THE SECRET TO EXTRA SILKY GRAVY

The hallmark of great Wat Tan Hor Fun is of course its ‘wok hei’ flavour and an extra silky gravy that makes this dish uber slurp-a-licious! In my earlier recipe post on Dry Beef Hor Fun I touched on a simple trick to achieve that ‘wok hei’ flavour at home.

As to the gravy, the secret ingredient is potato flour (also known as original super flour) used to thicken the gravy and make it smooth and silky. Swirling in the beaten egg is also another key step.

Be careful not to overcook the egg strands – you want it to be around three-quarters cooked then immediately turn off the fire. The heat will continue to cook the egg.

HOW TO MAKE WAT TAN HOR FUN

Crack 2 eggs in a bowl and beat lightly. Peel and devein the prawns (detailed tutorial here), then add the prawns and marinade ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Cling wrap and refrigerate for later use.

Remove the root and the head part of the bean sprout, then rinse and drain dry. Pluck off the leaves from the Chye Sim, then cut into 6 cm lengths, keeping the stem and leaves separate. Wash and drain dry.

Remove the skin from the garlic and ginger. Wash and chop the garlic finely and cut the ginger into thin slices.

In a bowl, combine all the gravy ingredients and set aside. In another bowl, mix the potato flour slurry ingredients until it forms a smooth consistency.

Wash the red chilli. Remove the seeds and slice thinly for the garnishing.

Heat up 1 TBsp of oil in a wok over high heat. When the wok is very hot (smoking hot!) add in the Hor Fun and cook for one minute (see tips for why). Next, add in the light soya sauce and black vinegar.

Toss until the hor fun is slightly charred, then transfer to a plate.

Next, add 1 TBsp of oil in the wok, then add in the chopped garlic and fry till aromatic. Add the chye sim stems and fry for a minute. Then add the bean sprouts and chye sim leaves, and stir fry for another minute. Transfer to a plate.

Add another 1 TBsp of oil into the wok over high heat, then fry the sliced ginger until aromatic. Next add prawns and stir fry for 1 minute until 70-80% done (see tips), then transfer to a plate.

Next, pour the bowl of gravy ingredients into the wok and bring to a boil. Once boiling, pour back the chye sim, bean sprouts, prawns, potato starch slurry and Chinese rice wine, mixing well.

Finally, pour in the beaten egg spreading it over the gravy mixture and cook until the egg is 3/4 cooked, then remove from heat.

Pour the gravy over the Hor Fun and serve hot with red cut chilli or pickled green chilli.

MARKETING TIPS

1. Use king prawns or red-legged prawns (ang kar hei) – the prawns are the highlight of the dish, so I feel it is worth forking out more for large prawns.
2. A good brand of potato flour is Sunflower original super flour 太白粉 or Feng Che Fen (风车粉) available in local supermarkets and Redmart. Original super flour is also used in dishes like sharkfin and tau suan as a thickener.

COOKING TIPS

1. Ensure the pan and oil are well-heated when frying the hor fun as this is essential for getting the ‘wok hei’ flavour into the dish.
2. Black vinegar is another secret to aromatic Hor Fun, as it gives the Hor Fun an added ‘Wok Hei’ and a very flavourful burnt taste. You can use the Great Wall brand for this.
3. The ingredients are fried separately to avoid overcooking, as each ingredient has different cooking times.
4. Refrigerating the marinated prawns until ready to be cooked will give the prawns a more crunchy texture.
5. Cook the prawns only to 70-80% doneness during the pre-cooking stage, so that they will be just done by the end of the cooking process.
6. Add in the beaten egg last and turn off the heat once three-quarters cooked, to avoid overcooking the silky egg strands.

