Noodle Dish

Germany

One of the staples of traditional Swabian cuisine, linsen mit sp&auml;tzle combines a thick and creamy stew of brown lentils (linsen) with soft egg noodles (sp&auml;tzle). Lentils are braised with bacon and vegetables and then simmered until soft and fully cooked in meat or vegetable broth, which is usually thickened with roux. The broth is typically enhanced with tomato paste and seasoned with vinegar, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Warm and filling, the lentil stew is then transferred to a plate of boiled sp&auml;tzle noodles, and it is usually enjoyed with a side of saitenwurst sausages (German string sausages) and a cold beer. This hearty combination makes a frequent appearance in restaurants and university cafeterias in the region, but it is also a beloved home-cooked dish in numerous Swabian households.

Linsen mit Spätzle

China

Another classic of Chinese cuisine, Guangdongese lo mein or laomian (lit. stirred noodles) refers to any kind of dish made with separately boiled wheat and egg noodles which are then tossed in a savory sauce and mixed with various stir-fried vegetables or meats. When cooked properly, lo mein should be springy and have a firm bite to them, just like Italian pasta or Japanese ramen. For that strong kick of umami, the Chinese typically flavor their lo mein dishes with sesame oil, green onions, ginger, and oyster or soy sauce. Depending on the recipe, these noodles are often found served with cabbage hearts, carrots, snow peas, shiitake mushrooms, and different meats such as beef, chicken, pork, or even seafood.

Lo mein

Lor mee is a noodle dish that can be found in Malaysia and Singapore. It consists of thick yellow noodles in a starchy gravy made with eggs, cornstarch, and spices. The noodles are additionally enriched with seafood, fish cakes, hard-boiled eggs, pork or chicken dumplings, and pork belly slices. This dish can be found at lor mee stalls, and the vendors will usually add coriander, minced garlic, black vinegar, or chili paste to the dish in order to give it extra flavor.

Lor mee

Luosifen, a native to Liuzhou in China's Guangxi province, is a dish consisting of a snail-based broth, rice noodles, and an array of additional ingredients, typically including pickled bamboo shoots, peanuts, tofu skins, and green vegetables. The hot and spicy taste comes from an elaborate concoction of spices and herbs that's used to make the broth, as well as a sizable amount of chili oil that's added to the finished soup at the end. Luosifen is typically sold by street vendors and only rarely served in restaurants, with each place having their secret recipe. Recently, specialized luosifen restaurants started to appear in numerous Chinese cities, but also abroad.

Luosifen

Maggi goreng is an instant-noodle dish, popular in the Mamak (Indian-Muslim) sub-culture of Malaysia. The name comes from the well-known brand of instant noodles Maggi, but the recipe doesn't necessarily use this particular brand. The basic structure of the dish incorporates pre-boiled instant noodles that are thrown in a wok and stir-fried alongside a mix of vegetables, eggs, and soy sauce. The rest of the recipe is variable, depending on the cook: some eateries include chicken, prawn, or tofu, but the possibilities are endless. It is unclear exactly where maggi goreng originated from, but the mamak sub-culture traces its roots to southern India. The dish is extremely popular in mamak food stalls, and it can be eaten at any time of the day - even as a late night snack!

Maggi goreng

South Korea

Makguksu is a traditional noodle salad originating from South Korea, and it&rsquo;s a specialty of the Gangwon province. The salad is made with a combination of buckwheat noodles, chicken, and vegetables, and it&rsquo;s always served chilled. There are numerous variations on this cold noodle salad, but it often incorporates ingredients such as chicken breast, carrots, red bell peppers, cabbage, cucumbers, endive, lettuce, chili peppers, onions, gochujang (hot pepper paste), and soy sauce. Some people even like to add beef, pork, potato pancakes, or mung bean pancakes to the mix. This dish is especially popular on hot summer days.

