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How to cook Prawn noodle soup (hae mee)

Prawn noodle soup (hae mee) is a Singapore hawker favourite: yellow noodles and bee hoon in a deeply savoury broth built from roasted prawn heads and pork ribs, topped with prawns, pork slices, kangkong, beansprouts and egg, with a spoonful of chilli on the side. This home version shows how to build the broth from scratch and make a simple fried chilli paste to finish.

Ingredients

For the prawn and pork broth

• 500 g medium prawns, shell-on, heads on
• 500 g pork ribs, cut into short pieces
• 3 tbsp cooking oil
• 6 garlic cloves, lightly smashed
• 2.5 litres water
• 20 g rock sugar
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp salt, to taste
• 1/2 tsp white pepper

For the fried chilli paste

• 15 g dried chillies, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes and drained
• 5 red chillies, deseeded and roughly chopped
• 30 g dried shrimp (hae bee), rinsed and soaked for 10 minutes
• 6 shallots, peeled
• 3 garlic cloves
• 4 tbsp cooking oil
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp tamarind paste, optional, for tang

For the toppings and noodles

• 300 g yellow egg noodles
• 150 g thick bee hoon (rice vermicelli)
• 200 g kangkong (water spinach), cut into 6 cm lengths
• 150 g beansprouts, tails trimmed
• 4 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and halved
• 2 tbsp fried shallots
• 1 spring onion, finely sliced
• 2 red chillies, sliced, for serving
• 4 calamansi limes, halved, for serving

Steps

1. Separate the prawns15 min
   Pull the heads off the prawns and set aside. Peel the bodies, leaving the tails on, and devein them. Keep every shell. Refrigerate the peeled prawns until needed.
2. Blanch the ribs8 min
   Place the ribs in a pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for 3 minutes until grey scum rises, then drain and rinse the ribs under running water. Wash the pot.
3. Roast the heads and shells8 min
   Heat 3 tbsp oil in the clean pot over medium-high heat. Add the prawn heads and shells and the garlic. Stir and press the heads with a spoon for 6 to 8 minutes, until the shells turn deep orange-red and smell toasty and the oil turns orange.
4. Simmer the broth1 hr
   Add the blanched ribs and 2.5 litres water. Bring to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer. Skim off foam. Simmer partly covered for 60 minutes, until the ribs are tender and the broth is reddish-orange and savoury.
5. Make the chilli paste15 min
   While the broth simmers, blend the drained dried chillies, red chillies, drained dried shrimp, shallots and garlic into a coarse paste, adding 2 to 3 tbsp water if needed. Heat 4 tbsp oil in a pan over medium heat and fry the paste, stirring often, for 10 to 12 minutes until the oil separates and the paste darkens and smells fragrant. Stir in sugar, salt and tamarind paste, cook 1 minute more, then cool.
6. Strain and season the broth10 min
   Remove the ribs with tongs and set aside. Strain the broth through a fine sieve, pressing the shells to extract flavour, and discard the solids. Return the broth to the pot, add rock sugar, light soy sauce, salt and pepper, and simmer 5 minutes. Taste and adjust; it should be sweet-savoury and rounded.
7. Cook the prawns3 min
   Bring the broth to a steady simmer. Add the peeled prawns and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until they curl and turn opaque pink throughout. Lift them out immediately with a slotted spoon so they stay springy. Halve the prawns lengthwise if you like.
8. Boil the noodles6 min
   Bring a separate large pot of water to a rolling boil. Cook the bee hoon for 2 to 3 minutes until soft, then scoop out into a strainer. In the same water, cook the yellow noodles for 1 minute to loosen and remove the raw taste. Drain each well and divide among 4 bowls.
9. Blanch the vegetables3 min
   In the same boiling water, blanch the kangkong for 30 to 40 seconds until bright green and just tender. Scoop out and drain. Blanch the beansprouts for 15 seconds, then drain. Shake off excess water so the soup is not diluted.
10. Assemble the bowls4 min
    Top each bowl of noodles with prawns, a few rib pieces, kangkong, beansprouts and an egg half. Ladle in about 350 ml of piping-hot broth per bowl. Finish with fried shallots, spring onion and sliced chilli.
11. Serve
    Serve at once with a spoonful of the fried chilli paste and a calamansi half on the side, so each person can stir the chilli into the soup and squeeze in lime to taste. Alternative: serve the noodles dry by tossing them with a spoon of chilli paste, a splash of broth and a little oil, with the soup in a small bowl alongside.

Tips

• Roast the prawn heads until they are properly orange and fragrant; this step builds most of the broth's flavour.
• Do not overcook the peeled prawns in the broth; pull them out as soon as they curl and turn pink so they stay juicy.
• Rinse the yellow noodles briefly in hot water if they smell strongly of lye or are very oily.
• The broth and chilli paste can be made a day ahead; reheat the broth to a full boil before assembling.
• Adjust the sweetness with rock sugar a little at a time, tasting as you go.

Food safety and allergens

Cook prawns until they are opaque and pink all the way through, and bring reheated broth to a rolling boil before serving. Cool leftover broth quickly and refrigerate for up to 2 days, keeping the noodles and toppings separate.

Contains: egg, shellfish, soy, wheat

Watch it being made

• SINGAPORE Prawn Noodle Soup & Prawn Noodles w/ Chilli Recipe 虾面汤 虾面干 Chinese Noodles RecipeSpice N' Pans · 337,889 views · YouTube
• How to make Singapore Prawn Noodles SoupCarmenChanCooks · 321,405 views · YouTube
• Hae Mee (Prawn Noodles)Flavours Of Asia · 232,849 views · YouTube

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