Foolproof CNY recipe.

For my mom’s birthday recently on 31 December (YES! My mom was born on NYE haha), I was racking my brains to do something a little different for her. I mean, what can you give a woman who has everything already—including a good daughter like me HAHA. And then one day while browsing the Net, I got a stroke of inspiration—I will cook longevity noodles for her!! This is especially apt ‘cause recently my mom found out I cooked for some friends for Christmas, and she merajuk (i.e. complained) that I seldom cook for her.

After some browsing around, I found a longevity noodle recipe that I want to give a go! Spoiler alert: It turned out quite well, so I thought I will share the recipe here. :)



These are the ingredients needed:
200g of longevity noodles
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1tbsp chopped ginger
1 packet of shimeji mushrooms
1 packet of enoki mushrooms
¼ cabbage, shredded
1 carrot, cut into thin sticks
3 bunches (about 50g) of Chinese chives, cut into 2” lengths

Sauce:
1 ½ tbsp dark soy sauce
3 tbsp of Marmite
1 tbsp black vinegar
1tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp brown sugar
¼ tsp white pepper
1 ½ cups of water

Before we begin, prepare the noodles and vegetables first!



Boil longevity noodles for 3-4 minutes, and drain.

I have a funny story about longevity noodles. So hubby is Hokkien whereas I am Cantonese. When he first found out that I wanted to cook longevity noodles, he was like, “that is mee sua”, and I was like “NO! Cantonese eat longevity noodles!! Not mee sua!”

Well, guys, after I bought the noodles, I can confirm—it IS mee sua HAHAHA. So yes, if you are Hokien, this will probably be an extra big hit with your family.


Boil the cabbage and carrot over slow heat for a couple of minutes. You would want crisp not soggy vegetables!

And then it is time to start cooking!


Heat up cooking oil and sauté garlic and ginger till fragrant.


This is optional, but I added in some chicken strips (lightly marinated with light soy sauce, brown sugar and Shaoxing wine.


When chicken is half-cooked, add in the mushrooms and stir fry for 2 minutes.


Pour in the sauce mixture and bring to boil.


Add in longevity noodles and keep stirring for 2-3 minutes.


Add in the vegetables, and keep cooking till the sauce thickens. By this time, your kitchen will smell heavenly!!


Stir in the chives, and YOU ARE DONE!!


Garnish with fried shallots, and serve hot. *slurps*


I am really pleased with how it turned out! Am even thinking of cooking it for CNY ‘cause we will definitely be hosting some family and friends then.:)


I actually brought the dish to my mom’s birthday dinner at a restaurant, and she was soooo pleased and surprised!! Immediately she couldn’t stop taking photos and started posting on social media HAHAHA.


This… is not my kitchen wtf. The restaurant very kindly helped us heat up the pot of noodles! So weird to see my cooking.. being cooked in a restaurant HAHA.


And it is served!! Again, it is weird to see my own cooking being served in a restaurant setting with red wine and condiments LOL.

The recipe supposedly serves 2-3 pax, but to be honest, it ended up to be quite a big bowl—just nice for my family of 9 pax. If you are serving these noodles with other dishes, I think you can adjust the serving accordingly. :)


Mommy gave this two thumbs up! :D


And I was really pleased when my 88 year old grandpa had TWO servings! :P


The chef with her patrons. *blows nails* My parents were really happy that I cooked this dish for them, and even kept on telling all the (real) chefs and wait-staff. DAMN SHY!!



But to be honest, I think the taste of the noodles was really enhanced by the unique taste of Marmite. While reading off the label, I was pleased to find that it is rich in Vitamin B and folic acid. Also, not only is it low in fat and sugar, it also contains no coloring and preservatives—which makes it a great secret ingredient when cooking at home! Read: Marmite chicken, which is only one of my family’s favorite thing to order whenever we eat out.

I got this recipe off Marmite Malaysia’s FB, you can find loads of other Marmite recipes there (hint: even my favorite Marmite chicken LOL). Am really keen to experiment with other recipes there, because this recipe really turned out quite well!

In the meantime, based on the positive response, I am most likely going to cook this longevity for CNY! Because not only it is tasty, it also has a good symbolism for the new year. :D Wish me luck!!

This post is written in collaboration with Marmite Malaysia.