Makguksu

Japan

Matcha soba or cha soba is a traditional dish made with buckwheat flour and matcha tea. The tea is made from green tea powder and it has a bitter, mellow, or slightly sweet flavor. The soba noodles are infused with matcha, becoming green in the process. They are boiled, strained, rinsed and dried, then served with chopped green onions, wasabi, and tsuyu dipping sauce on the side. The noodles are served either on a large plate or a zaru soba tray. If desired, the dish can be topped with shredded nori or tenkasu (tempura flakes). Although matcha soba can be eaten hot, it&rsquo;s usually served cold because it&rsquo;s very refreshing when chilled and it&rsquo;s especially popular during the summer.

Matcha soba

The unusually named Sichuan dish known as ants climbing a tree consists of glass noodles in a flavorful sauce with ground pork. The name is derived from the visual appearance of the dish, where the glass noodles represent tree branches, the chopped green onions represent leaves, and bits of ground pork represent the ants. As glass noodles soak up the sauce quite quickly, it is recommended to add a bit more of the stock or soy sauce to the dish, according to personal preference. In Sichuan, cooks often like to add chopped fresh or dried chili into the dish, while in other parts of China and in Taiwan, the dish is not quite as spicy due to the usage of mild bean sauces. Although not much is known about the history of the dish, ants climbing a tree remains a hearty and nutritious meal with the added bonus of its jovial name.

Ma yi shang shu

Malaysia

Mee bandung is a Malay noodle dish that originated in Muar. The dish combines yellow noodles with a thick, spicy sauce that consists of chilies, onions, shrimp paste, and dried shrimps. Each mee bandung is topped with a variety of condiments that typically include halved boiled eggs, shrimps, fishcakes, vegetables, and occasionally beef, while the dish is best finished off with a splash of lime juice. The term bandung roughly translates as mixed or paired and is not related to a namesake Indonesian city.

Mee bandung

Mee goreng mamak is a versatile stir-fry noodle dish from the Maritime Southeast Asia region, initially introduced by the Indian-Muslim community. It is a spicy-savory course that pairs the noodles with a combination of fish cakes, chicken, prawns, garlic, scallions, tomato sauce, curry spice, sweet soy sauce, boiled potatoes, and eggs. For toppings, the most commonly used are red chilies, crispy fried onions, and lime juice. Traditionally, the dish is served alongside calamansi wedges - a citrus hybrid native to the region (can be substituted with lime wedges). Mee goreng mamak is a favorite in Malaysia and can be found everywhere, from street vendors to sit-down restaurants.

Mee goreng mamak

Mee ketang is a Cambodian take on the Cantonese noodle dish known as beef chow fun. This Cambodian dish consists of wide rice noodles stir-fried with a flavor-packed gravy, vegetables, various condiments, meat, and (sometimes) seafood. Typical ingredients include Chinese broccoli, baby corn, carrots, mushrooms, and eggs, while the selection of meat and seafood usually includes beef, chicken breasts, shrimps, squids, and fish. The dish uses plenty of condiments and seasonings such as oyster sauce, soy sauce, black bean sauce, chicken bouillon, rice wine, fried garlic, ginger, and black pepper, and it is usually sweetened with sugar. All these condiments and seasonings impart a wide range of flavors to this dish, which is widely consumed in all its variations throughout Cambodia, China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos.

Mee ketang

A perfect blend of texture and authentic Thai flavors, mee krob or mi krop is a dish that consists of crispy fried rice vermicelli noodles which are covered with a sweet and sour sauce made with lime juice, Thai fish sauce, tomato paste, kaffir lime leaves, chilis, and palm sugar. This delicious noodle dish is typically mixed with fried tofu, fried shrimp or pork meat, or a combination of both, and topped with scallions, bean sprouts, cilantro, chilis, and fried egg strips.

Mee krob

Mee nam is a variety of noodle soup that is popular in Lao and Thai cuisines. The name covers a wide array of recipes, but the main ingredients are always wheat noodles, vegetables, and meat. Pork is the meat of choice for most, while dried shrimp and fish sauce add a new layer to the soup. The vegetables and greens are chosen based on their availability in the region and usually include lettuce, scallions, garlic, coriander leaves, and bean sprouts. The soup is served hot and eaten as a savory and filling first course.

