An essential part of Myanmar cuisine, Mohinga is a traditional breakfast dish consisting of fish broth with rice noodles served with split pea fritters, hard-boiled egg, fish sauce, chilli and coriander. It is considered the national dish across the country and the most popular morning choice. Generally, Mohinga is sold by street hawkers who carry a large wooden pole on their shoulders balancing various elements of the dish on either side as they go from city to city; this dish is also sold at street-side stalls as well as restaurants at properties like Sedona Hotel Yangon. Each bowl of Mohinga offers a completely unique and individual culinary experience in Myanmar and now you can try making it at home as well.
Ingredients
- 01 lb Uncooked Rice Noodles
For the Broth
- 03 Litres Water
- 06 Cloves Garlic
- ½ tsp Turmeric
- 02 tsp Salt
- 03 Stalks Lemongrass, Cut Into 3-Inch Pieces
- 01 Scaled and Gutted Catfish (About 3 Pounds)
- 02 Ounce Piece of Ginger, Thickly Sliced Crosswise Into Slabs
For the Soup
- 1/3 Cup Vegetable Oil
- 01 Stalk Minced Lemongrass
- ¼ Cup Minced Garlic
- 01 tsp Turmeric
- 1 ½ tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 03 tbsp Minced Ginger
- 01 tbsp Paprika
- 02 tbsp Roasted Rice Powder
- ½ Cup Young Banana Stem or Banana Blossom Sliced
- ¼ Cup Fish Sauce
- 3 ½ Cups Diced Red Onions
- A Pinch of Salt
Serving
- 01 lb Cooked Rice Noodles
- ½ Cup Coriander, Coarsely Chopped
- 06 Hard-Boiled Eggs, Sliced
- 12 Yellow Split Pea Fritters, Broken Into Small Pieces
- 02 Limes, Cut Into Wedges
- 03 Thinly Sliced Red Onions
- Crushed Red Pepper
Method of Preparation
- To make the broth, put the fish in a large wide pot and add the water, lemongrass, turmeric and salt and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the fish is cooked.
- Remove the fish from the broth, transfer to a bowl and let the broth sit on the stove.
- When the fish is cool enough to handle, pull off the skin and discard. Separate the cooked fish from the bones and discard the bones. Set aside the flaked flesh.
- Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer and reserve it for the soup
- Pound the onions, garlic, lemongrass and ginger into a paste
- Heat the oil over high heat in a wok. Add the pounded onions and cook over moderate heat for a few minutes until it begins to caramelise. Add the pounded lemongrass, garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 1 minute.
- Add the cooked fish, paprika and turmeric and cook for about 10-15 minutes until it becomes fragrant. If you see any errant bones, pick them out.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the roasted rice powder and a ladleful of the broth until no lumps remain. Stir into the broth. Bring the broth to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until it starts to barely thicken, for about 5 minutes. Turn the heat to low and cook the broth at a gentle simmer while preparing the soup.
- Pour the stir-fried fish from the wok into the broth and bring to a brisk simmer. Add the banana stem or blossom and simmer for 30 minutes until tender. Add the red onions, black pepper and fish sauce and simmer for 5 minutes more or until the flavours start to come together. Taste the broth: it should be on the salty side because the noodles will not have any salt. If it’s not that salty, add some salt or fish sauce.
- To cook the noodles, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook, stirring often with tongs or chopsticks to prevent sticking for about 5 minutes or until softened. Drain in a colander, rinse under cool water, and give the colander a shake to remove excess water.
- When done, put a handful of cooked noodles in a bowl, ladle over the soup and serve with all the garnishes.