Rice vermicelli

Rice vermicelli
Strands of bihon vermicelli
Chinese name
Chinese	米粉
Transcriptions Hakka - Romanization mi fun Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin mífěn Min - Hokkien POJ bí-hún Wu - Shanghainese romanization mi3 fen1 Cantonese (Yue) - Jyutping mai3 fen2
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese	bún
Thai name
Thai	เส้นหมี่ (sen mee)
Malay name
Malay	bihun
Filipino name
Tagalog	bihon or bijon
Tamil name
Tamil	சேவை (sevai)

Rice vermicelli are thin noodles made from rice and are a form of rice noodles. They are sometimes referred to as rice noodles or rice sticks, but they should not be confused with cellophane noodles, which is another type of vermicelli.

Etymology and preparation

Rice vermicelli are a part of several Asian cuisines, where they are often eaten as part of a soup dish, stir fry, or salad. One particularly well known, slightly thicker variety, is called Guilin mǐfěn (桂林米粉), comes from the southern Chinese city of Guilin, where it is a breakfast staple.

Notable dishes

Rice vermicelli has a white color when cooked. It is generally much shorter than Chinese vermicelli.

China

• Cantonese noodles: A large number of Cantonese dishes use this ingredient (called maifun in Cantonese). Usually the noodles are simmered in broth with other ingredients such as fish balls, beef balls, and/or fish slices.
• In Fujian and Teochew cuisine, rice vermicelli is a commonly used noodle and is served either in soup, stir-fried and dressed with a sauce, or even 'dry' (without soup) with added ingredients and condiments.

Taiwan

• Taiwanese fried rice vermicelli is the dry, stir-fried local style (particularly known in the Hsinchu region). Its main ingredients include sliced pork, dried shrimp, and carrots.
• A Hsinchu specialty is to serve rice vermicelli 'dry' 乾 (gan, not in a soup) with mushroom and ground pork.

Hong Kong

• Singapore style noodles (星州炒米, Xīng zhōu cháo mǐ) is a dish of fried rice vermicelli common in Hong Kong Cantonese-style eateries, inspired by the spicy cuisines of Southeast Asia.

Vietnam

• Bánh hỏi
• Bún riêu is rice vermicelli in soup with crab meat.
• Bún thịt nướng is a Vietnamese dish consisting of grilled pork (often shredded) and vermicelli noodles over a bed of greens (salad and sliced cucumber), herbs and bean sprouts. Also, it often includes a few chopped egg rolls, spring onions, and shrimp. It is commonly served with roasted peanuts on top and a small bowl of nước chấm.
• Summer roll is rice vermicelli with shrimp and herbs in a rice paper roll.
• Bún bò Huế

Singapore and Malaysia

• Kerabu bee hoon is a Nyonya-style rice vermicelli dish, mixed with herbs and other seasonings.
• Hokkien mee, commonly in Singapore, consists of rice vermicelli mixed with yellow noodles and fried with shrimp, sliced cuttlefish and pork bits. Hokkien mee throughout Malaysia varies considerably due to regional differences.
• Satay bee hoon is rice vermicelli served with spicy peanut satay sauce, common in Singapore.

Myanmar

• Mohinga, in Myanmar, is rice vermicelli served with curry gravy and fish.
• Mont Di is rice vermicelli served with clear fish soup or as salad with fish flakes.

India and Pakistan

• Sawaeyaa is a famous dish made from vermicelli cooked in milk sugar and dry nuts. It is eaten on Diwali, Eid, and other happy occasions in parts of India and Bangladesh.
• Paayasam is a famous South Indian sweet dish made from vermicelli, sago, sugar, spices and nuts and milk.
• Santhakai is a staple South Indian breakfast dish.

See also

• Chinese noodles
• Pancit
• Sevai
• Shahe fen

External links

• Rice noodles
• World's longest rice noodles
• Recipes for noodles