Mee nam

Mee rebus is a Malay noodle dish that is also popular in Indonesia and Singapore. It consists of yellow egg noodles that are doused in a rich and flavorful sauce that is highly versatile but usually includes various combinations of shrimps and shallots, as well as different spices and herbs, while some versions can also be thickened with mashed potatoes. The dish is usually topped with sliced chilies, halved boiled eggs, bean sprouts, or fried shallots, and it is typically served with sliced limes or soy sauce.

Mee rebus

Myanmar

Meeshay is a traditional noodle dish originating from Myanmar. It consists of rice noodles and a meat-based sauce (usually chicken or pork), along with an array of toppings. The dish has origins with the Chinese Mixian, but over time it became a delicacy of the Shan people living in Eastern Myanmar. There are several versions of meeshay, but the two main versions are Shan or Mogok meeshay and Mandalay meeshay. The Shan version uses meat cooked in a sauce with onions, rice noodles, rice vinegar, and a dressing of fried peanut oil, chili oil, and soy sauce. The dish is garnished with fried onions, coriander, and spring onions. The Mandalay version has a thicker and oilier meat sauce and a dressing of fried peanut oil, chili oil, and fermented soybeans. This version is garnished with daikon, crushed garlic, coriander, and bean sprouts. Meeshay is enjoyed as a breakfast or light lunch throughout the country.

Meeshay

Mee siam or Siamese noodles is a dish that is popular in Malaysia and Singapore, and it is believed to have been inspired by Thai cuisine and flavors. It is made with vermicelli noodles which are fried with small shrimps, bean sprouts, soybeans, and chili paste. The dish is usually topped with spring onions, red chili peppers, fried onions, coriander, and omelet strips, while lime wedges are always served on the side so that each person can drizzle mee siam with lime juice to their preference. This dish is usually prepared in large quantities on special occasions such as end-of-school parties.

Mee Siam

Mee sup (translated simply as noodle soup) is a traditional Malaysian dish with a spicy broth base. There are many different varieties of mee sup that combine either tofu, prawns, pork, or other types of meat with a variable blend of vegetables like onions, garlic, and shallots. As is common in the region, bean sprouts can also be used as a garnish. Each cook has their own recipe and applies their own mix of spices, so you can always find something new in mee sup.

Mee sup

Memil guksu is a traditional South Korean soba noodle soup, hence the name, with memil meaning buckwheat, and guksu meaning noodle soup. The dish consists of buckwheat noodles, eggs, green onions, and seaweed. They're boiled in a broth made from guksijangguk and Japanese hondashi. Once cooked, the noodles are topped with the eggs and toasted seaweed strips. The dish can be enriched with lemon juice, and it's sometimes served with a dipping sauce based on tsuyu and rice wine on the side. Memil guksu noodles are always served cold.

Memil guksu

Indonesia

Named after its place of origin, this spicy noodle dish comes fried (goreng) and in the form of a soup (kuah). In addition to thick yellow noodles, it usually consists of beef, lamb, or seafood, as well as vegetables such as spring onions, garlic, bean sprouts, cabbage, and tomatoes. The dish is generously seasoned with a spicy blend that typically incorporates chili peppers, shallots, garlic, cardamom, and cumin. Mie Aceh is typically served topped with fried shallots, cucumber, and crackers, and it is commonly sold by street vendors or at hawker-style restaurants.

Mie aceh

Hailing from Bandung, mie kocok is an aromatic soup that combines sliced beef, beef offal, or meatballs with flat yellow noodles and other accompaniments such as crackers, bean sprouts, sliced scallions, and fried shallots. All ingredients are served in a clear beef broth, while spicy sambal paste and soy sauce may be served as condiments. The name mie kocok roughly translates as shaken noodles, presumably because the noodles are shaken in a strainer before they are added to the soup.