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Hong Kong Style Instant Noodles
Note: Updated with recipe on page 2 which was previously missing. Sorry!
Today is the fifth day of Singapore’s partial lockdown (#circuitbreakersg), I hope everyone is adapting well to staying safe by staying home. Luncheon meat (spam) and instant noodles seems like the most popular foodstuff that were wiped out during the first waves of our country’s panic supermarket sprees. With these two ingredients, I thought of making Hong Kong style instant noodles, aka gong zai mian (港式公仔面) which is a popular breakfast dish at the tea cafes (茶餐厅) in Hong Kong.
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Since we probably can’t travel for quite a while, eating this dish makes me reminisce about the good food in Hong Kong and I look forward to the day we can travel overseas again. As an instant noodles dish, this isn’t too shabby, cos we have an egg, (luncheon) meat and greens in one bowl.
These are the ingredients for one person. For authenticity, use the popular Nissin 出前一丁 though if it is perfectly fine to use any brand of instant noodles. Ham (火腿公仔面) can be used in place of luncheon meat (午餐肉公仔面). For greens, I used baby Shanghai green which can be replaced with any available greens.
To start, simply make sunny side up egg(s) and pan fry the meat until lightly seared.
(By the way, here’s a fun trivial shared by Hong Kong reader modaciter via comment (thanks!) on the origins of the dish name. Apparently, the word “gong zai” (公仔/doll) was not due to the cute boy mascot on Nissin’s packaging pictured above. Before Nissin’s 出前一丁, there was another brand of instant noodles called Doll Brand whose Chinese name is “公仔麵”. Its popularity leads to 公仔面 becoming the “official” name for instant noodles, regardless of the brand of ramen noodles used.)
In a small pot, cook the instant noodles and greens with the powder soup sachet provided. You can also cook the noodles separately to remove the “wax” first if you have this practice. I used a personal-sized pot from Daiso which is the perfect size for one person. You can cook the instant noodles and eat straight from the pot later. It saves the effort of having one less bowl to wash up :p
Top noodles with the previously cooked luncheon meat (or ham) and sunny side up egg. Enjoy home cooking (even if they are instant noodles) during this period!
First posted in Oct 2009, updated in Apr 2020.
oh! oh! you instant noodle lovers have to try the korean seaweed noodles (four seas seaweed instant noodles) and from hong kong, we love noodle king’s many different flavours.
whenever we travel we always check out the local supermarket pr 7-11 equivalent for instant noodles to try. having a midnight noodle snack is the kid’s fav part of the trip. crazy huh
wow such gd noodles. anyway i tried this recipe with the eggs poached in the soup w/out the noodles yet and it tasted so good cause of the eggs taking in the flavour of the soup. got this idea in hong kong when i ate the instant noodles with wonton, poached eggs and chilli added to the soupy meal. wah believe me it tasted so gd. think u should try this alternative ;)
Hi Wiffy. Love your blog, your recipes, etc. I discovered you when I was looking for aglio olio recipe online and made mine with just mushrooms and it was great! Thank you. Just want to share my humble opinion on instant noodles. Samyang brand of Korean inst noodles is good, esp hot mushroom and kimchi flavours. I like this brand cos they don’t have msg, but still taste great. The noodle texture is different from Japanese ones, it’s less smooth. But the Q factor is there. Plus it’s made in Korea, not China.
Sauteed mushrooms, any kind, is great on instant noodles.
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Hello,
I ve a request. I am from India and a fren of mine is visiting HongKong so I request him to buy some packet noodles from there. please suggest some good brand and flavors. I usually dont like the watery broth one. Looking for more like instant fried/ non fried kind of noodles ( like Koka or Indomie Mi goreng which we get here in India but very expensice…). Any good Hongkong brand will also be helpful
One of my favourite things ever, just when we thought we couldn’t get much unhealthier than instant noodles, is this dish that I had at a mom-and-pop cha chaan teng in a public housing complex in Kowloon City…
五香肉丁炒公仔面 (Five-spice pork cubes stir-fried with instant noodles). Take a couple 出前一丁 noodles, boil them as usual, then start stir frying them, adding a can of 五香肉丁 and letting all the aromatic five-spice infused grease mix with the drying noodles. Garnish with some chopped green onions. Serve with a tall glass of ice-cold lemon Coke.
A meal fit for a king of peasants.
That looks quite tasty and comforting! I love mine with 2 sunny side up, please :-))