Know your noodles

WHETHER BULKING OUT A BROTH OR TAKING A DESSERT TO THE NEXT LEVEL, NOODLES ARE A VITAL INGREDIENT IN COUNTLESS GLOBAL CUISINES.

- CHRISTIE DIETZ

Noodles play a key role in many culinary cultures. Synonymous with East and Southeast Asian classics such a chow mein, ramen and pad thai, they appear in everything from German knöpfle — egg dough pieces often layered with fried onions and cheese — to sweet treats like seviyan, a dessert eaten during Eid. Thought to have originated in China before making their way around the world, they’ve been a staple food across the globe for centuries. The most commonly eaten types today include those made from egg, rice, wheat, buckwheat and starches derived from the likes of mung beans.

Thanks to their myriad shapes, textures and flavours — be they long and fine, short and thick, chewy or slippery — noodles can be enjoyed in countless ways. They elevate broths and soups, can be easily tossed into salads and act as the ideal vehicle for clingy sauces.

In China’s Guangdong Province, steamed sheets of rice noodle are wrapped around shrimp to make the Cantonese dim sum classic hā chéung. In Myanmar, the fragrant catfish and rice noodle soup known as mohinga is a breakfast staple that’s often considered the national dish. And among Jewish communities around the globe, lokshen (Ashkenazi Jewish egg noodles) are incorporated into kugel, a sweet casserole often served on holidays and the Sabbath.