fedification.com

Rice Noodle Vendor in Luang Prabang’s Morning Market (Laos)

Somewhere in Southeast Asia - When people ask me why I came to Thailand and what I’m doing here, I say “to eat noodles.”  Although my answer is frequently met with a raised eyebrow or abrupt laugh, it’s the most honest answer I can give without enough work to be considered gainfully employed and traveling too infrequently to be considered a traveler. Of course, there are many other things to eat - fiery salads with vegetables I’d never heard of before, sour northern curries made notably without coconut milk, wok-fried meats seasoned with chilies and kaffir lime leaves, among others.  Still the humble noodle, in its infinite variety and unerring ability to satisfy, sums it up pretty well.  At the places where I’m eating in Southeast Asia, there are no press openings, celebrity chefs, or blogs documenting every hint of an opening, closing, notable guests and the like.  In New York, my favorite neighborhood spot gets a New York Times review and the most obscure so-called ethnic restaurant in the outer boroughs has been blogged to death.  Sure there are vendors here that have their followers, but they’re there day in and day out serving their customers.  No publicists. No reservations.  No reality television shows.  Just noodles.  So, here’s my list of five notable noodles of 2008:

Khanom Jean Num Ya, Pak Khlong Talat, Bangkok, Thailand - My second day in Bangkok, I stumbled upon a street vendor selling noodles I couldn’t identify and couldn’t resist.  Months later, I found out they’re called khanom jean num ya. The noodles are made of rice that’s been pounded into a flour, mixed with water to form a dough, fermented in a warm water bath and then, I’m told, pushed through shower heads to form the noodles.  The sauce is a galangal-forward red fish curry of fresh water fish that’s been cooked until it’s broken down and ladled over the noodles.  It’s unbelievably good and months later I’m still coming back.

Khanom Jean Num Ya (Fermented Rice Noodles with Red Fish Curry)

Black Chicken Noodle Soup, Mr Huang Yun’s Shop, Mae Aw, Thailand - After a rainy two-hour journey on the back of a motorbike through mountains, villages and jungle, we arrived in cold, wet and hungry Mae Aw, a tiny mountain village composed of anti-Communist Chinese who had fled way back when.  The village, full in the high season, was practically empty.  Luckily there was hot tea and hot soup to be had. The black chicken soup was richly unctuous with tender meat and toothsome noodles.  When my friend first told me of the noodle soup, I thought black chicken referred to the preparation. That was until I saw black chickens pecking around the muddy streets of Mae Aw.

Black Chicken Noodle Soup

Nem Khiaw, Luang Prabang, Laos - There are some stalls that are only open for lunch or dinner, but one stall in Luang Prabang was more fleeting.  For just a few hours in the late afternoon, long after the morning market had closed and just as the dinner market was starting to set up, one woman sold gorgeously opaque white noodles rolled with minced pork and mushrooms, garnished with golden fried shallots and accompanied by a light, spicy dipping sauce.  They’re called nem khiaw she told me. Neither too light nor too heavy, they were the perfect snack for tiding one over through a few Beerlao until dinner. 

Nem Khiaw (Laotian Rice Noodles Stuffed with Pork and Mushrooms)

Num Ban Chouk, Market, Battambang, Cambodia - At first I wasn’t so sure about Cambodia.  I wasn’t sure about the food and the people I was meeting.  Siem Reap seemed like a characterless tourist trap.  Things turned around when I made it over to Battambang. Semi-fermented rice noodles in a light and lively broth, garnished with eye-catching flowers and herbs, served by friendly locals for about 35 cents at the town’s central market.  This was the Cambodia I was looking for. 

Num Ban Chouk (Cambodian Fermented Rice Noodles)

Pad See Ew Muu, Bangkok, Thailand - We all have our hangover foods, salty, starchy and fatty they provide comfort after a long night.  On New Years Eve, when I asked what fellow revelers hangover foods were, they responded crisps (or chips as we known them), krapow gai (chicken stir-fried with holy basil) and anything spicy, a sure enough answer for Thailand.  I’ve always been partial to noodle soups to bring me back to the land of the living, but lately I’ve gotten stuck on pad see ew muu, wide noodles wok fried with pork, greens and a touch of soy sauce.  It’s what I ordered from room service on New Years Day and what I stumbled out to find on Rama III after another 5 am night later that week. It may not be the stuff of food legends, but I couldn’t think of a better way to welcome the new year. 

Pad See Ew Muu (Wide Rice Noodles Wok Fried with Soy Sauce and Pork)

Posted in Uncategorized