Yi mein

Yi mein
Traditional Chinese	伊麵
Simplified Chinese	伊面
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin yī miàn - Wade–Giles I1-mien4 Cantonese (Yue) - Jyutping ji1 min6
Alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	伊府麵
Simplified Chinese	伊府面
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin yi1 fu3 mian4 - Wade–Giles I1-fu3-mien4 Cantonese (Yue) - Jyutping ji1 fu2 min6

Yi mein (also called e-fu noodles, yee-fu noodles, yi noodles, or yifu noodles) is a variety of flat Cantonese egg noodles made from wheat flour. They are known for their golden yellow color and chewy characteristics. The slightly chewy and slightly spongy texture of the noodles is due to the soda water used in making the dough (as opposed to regular non-carbonated water).

The noodles are available in dried form in plastic packages. They come in the form of flat patty-like dried bricks. The processing involves the fresh noodles being fried, then dried into this form.

Preparation

The noodles may be cooked a number of ways. They are boiled first, then can be stir fried or used in soups or salads. Good noodles maintain their elasticity, allowing the noodles to stretch and remain chewy.

Dishes

Yi mein noodles can be consumed directly or used in various dishes:

• Plain yi mein
• Plain yi mein with Chinese chives (韭王)
• Dried fried yi mein (乾炒伊麵)
• Crab meat yi mein (蟹肉伊麵)
• Lobster yi mein (龍蝦伊麵), it is sometimes served with cheese in Hong Kong.
• Yi mein with black mushrooms and eggplant

Traditions

When Yi mein is consumed on birthdays, it is generally referred to as Longevity noodles or Sau mein (壽麵/寿面). The Chinese character for "long" (長壽麵/长寿面) is also added as a prefix to represent "long life". Usually it is consumed with longevity buns during birthday celebrations.

Gallery

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  Dry fried yi mein

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  Noodles at a store in Canada

See also

• Chinese noodles

External links

• E-fu noodles from The Cook's Thesaurus site
• photo