Rice Noodle Me Hoon, a refreshing vegetarian dish from Sabah
Light and refreshing, it’s something I don’t often come across in Sabah, Malaysia. But Rice Noodle Me Hoon is just that. Yet, surprisingly filling.
It’s also been a long time since I’ve had al dente noodles! Served with fresh crunchy sugar snap peas, shredded carrot and some spicy chili on the side. There’s also an option to have chicken in this dish but the vegetarian choice was great for a change.
Rice noodles by more than one name …
Rice vermicelli, Bee hoon, Cantonese noodles or Mee Hoon noodles? Yes, like many things in Sabah they get a different name depending on where you eat. I’ve had people get fiercely annoyed about Mee Hoon noodles being called Bee Hoon, and vice versa. So, I’m going with what’s in the photo I took, and the corresponding menu!
Eating health is not easy in Sabah, Malaysia or is it?
One side effect of so much great Sabahan food, and it is fantastic, is that you can go overboard. Eating rich foods like Murtabak, Beef Rendang, or even Hainanese Chicken day in day out no matter how good they taste. Or how much walking you can put in, is that it takes it’s tole. And ultimately can leave you wanting something a little lighter.
Rice noodles will do the trick! Often bland or soaked in some oily liquid, Me Hoon rice noodles take things in a different direction. Fresh, crunchy, and light! Yet good enough to keep you going until dinner.
Best of all, they are available at all good corner eateries in Sabah, Malaysia.
Vegetarian options! Always happy to see them featured here. Looks so good.
Yes, I’ll try some more soon!
My take on it – it’s a language variation thing. Mee Hoon – Malay variation, a slight bastardization of the Chinese Hokkien/Minnan words, Bee Hoon. How is it crunchy, by the way? It’s not supposed to be that way, unless it’s nearly burnt to a crisp. It’s soft, and slides down the throat.
Hmm, you’re probably right with the language variation. But, I left it in there live that, as I was bound to get a … it’s not Mee Hoon comment :) Also many people not acquainted with Malaysian food might not know that many things come under different names depending on region, culture etc within Malaysia.
Crunchy? The sugar snap peas and carrots. Also the noodles here, were al dente and certainly had a good bite to them! But I know the type of Mee Hoon you been, I’ve seen the soft noodle one, but I really much preferred this variation as it was just so fresh.
Looks delicous! Gonna see if it’s available at the Indonesian restaurant (a huge favourite in Holland) near us. Although, there´s nothing nicer than eating food in it´s place of origin.
I hope it’s available for you. If they are genuine Indonesians, you should be in for a treat.
good post that dish looks great
i call this as ‘mee hoon’. And i can cook it very well. :D
So be it! It will from now on be known as “Mee Hoon” ;)
Looks great! I was only in Malaysia for a week and the food was fantastic! I wish I had had more time to sample more foods :)
Yep, I think I am going to miss lemon grass in nearly all my meals a lot! And, at the start I thought it was too much :)
Looks very yummy and I will soon be there :)
But how does this dish rank on the “spicy index”?
Very, very low on the spicy index. Spice was accompanied on the side.