Egg Noodles with Pork and Mushroom Sauce (Kon Loh Mee)

One of my favourite home-cooked dishes that mum used to make is Kon Loh Mee. It's a dry (as opposed to soupy) noodle dish which she serves with minced pork and mushroom sauce. As usual, whenever most of us ask our mums how to cook a dish, it's always "agak-agak" (estimated) when it comes to measurements of the ingredients. So, my dish is also based on "agarration", although I managed to get it to turn out the way I liked it. Most importantly, the kids loved the noodles, and even little J who usually only grazes on cheese, snacks and yoghurt, happily slurped up mouthfuls of it.

I usually make some pickled green chillies to go with it, especially when my chilli plant is abundant with chillies. However, the erractic weather in Sydney has not been very kind to the plant, and it's looking pretty barren at the moment. Nevertheless, the noodles were still delicious without it. Here is the recipe:

Egg Noodles with Pork and Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients

500g fresh egg noodles
1 bunch of baby bok choy
4 tbsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup canola/peanut oil

Pork:
400g minced pork
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp cornflour
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tbsp thick caramel (thick dark soy)
1 tsp sesame oil

Mushroom sauce:
4-5 shiitake/chinese black mushrooms, stems removed
1 clove garlic, lightly crushed
2 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp mushroom soy sauce (optional)
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tbsp tapioca starch (or cornflour) mixed with 1 tbsp water

Tossing sauce (combine in a bowl):
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp thick caramel (thick dark soy)
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp hot water
2 tbsp garlic oil

Condiments and Garnish:
Fried shallots
Fried garlic
Pickled green chillies (optional)
Pepper to taste

Method

Prepare the garlic oil by heating up 1/4 cup oil in a small pan, and then fry 3 tbsp of the garlic on low-medium heat until they start to turn into a light golden brown. Transfer the oil and garlic to a small condiment bowl and set aside.

Pork: Combine the pork with soy, sugar, cornflour and pepper. Heat up 1 tbsp oil in a pot and fry the remaining 1 tbsp chopped garlic for half a minute. Add the pork and stir-fry while breaking up the mince. Add dark soy and sesame oil and mix through well. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add 1 tbsp water if it gets too dry. Turn off the heat and set aside.

Mushroom sauce:
Soak the mushrooms in 1 1/2 cups hot water for 15 minutes or until softened. Squeeze out the excess water and shred the mushroom caps into thin slices. Reserve the soaking liquid. Heat up 1 tbsp oil in a pot and fry the crushed garlic until slightly browned. Add the mushrooms and fry briefly. Then add the reserved liquid plus all the other ingredients except the tapioca starch solution. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the starch solution and bring to a simmer again, and it's ready. Set aside.

Noodles:
Bring a large pot of water (with a pinch of salt) to a boil and blanch the vegetables briefly. Remove and set aside. Then, add the noodles (preferably one portion at at time, about 125 g each) and wait until the water starts to simmer again. This should take about 30 seconds. Remove the noodles and place in a strainer/colander. Rinse the noodles under cold running water to stop the cooking process and remove the starch. Then, place the noodles back in boiling water again for 3 seconds to heat them up again. Drain and place in a serving bowl/plate.

Add 2 tbsp of the tossing sauce to the noodles and toss it through. Spoon some minced pork and the mushroom sauce over the noodles, and top with fried garlic and shallots. Add a dash of pepper to taste and serve with pickled green chillies if desired. Enjoy!