Learn how to make starch grass noodles and rice noodles with the foundation of potato starch. Caution first: this can’t produce the same rice noodles from the stores but creates a healthier and easy to digest rice noodles at home.
My daughter is a rice noodle lover; she always requires to eat rice noodles every week. Sometimes I don’t have storage in my kitchen like the past two months. Lots of ingredients are hard to find. On the other side, store bought rice noodles are too strong to digest (not sure about the ingredients). So I devoted lots of time and testing to make an easy to digest starch noodle and rice noodle at home.
Rice noodles have lots of forms in China. The round thin thread rice noodle is called as “米线”meaning “rice thread”. While the flat rice noodle is called “米粉”. We make a homemade rice thread noodle in this recipe. The homemade rice noodle will not easily break as long as you follow the steps actually. There are mainly two types of rice stick noodles in China as “酸浆米线” （rice stick noodles made with fermented rice batter）and “干浆米线”. We are actually copying the later type.
Advantage of this recipe
1.You can make this whenever you want as long as the basic ingredients are available. The process is quite easy and fun.
2.It is easy to digest comparing with store bought rice noodles and also safer and healthier.
Disadvantage of the recipe
1.The rice noodle is not 100% made with rice. So the aroma of the rice is influenced.
2.It can’t be stored if you pursue a right texture. And it should be used right after finished.
Rules behind
Rice flour is not strong enough so the pure rice noodles are super easy to break. So we use potato starch (or sweet potato starch should work fine too ) to work as a strong adhesion. You can use pure potato starch to make potato starch noodles. I made a test to compare the two different types of noodles and find the potato starch noodle is transparent and more chewier. In the picture below, the right noodle is made with 50% starch and 50% rice flour. They get difference in appearance and texture.
Cook’s Note
1.The water should be hot boiling, otherwise the gelatinization can’t be finished.
2.The dough should be well kneaded for a smooth texture, no bump included.
3. Avoid stopping when pressing the noodles.
4. Don’t overcook the noodles. Transfer out as long as the water boils once again.
5.Soak the noodles in a large amount of cold water. Until cooled. And then use it right after that.
6. Re-heat the noodles very quickly.
Instructions
In a large bowl, place potato starch in center and then place rice flour in. Add vegetable cooking oil. Then pour the hot water in while stirring. Let the dough cool slightly. Then knead the dough for several minutes until smooth and there is no small bump. The dough will be quite stretchable. Highly recommend you kneading the folding the dough for at least 5-8 minutes. More kneading makes the dough better.
Assemble the dough into the noodle presser.Bring a large pot of hot water to a boiling and then prepare a cold water at side. Slow down the fire until the hot water boils. Push the noodles into the boiling water. During this process, try to finish this at one stretch and avoid stopping.
Transfer the noodle to the cold water as long as the water boils once again.
In a large pot, add tofu, scallion, mushrooms and then load with chicken stock. Add salt to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes and then place the rice noodles in. Cook for a short time (never overcook) when the soup starts to boil. Turn off fire and top with coriander, chopped scallion and toasted peanuts.
Starch noodle and Rice Noodle
Ingredients
Tools
Dough
- 1/2 cup potato starch
- 1/2 cup rice flour or potato starch
- 1/2 cup hot boiling water
- 1 tbsp. vegetable cooking oil , without particular flavor
Chicken Mushroom Soup & other ingredients
- 1/2 whole chicken , cut into small pieces
- 50 g dried mushroom mix
- 1 thumb ginger , smashed
- 4-5 pieces of pan-fried tofu
- 3 fresh shiitake mushrooms
- 1 small bunch oyster mushroom
- 2 scallion white
- chopped scallion and coriander
- toasted peanuts
- salt as needed
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken stock ahead. Place blanched chicken chunks, and pre-soaked dried mushrooms or other ingredient you prefer in a large pot. Load with 4 to 5 liters of water. Use soup procedure.
- In a large bowl, place potato starch in center and then place rice flour in. Add vegetable cooking oil. Then pour the hot water in while stirring. Let the dough cool slightly.
