Name: Hu Tieu Nam Vang Recipe
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Ingredients: 5-6 dried shrimp (optional); 1 daikon (optional); A piece of ginger; 1 big carrot; 3-4 Pork bones; 200g (1 cup) fresh shrimp; 300g (1 1/4 cups) lean pork; 200g (1 cup) squid; 150g (3/4 cup) minced pork; 200g (7oz) lettuces; A handful of chives; 300g (10 oz) wheat noodle or rice noodle (sợi hủ tiếu)

Hu Tieu Nam Vang has been one of my favorite Vietnamese noodles, beside chicken pho, beef pho, banh canh, and bun bo (beef noodle). Originating from Cambodia, Vietnamese people have been enjoying Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang for a very long time. People started adding different toppings to make it more interesting. In this post, I am going to share a healthy Hu Tieu Nam Vang recipe with pork, squid, shrimp, and minced pork toppings.

What is Hu Tieu Nam Vang?

Hu Tieu Nam Vang (Pork and Seafood Clear Noodle Soup) traces its origins back to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and appeared in Vietnam over a century ago. Over time, it has become a favorite dish in Southern Vietnam. People have adjusted and added more local toppings based on Vietnamese taste, and it is our today’s Hu Tieu Nam Vang, with various types of noodles (rice noodle, wheat noodle, or mixed), protein toppings (minced pork, lean pork, shrimp, squid, pork liver and heart, quail eggs, etc.), and vegetables (lettuces, chives, green onion, Thai basil, mung bean sprout, crown daisy, etc.).

For the Hu Tieu Nam Vang recipe, the most important part is the broth; then, for other components of the bowl, you are free to select. I chose wheat noodles, minced pork, lean pork, shrimp, squid, lettuce, and chives. It’s simply because these ingredients are available in the nearby supermarkets. Besides, to make it healthier, I also avoid eating too many pork organs like liver and heart.

Ingredients for Hu Tieu Nam Vang

There are two parts of ingredients for the dish. The broth is the unchanged core, the spirit of the dish. The noodles, toppings, and vegetables are changeable based on your preference and their availability.

The broth (for 4 bowls)

hu tieu noodle, hu tieu nam vang — Carrots, Ginger and Dry Shrimp

5-6 dried shrimp (optional)
1 daikon (optional)
A piece of ginger
1 big carrot
3-4 pork bones

All the ingredients contribute to the natural sweetness of the broth. Therefore, you can increase the amount of available ingredients (for example, pork bones and carrots) and skip some of the harder-to-find ingredients like dried shrimp and daikon.

Noodle, Protein toppings and Vegetables

hu tieu nam vang, nam vang hu tieu noodle

Proteins

200g (1 cup) fresh shrimp
300g (1 1/4 cups) lean pork
200g (1 cup) squid
150g (3/4 cup) minced pork

As I shared above, the characteristic of the Hu Tieu Nam Vang recipe is the flexibility. Feel free to change the toppings to your favorite ones.

Vegetables

200g (7oz) lettuce
A handful of chives

Noodles

The two types of noodles used for this dish are wheat noodles (sợi mì) and hu tieu rice noodles (sợi hủ tiếu). In fact, this type of rice noodle is different from vermicelli in pho and hotpot in terms of the proportion between rice flour and tapioca starch, as well as the shapes. Therefore, if you opt for rice noodles, look for the package with the name “hủ tiếu” on it. For 4 bowls, you’ll need 300g (10 oz) of noodles.

hu tieu noodle — A package of Hu tieu noodle. There is no exact word in English for it, so usually “hủ tiếu” is used.

Once you have gathered all the ingredients, you are ready to start cooking. Follow the order of the cooking process to save time.

Hu Tieu Nam Vang Recipe

The whole cooking process will take one hour with a pressure cooker/instant pot and 2 hours with a regular pot, mainly for simmering the broth.

Step 1. Preparation

For the broth: Peel the ginger. Roast it with dried shrimp (if any). Soak the pork bones and lean pork in diluted saltwater, then wash them thoroughly. Peel the carrot and daikon (if any) and cut them into 2 pieces.

Proteins: For fresh shrimp, clean and devein them by making a shallow incision along the back of each shrimp to remove the vein with a knife or your fingers. If you are using frozen shrimp and squid, they are usually cleaned before freezing, so just let them thaw. For the minced pork portion, season it with a pinch of salt and pepper to enhance the flavor.

Vegetables: Wash the vegetables and drain them.

Step 2. Simmer the broth and boil proteins

Pour 2 liters of water into the pressure cooker/instant pot or regular pot. Then, add the pork bones, roasted dried shrimp, and ginger to the pot and turn on the medium heat. You can also use pre-made pork bone broth, heat it up, and add roasted dried shrimp, ginger, and some preferred seasonings.

Close the lid; once it comes to a rolling boil, open it and add the shrimp, squid, and lean pork to boil them. Shrimp and squid are cooked quickly, so remember to remove them from the pot after 5 minutes of rolling boil. For lean pork, boil it for 15 minutes, and test if it’s thoroughly cooked, then take it out of the pot.

Now, add the carrot and daikon to the broth pot, and continue to simmer it while you cut/peel the protein parts. Skim the foam from the surface to have a clearer broth.

Peel the shrimps and slice the lean pork into thin slices while waiting for the broth to simmer further. Return the shrimp shells to the pot in order to extract all the sweetness.

Step 3. Stir-fry minced pork and cook noodles

First, put a pan with 1 tbsp of oil over medium heat and begin to stir-fry the minced pork.
While waiting for the minced pork to be cooked, start boiling the wheat noodles or rice noodles. For wheat noodles, soak them in boiling water for 5 minutes. For sợi hủ tiếu (rice noodles), cook them in boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Once they are cooked, drain the water and set them aside.

Continue to stir-fry the minced pork several times until it is cooked, adjust the seasoning, and then turn off the heat. Then, adjust the seasoning of the broth and turn off the heat as well.

Step 4. Assembly

Now that you have all the prepared components in hand, let’s assemble them into a beautiful and delicious noodle bowl:

Add a desired amount of noodle to the bowl.
Arrange the toppings: lean pork, minced pork, shrimp, squid, and chives.

Pour the broth over the noodles and toppings, using a strainer to make sure the broth is clear. Stop pouring when the broth covers all the noodles and a portion of the toppings, allowing every ingredient to settle. If desired, drizzle a bit of fried shallots on top to enhance the flavor.
In case you would like to try Dry Hu Tieu Nam Vang, serve the broth in a separate bowl instead of pouring it over the noodles. Top the broth with chives and spring onions. You can enjoy Dry Hu Tieu Nam Vang by mixing hoisin and chili sauce with a bit of broth.

That’s all for a delicious Vietnamese noodle bowl. Enjoy your Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang!

Hu Tieu Nam Vang Recipe

Yield: 2

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour

This is a healthy Hu Tieu Nam Vang recipe with pork, squid, shrimp and minced pork toppings. Feel free to change your toppings and vegetables.