Crossing-the-bridge noodles
A bowl of scalding broth under a layer of fat, with raw sliced meats, quail's egg, vegetables and rice noodles added at the table, in that order.
What makes it crossing-the-bridge noodles
- Broth brought to the table at a boil, sealed in by a layer of fat.
- Raw meat sliced thin enough to cook in the bowl.
- Mǐxiàn — round rice noodles — added last.
Where it comes from
The best-known story has a scholar studying on an island in a lake near Mengzi, and his wife carrying his lunch across the bridge each day. She found that a layer of fat kept the broth hot all the way, and that he could cook the meat in it when it arrived. The tale is told a few ways, but the name stuck.
The bowl still comes as a kit: a broth of chicken and pork bones, very hot, then plates of raw pork, chicken and fish sliced paper-thin, a quail's egg, greens, and the rice noodles last.
How it varies
- Xiǎoguō mǐxiàn
- A near relation from Kunming: rice noodles cooked in a small copper pot, with minced pork and pickles.
Be the first here
Start your own crossing-the-bridge noodlesNo one here has made crossing-the-bridge noodles yet. Start it as v1, and every version after is an experiment the next cook can learn from.
Near it
YunnanSteam-pot chickenChicken cooked in a clay pot with a chimney at its centre, set over boiling water, so the steam gathers into a pure, clear broth.No one here has made it yet
VietnamesePhởFlat rice noodles in a clear, spiced beef broth, with thin slices of beef and a handful of herbs.No one here has made it yet
VietnamesePhởFlat rice noodles in a clear, spiced beef broth, with thin slices of beef and a handful of herbs.No one here has made it yet