How to cook My Quang with pork and shrimp
Ingredients: (10 servings)
500g shrimps
500g pork belly
500g tomatoes
Lime, green pepperoni
Fresh greens: mint leaves , perilla leaves, lettuce, coriander, bean sprouts, banana blossom etc.
Crushed peanuts, rice cracker
2 pack flat rice noodle (5mm thick) 400g each
Turmeric powder, fish sauce, chicken stock
Directions:
To prepare banana blossom, mix 2 tbsp vinegar or lime juice in 1 liter of cold water in a bowl, remove outer layers of the banana blossom, slice it VERY thinly and place it immediately in the water to prevent it from blackening. After that wash 2 times under cold water and drain.
For the fresh greens we remove the stems of herbs, and lettuce, wash them 3 times , drain and cut them into thin strips, abt 1cm thick. Mix with banana blossom and bean sprouts.
For the pork belly we slice them into thin slices. Then add 1tbsp minced shallot, , 1tsp turmeric powder. 1tsp salt, 1tbsp fish sauce. Mix well and Marinate for at least 30 mins.
For the shrimps we leave the shell on, just trim off the tip of the head, the end of the tail and the legs. Season with salt and pepper , abt ½ tsp each
Let’s start cooking
Heat 2tbsp cooking oil in a pan, fry 1 tbsp minced garlic and add tomatoes which I have removed the seeds and diced. Add 1tbsp fish sauce, we want to cook the tomatoes until they become a thick sauce which will help to make the broth thicker and have tempting color later. The fish sauce helps the tomato to cook faster. Cover the lid and cook for 20 mins.
Meanwhile heat 1tbsp oil in a pan, then sautee the pork for about 5 mins. Then transfer it to a bowl. It doesn’t have to be fully cooked at this stage.
Heat another 1 tbsp oil in the same pan, then sautee the shrimps for 1 mins, add 1tbsp sugar, sautee for another 1 mins, then add 1 tbsp fish sauce and simmer under low heat until the sauce dry out. (abt 8-10mins)
Now add 1.2 liter of chicken broth or pork broth to the tomato sauce we cook earlier . If you don’t have chicken or pork broth, it is ok just to use water. Bring to boil and transfer the sautee pork belly into it.
Add 2tbsp fish sauce, 2 tsp chicken stock, 1tsp salt to the stock. (Pls adjust to your taste, remember the broth should be saltier than your normal taste because unlike Pho or Bun Bo Hue, we use a lot less broth for each bowl of Mi Quang.)
Cook the noodle
Noodle for Mi Quang is normally thicker and wider than the noodle for Pho.
To cook 1 pack of 400g noodle we boil 2 liter of water and add 1 tbsp cooking oil to prevent the noodle from sticking to each other.
Then cook the noodle for 5-10 mins as instructed in the package. If you want to dye the noodle yellow, just 1 mins before the noodle is cooked, add ¼ tsp turmeric powder. Then drain the noodle in a strainer and wash them again under cold running water.
Assemble the dish
In a serving bowl, place the noodle on top of the greens, add 2 shrimps on top, and 2 laddle of the broth, just half the bowl full. Sprinkle spring onion and coriander on top, some crushed peanuts, a piece of rice cracker. It will be served with a lime wedge, a green pepperoni, and more fresh greens.
Stir well before serving and enjoy.
