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Misua

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Misua
Misua noodles from Taiwan
Alternative namesWheat vermicelli
TypeChinese noodles
Place of originChina
Region or stateFujian
Main ingredientsWheat flour
Misua
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese麵線
Simplified Chinese面线
Literal meaningnoodle threads
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyinmiànxiàn
Southern Min
Hokkien POJmī-sòaⁿ
Khmer name
Khmerមីសួ (mii suə)

Misua (also spelled mee sua or miswa; Chinese: 麵線; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: mī-sòaⁿ), also known as wheat vermicelli, is a very thin variety of salted noodles made from wheat flour.[1] It originated in Fujian, China.[1] The noodles differ from mifen (rice vermicelli) and cellophane noodles in that those varieties are made from rice and mung beans, respectively.

Misua is made from wheat flour.[2] Cooking misua usually takes less than two minutes in boiling water, and sometimes significantly less.[citation needed]

Types

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Misua being made in Penghu, Taiwan

In Taiwan, there are two forms of misua. The first is plain, while the second has been steamed at high heat, caramelizing it to a light brown colour. For birthdays, plain misua is usually served plain with pork hocks (猪腳麵線) in stewed broth as a Taiwanese birthday tradition. Brown misua can be cooked for prolonged periods without disintegrating in the cooking broth and is used in oyster vermicelli (蚵仔麵線), a dish popular in Taiwan.[citation needed]

Culture

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Misua is cooked during important festivities, and eaten in China as well in Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Brunei, Thailand, Myanmar, and particularly in both Taiwan and the Philippines.[citation needed]

Misua signifies long life in Chinese culture, and as such is a traditional birthday food. Because of this, it is often discouraged to chew or cut misua noodles.[3] It is usually served with ingredients such as eggs, tofu, bell peppers,[3] oysters, pig's large intestine,[2] shiitake mushroom, beef, shallots, or scallions, roasted nuts or fried fish.[citation needed]

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Albala, K. (2017). Noodle Soup: Recipes, Techniques, Obsession. University of Illinois Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-0-252-05019-0. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Cosmo, S. (2017). The Ultimate Pasta and Noodle Cookbook. Cider Mill Press. p. 92. ISBN 978-1-60433-733-4. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b "LIST: 'Lucky food' to prepare for Chinese New year, and why". Rappler. January 24, 2020. Retrieved August 18, 2022.