Why Not Taste Hue Tieu, Pork Noodle Soup

Have you ever heard of one of Vietnam’s signature dishes, a pork noodle soup called hu tieu? The origins of hu tieu can be traced back to the Chinese and the Cambodians who created and later made this dish popular in Saigon. It has now become a signature dish of the south and you can run into a hu tieu vendor in practically every nook and cranny, you may even find more stalls serving this dish than pho vendors.

While there are a dozen variations of hu tieu, the broth is pretty much the same in every version. This is thanks to a mixture of bones, dried squid, rock sugar along with pork and vegetables which are left to simmer for hours.

The most popular type of hu tieu is hu tieu Nam Vang. This article will give you a closer look into how to get a bowl of steaming hu tieu Nam Vang.

How to Make Hu Tieu

Ingredients:

• 225g pork tenderloin
• 225g dried hu tieu noodles, soaked in lukewarm water for 20 minutes
• 20 shrimps, shelled and deveined
• 1 lime, cut into quarters
• 115g bean sprouts
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 2 green or red Thai chilies, seeded and finely sliced
• 1 garlic clove, finely sliced
• Coriander leaves, stalks removed, leaves roughly chopped
• Basil leaves, stalks removed, leaves roughly chopped

For the Stock:

• 1 onion, peeled and quartered
• 225g carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 15ml fish sauce
• 15ml soy sauce
• 6 peppercorn
• 25g dried squid (smoky dried squids in markets such as Cho Lon, Ben Thanh market taste the best)
• 675g pork ribs

Instructions:

• First, for the stock, take the dried squid and soak it in water for half an hour, then rinse and let it dry. Pour approximately 2.5 liters of water into a large pan and put the ribs in.
• After the water is boiled, skim off any fat then add the remaining stock ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour, uncover to skim off any foam or fat and simmer for another 1 hour.
• Start seasoning to your liking. Pour the stock into a deep pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat before adding the pork tenderloin and then simmer for about 25 minutes.
• Continue simmering the stock over low heat. Meanwhile, take the tenderloin out and cut it into thin slices. Boil another pan of water, add the rice sticks.
• Cook for about 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain the noodles and divide them among 4 bowls.
• Cook the shrimp in boiling stock for 1 minute then lift them out and together with the slices of pork place them on top of the noodles. Ladle the hot stock over them and sprinkle with herbs, spring onions, chilies, beans sprouts, and garlic.
• Finally, serve the dish with one lemon pieces and a small bowl of fish sauce.