#ewew cooks Ipoh Kai Si Hor Fun (or Shredded Chicken Noodles)

For those who have followed my blog long enough, you'd know I have a "thing" for Ipoh kai si hor fun (also known as Ipoh sar hor fun, kshf in short).  My love for it knows no bounds! ;)  I simply love to eat this noodle....but only in soup form (none of that dry-style nonsense which my family begs to differ, of course....lol).

For me, it's the lovely aroma of the clear prawn stock that sets it apart from all the other soup noodles.  And that was what led me to wonder if I could make this successfully at home, so I gave it a shot just for the fun of it.

With any bowl of kshf, you start with the broth which is quintessential to the success of your kshf.....and you begin by sauteeing prawn heads (about 20 of them, leftover heads from 1 kg of prawns I bought and peeled) in some oil.  The more oil you use, the more prawn oil you'll have at the end.  As soon as the prawns cook and turn bright orange, you'll see a stream of prawn oil being extracted from the prawn heads.  That's umami right there!

Next, add the desired amount water to the sauteed prawn heads (I used an amount that's good enough for two bowls of kshf) together with some chicken bones (I used choi yin kai bones for a richer flavour).  Simmer on low heat (for at least 30 - 45 mins or until you're pleased with the flavour) to extract all the flavours from the chicken bones and prawn heads and season accordingly.  You can choose to add sugar (or rock sugar) for some sweetness but I chose not to.  See that lovely layer of orange hue goodness in the stock? ;)

At the end of it all, you'll get this bowl of deliciously rich, umami prawn-flavoured stock which was good enough for two bowls of kshf.  I was quite surprised that it was so easy to do and it looked really legit! ^.^

And that's pretty much all you have to do!  All you really need to make is the stock.  After that, all you need to do is to assemble your bowl of kshf.  Place your hor fun or kway teow in a bowl together with some Chinese chives and beansprouts (all lightly blanched).  I actually got these ingredients from the ex-Chang Kitchen boss coz since I was only making a bowl for myself, I didn't want to buy a whole packet of noodles or a bunch of chives and beansprouts just to make one portion.

Top it with some cooked prawns and shredded chicken (you can poach these two, for a little while, till cooked, in the same broth that you're simmering.  And just because it's a homemade version, you can put in big prawns...and more of it (which you won't get if you have it outside coz prawns are expensive and the hawker will usually give you measly ones).  Hah..hah...only in a homemade version can you find the liew more than the noodles.

Make sure you get the stock boiling again before pouring it over your bowl of noodles...and my homemade kshf is ready for eating! ;)  Finish with a sprinkling of homemade fried shallots (yes, I do make my own fried shallots)...but no, this came out of a bottle (make sure they're good quality fried shallots ya).

Does the broth look legit or what?  The rim of the bowl even has that foam/bubbles you see in a real bowl of kshf cooked by a kshf sifu.

In fact, my broth is even more orangey in colour than what you'd get outside...and that's because it was made with the bones of choi yin kai and not the normal broiler chicken.  Those of you who have made soups with both types of chicken before will know the difference.  Since discovering the much richer, more umami taste, I don't make soups with regular chicken anymore.

Of course, if you're making your own kshf, you can opt for larger, fresher prawns to give you that (prawn) satisfaction you need which you don't normally get from an ordered bowl since they're usually smallish.

Taste wise, to be honest, it's not as good as those from the kshf masters and that's because I refrained from adding any sugar to my stock (this obviously gives sweetness to the stock, some hawkers use rock sugar)...and no msg, of course! >.<  I think it's decent enough for a homecooked version lah! ;P

Before I attempted this, I didn't know that it was so simple to make.  Now I look at hawkers selling kshf as having a much easier job compared to other noodle hawkers selling say curry laksa, prawn mee, wantan mee or fish head noodles, for example.  A hawker once told me (the couple was selling siu chow or stir-fry noodles) that they were closing and switching to selling pork noodles instead coz the work is much easier (apparently pork noodles is the easiest as you just need to prep the stock and cut up the raw pork).

In the end, if you want to show your skills at making kshf at home (to guests), then it's worth the while (if you're making plenty), otherwise just go out, order a bowl and safe yourself from all the hassle (of making just one portion).  I did it just to see if I can...and realised it wasn't that difficult.  One thing I did learn from this cookout is that I now know not to throw away the discarded prawn heads as I can make a good stock out of it...and use that stock to make soups. ^o^