Egg Noodle Soup with Wontons (Bamee Giaw)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large pot for broth
• •Second pot for blanching noodles and greens
• •Spider strainer or mesh basket (kra-chon)
• •Slotted spoon for wontons

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the wonton filling

   Combine the minced pork, chopped shrimp, minced garlic, minced cilantro root, fish sauce, white pepper, and sesame oil in a bowl. Mix with your hands until the filling turns sticky and cohesive, about two minutes of working it. You want it to slap against the side of the bowl and hold together. That tackiness is the proteins binding. It means your wontons won't fall apart in the broth.

   Cilantro root (rak phak chi) is what separates this filling from a Chinese wonton. Chinese cooks use ginger. Thai cooks use cilantro root. That single swap is the Thai hand at work. If you can't find cilantro root, scrape the stems as close to the root as possible and mince those. Don't substitute ginger. You'll make a Chinese wonton, not a Thai one.
2. 2

   Wrap the wontons

   Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of each wonton wrapper. Dip your finger in water and wet two adjacent edges. Fold into a triangle, pressing firmly to seal and expel air. Then bring the two bottom corners together and press to seal them into the classic shape, like a little nurse's cap. Work fast. They don't need to be pretty. Every noodle vendor I've watched wraps about three per second. Speed comes with repetition. Set finished wontons on a lightly floured tray so they don't stick.

3. 3

   Prepare the broth

   Bring the pork stock to a simmer. Season it with two tablespoons of fish sauce and white pepper. Taste. The broth should taste clean, savory, and slightly under-seasoned. That's deliberate. The krueng prung at the table will finish the job. If the broth is fully seasoned now, it'll be too salty after the diner adds nam pla prik. Leave room. The vendor always leaves room.

   If you don't have homemade pork stock, simmer pork bones with a few crushed garlic cloves and cilantro roots for an hour. Strain. That's your base. Store-bought stock works in a pinch, but reduce the fish sauce since commercial stock already has salt.
4. 4

   Cook the wontons

   Drop the wontons into the simmering broth. They'll sink. When they float, give them one more minute. That's it. Total time: about three minutes. Fish them out with a slotted spoon and divide into your serving bowls. Don't overcook. Overcooked wontons get mushy and the wrappers dissolve. You want the wrapper silky and the filling just set.

5. 5

   Blanch the noodles and greens

   Bring a separate pot of water to a rolling boil. Blanch the morning glory or choy sum for thirty seconds. Remove and set aside. Drop the egg noodles into the same water. Fresh bamee cooks in sixty seconds. Literally. When the noodles float and turn from stiff to springy, they're done. Drain immediately. Shake off excess water. Divide the noodles into your bowls on top of the wontons.

   Every noodle vendor in Bangkok uses a metal basket strainer (kra-chon) to dunk noodles into boiling water and pull them out in one motion. It takes exactly the time it takes to shout your order to the next customer. If you don't have one, a spider strainer works. The point is speed. Egg noodles go from perfect to overcooked in seconds.
6. 6

   Assemble and serve

   Ladle the hot broth over the noodles and wontons. Lay the sliced moo daeng on top. Nestle the blanched greens to one side. Scatter sliced green onion, cilantro leaves, and a spoonful of fried garlic with its oil over everything. The fried garlic oil will create golden pools on the broth surface. That's your fat layer, your richness, your visual cue that this bowl is ready. Set the krueng prung caddy on the table: nam pla prik, sugar, phrik pon, prik nam som. Four jars. Four pillars. Tell whoever you're feeding: season it yourself. That's how it's done.

Chef Tips

• •The krueng prung condiment caddy is not optional. It IS the final stage of cooking bamee giaw. Four jars: nam pla prik (fish sauce with sliced bird's eye chilies) for salt, sugar for sweet, phrik pon (dried chili flakes) for heat, prik nam som (white vinegar with sliced chilies) for sour. Without the caddy, the dish is unfinished. You wouldn't serve a canvas without paint.
• •Moo daeng (Thai red roast pork) is not Chinese char siu, though they're cousins. Moo daeng uses a sweeter, redder glaze and is typically served at room temperature, sliced thin. If you can't find it at a Thai or Chinese grocery, substitute crispy pork belly (moo grob) or even a simple soy-braised pork. What matters is that there's a rich pork element beside the clean broth.
• •Bamee (egg noodles) come in different widths. For soup, use the thin cut (bamee lek). For dry preparations (bamee haeng), use the wider cut. Ask your Asian grocery for fresh egg noodles, not dried. The springy, alkaline chew of fresh bamee is half the experience. Dried ramen-style noodles are a last resort, and they'll change the dish.
• •Every noodle cart in Bangkok offers the choice: nam (soup) or haeng (dry). Bamee haeng uses the same noodles and toppings but tosses them in a sauce of fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, and sometimes a spoonful of the broth. The krueng prung still comes out. Same system, different format. If you master the soup version, the dry version is just a pivot.

Advance Preparation

• •Wontons can be wrapped and frozen on a parchment-lined tray, then transferred to a bag. They'll keep for a month. Cook straight from frozen, adding one extra minute of simmering time.
• •Pork stock can be made three days ahead and refrigerated. The fat will solidify on top. Skim it or leave it, your call. The fat adds body.
• •Fried garlic (kratiam jiaw) keeps in a sealed jar at room temperature for a week. Make a big batch. You'll use it on everything.
• •Nam pla prik keeps for weeks in the fridge. Slice bird's eye chilies into good fish sauce. Done. Every Thai kitchen has a jar of this at all times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 480g)