- Then knead the dough for several minutes until smooth and there is no small bumps (highly recommend at least 8 minutes kneading). The dough will be quite stretchable.
- Assemble the dough into the presser.
- Bring a large pot of hot water to a boiling and then prepare a bowl of cold water at side.
- Slow down the fire until the hot water boils. Push the noodles into the boiling water. During this process, try to finish this at one stretch and avoid stopping. Transfer the noodle to the cold water as long as the water boils once again.
- In a large pot, add tofu, scallion, mushrooms and then load with chicken stock. Add salt to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes and then place the rice noodles in. Cook for a short time when the soup starts to boil. Turn off fire and top with coriander, chopped scallion and toasted peanuts.
Your video is easy sweet and simple and I love watching it. This is what I’ve been looking for to make my own rice noodle. Thank you very much.
Thank you Roland! I am such a rice noodle lover. Hope you will like it too. Happy cooking!
Hi!!
I loved your video!! My husband has a very sensitive stomach so we usually make everything home made ? so this was just perfect!
I did want to ask if you have tried using tapioca or arrowroot starch instead of potato?
Thank you!
Brytanny,
Tapioca and arrowroot starch might be a little bit over chewy. I didn’t use them for this kind of noodles.
I didn’t have potato starch and used tapioca starch instead. It camed out great, my family really liked the chewy noodles. This recipe and instructions are good- make sure to follow it – I ended up making 3 separate batches (2nd one I didn’t follow properly). It was for 3 people, but ended up having to double the recipe. Make sure to follow the author’s criteria of using boiling water when adding to the dry ingredients. My second batch was too watery, because I think I didn’t use boiling water, just hot. Then I ended up having to add more powders and then the dough was breaking rather than elastic. Taste was good, but the noodles weren’t pretty. Thanks again for this recipe, will use again, the outcome was wonderful!
Vanessa,
Thank you dear.
Why only cup measure, can you confirm the recipe in metric, as there are so many different calculations for cups, other wise looks like a great recipe for noodles
Cup measure is the easiest way for this one. I will weight the ingredients and update the recipe as long as I get the data .
This recipe is so easy; I loved it! Question: Can I knead the dough in advance and use it later in the day to make the noodles? How long can I keep the dough before pressing it into noodles? Thank you!
Lisa,
I have never tried to make the dough in advance. You need to make sure that there is no water coming out to prevent drying out. I still recommend using the dough directly after kneading. Kneading time is depending on your kneading skills. You can start with the next step as long as the dough is even in texture.
Can i use this noodles in stir fry recipes
Yes. Sure!
Amazingly easy recipe. I kneaded my dough using a machine – thermomix for 3 minutes, and used a potato ricer instead of a noodle extruder as that’s all we had to hand. Perfect recipe, very quick and delicious!
I am so happy to get this feedback. Love you.
Haha, it is super nice to know that you tried this one. Jian!
Please can it be kept for microwaving after cooking the whole recipe?
Do you mean you need to reheat it with microwave?
Looks delicious. Is it sticky rice flour?
Do you think the dough can be used in an electric noodle machine?
Soup looks so yummy. I will go for a vegetable stock🌱😋
It is regular rice flour, not sticky rice flour dear.
What’s the chicken stock recipe used here ? I think I see mushrooms n some other things in it !
you can check this post of chicken stock : https://www.chinasichuanfood.com/basic-chinese-chicken-stock/
Can we try different ratio ?
Like 75:25 potato to rice, or does the ratio have to be exactly 50:50 or only potato ?
As long as 50% or more is Potato, is it okay ?
This ratio should be fixed. If the powder you use is slightly different from the one I use, the ratio will only be fine-tuned within a small range.
can the noodles be stored after boiling them? If not why, is the texture affected in a negative way? Also could these noodles be dried, then cooked at a later date?
The best way to preserve it is to cook it first and then freeze it in the refrigerator. Next time you can take it out and boil it in boiling water before eating it.