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Wat Tan Hor Fun (Silky Egg Hor Fun with Prawns)

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Cantonese

Keyword: Hor Fun, Silky Egg Hor Fun, Wat Dan Hor Fun

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 557kcal

Author: Bee Leng

This Wat Tan Hor Fun boasts an ultra silky and smooth texture with traces of slightly runny egg threads. Slurp it up with some pickled green chilli for ultimate satisfaction!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 TBsp Oil
• 500 gm Hor Fun ( Kway Teow )
• 1 TBsp Light Soy Sauce
• 1 TBsp Black Vinegar
• 100 gm Bean Sprout
• 3 bunches Chye Sim (菜心)
• 1 tsp Chopped Garlic
• 1 TBsp Chinese Rice Wine Shao Xing Jiu
• 2 Eggs

Read Also:  Crab Claw and Avocado Salad in Citrus Vinaigrette

Marinade

• 300 gm Prawns
• 1/2 tsp Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 2 tsp Egg

Gravy

• 600 ml Water
• 11/2 TBsp Oyster Sauce
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Sesame Oil
• 3-4 Slices Ginger

Potato Starch Slurry

• 2 TBsp Potato Flour Original Super Flour
• 3 TBsp Water

Garnishing and Sauces (optional)

• 3-4 Fresh Red Chilli/Chilli Padi
• 2 TBsp Light Soy Sauce To add to the cut chilli
• Pickled Green Chilli

Instructions

Preparation Method

• Crack 2 eggs in a bowl and beat lightly.
• Peel and devein the prawns (see tutorial here), then wash and dry drain. 
  
• Add the prawn and marinade ingredients into a bowl and mix well, then cling wrap and refrigerate for later use.
• Remove the root and the head part of the bean sprout, then rinse and drain dry.
• Pluck out the leaves from the chye sim and cut into 6cm lengths, then wash and drain dry. Keep the stem and leaves separate.
• Remove the skin from the garlic and ginger. Wash and chop the garlic finely and cut the ginger into thin slices.
• In a bowl, combine all the gravy ingredients and set aside. In another bowl, mix the potato flour slurry ingredients until it forms a smooth consistency.
• Wash the red chilli. Remove the seeds and slice thinly for the garnishing.

Cooking Method

• Put 1 TBsp of oil in a wok over high heat. Add in the Hor Fun and cook for one minute. 
• Add in the light soya sauce and sweet vinegar, and toss until the hor fun turns a slightly brown. Then transfer to a plate.
• Next, add 1 TBsp of oil in the wok, then add in the chopped garlic and fry till aromatic. 
• Add the chye sim stems and fry for a minute. Then add the bean sprouts and chye sim leaves, and stir fry for another minute. Transfer to a plate.
• Add another 1 TBsp of oil into the wok over high heat, then add in the sliced ginger and fry till aromatic. 
• Then add in the prawns and stir fry for 1 minute. 
• Next, pour in the bowl of gravy ingredients and bring to a boil.
• Once boiling, pour back the chye sim, bean sprouts and prawns and stir well. Add in the potato starch slurry and the Chinese rice wine, mixing well.
• Finally, pour in the beaten egg, swirling it over the gravy mixture and cook until the egg is 3/4 cooked, then remove from heat.  
• Pour the gravy over the Hor Fun and serve hot with red cut chilli or pickled green chilli.

Video

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Read Also:  Braised Beef Brisket Noodles (牛腩面/Ngau Lam Mein)

Notes

1. Use king prawns or red-legged prawns (ang kar hei) - the prawns are the highlight of the dish, so it is worth forking out more for large prawns.
2. A good brand of potato flour is Sunflower original super flour 太白粉 (Tai Bai Fen) or 风车粉 (Feng Che Fen) available in most supermarkets. This is a good thickener for soups and desserts.
3. Ensure the pan and oil are well-heated when frying the hor fun as this is essential for getting the 'wok hei' flavour into the dish.
4. Black vinegar is another secret to aromatic Hor Fun, as it gives the Hor Fun an added 'Wok Hei' and a very flavourful burnt taste. You can use the Great Wall brand for this.
5. The ingredients are fried separately as each ingredient has different cooking times.
6. Refrigerating the marinated prawns until ready to be cooked will give the prawns a more crunchy texture.
7. Cook the prawns only to 70-80% doneness during the pre-cooking stage, so that they will be just done by the end of the cooking process.
8. Add in the beaten egg last and turn off the heat once three-quarters cooked, to avoid overcooking the silky egg strands.

Nutrition

Calories: 557kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 280mg | Sodium: 2468mg | Potassium: 249mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 445IU | Vitamin C: 11.7mg | Calcium: 159mg | Iron: 3mg