Crispy Angel Hair Pasta Balls with Tiger Prawns in a Ginger Leek Broth

After our trip to KL where we were so fixated with the Soo Kee Mee, I was determined to see if I can come up with my own take of that beautiful dish.

And remembering a trick that a chef once taught me, I thought of doing a modern version of the Sang Har Mee.

Instead of using crispy sheng mian that you find in most tze char stalls, I decided to use pasta instead and deep fry it to give the same texture.

Cook some angel hair pasta in boiling water for a few minutes and drain it, and run it under cold water. Angel hair cooks much faster so be sure not to overcook it.

In a separate broth, prepare the broth by frying some slices of ginger, leek and the white ends of a few stalks of spring onion until they are fragrant. Add a dash of white wine and let it reduce and be absorbed by the ingredients.

Separate the shells of the tiger prawns and add the shells in a muslin bag so that they can be easily separated later. Add in enough chicken stock to cover the mixture.

Bring everything to a boil and add some seasoning. Let the stock boil and reduce for about half an hour. Add in a knob of butter to give it some texture.

To make the crispy balls, make balls out the angel hair pasta about 3cm in diameters. Too big and it will be harder to cook the insides of the balls.

Add some flour to keep the shape in place. In a small pot, prepare some hot oil for the deep frying process.

Add in the pasta balls in a ladle so you can easily hoist them out once they are golden brown. Be sure not to overcook them and once they are ready, place them on paper napkins to drain out the excess oil.

Season the tiger prawns with some salt and pepper and saute them in a pan with butter for a few minutes. Let them sit in the pan to finish the cooking.

To serve, place the angel hair balls in a plate or bowl and garnish with the ginger and leek stock and just arrange the tiger prawns around them.

And voila, a more modern version of the sang har mee is created!