJOY!
