Do you like street snacks? One popular dish is mixed cold noodles, where cold noodles are mixed with many ingredients, shaken in a bag, and eaten on the street.
This takeaway dish can be found in many shopping districts. For about HK$12, you can get a bag of noodles with four ingredients. There are dozens of ingredients to choose from, ranging from gizzard to pig intestines, marinated octopus, fish balls and corn.
Some toppings include seaweed salad, sesame octopus and quail eggs, says Kathy Ng, a nutritionist.
This combination is popular for its umami taste, and the sesame octopus adds some meaty texture to the cold noodles. But Kathy warns that the bag of deliciousness is loaded with salt, sugar and fat.
"Some of these toppings are heavily seasoned with oil and sugar. Also, garlic sauce is often added for an extra punch of flavour. This increases the salt and sugar count," she says.
Source of carbohydrates
Most vendors usually use rice and cold noodles. These are good sources of carbohydrates that provide our bodies with nutrients to develop and grow.
But Kathy says we should watch out for the toppings. For example, 100 grams of sesame octopus contains 97 calories, 1.8 grams of fat, 8.1 grams of sugar, 9.2 grams of carbohydrates, 10.7 grams of protein and 1.4 grams of sodium.
"Adding many toppings to your mixed cold noodles will mean more sugar and fat," she says. Also, too much salt is not good for you.
Kathy recommends no more than two servings of mixed cold noodles a week.
A healthier idea would be to replace those toppings with corn or crab sticks, and to ask for less sauce. If you are feeling especially healthy, here's a recipe your body will thank you for!
Recipe
Fresh chilled noodles
Ingredients (serves 2):
- 300 grams rice noodles or fresh egg noodles
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce or abalone sauce
- 2 teaspoons sriracha sauce
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Toppings:
- 2 crab sticks, sliced or shredded
- 100 grams unsalted dried seaweed
- 100 grams blanched chicken, shredded
- 100 grams canned corn, drained
- a handful of cucumber slices
- a handful of mung bean sprouts, blanched
Directions
- In a small skillet, heat the sesame oil until it begins to ripple. Pour it into a bowl and let it cool.
- Cook the noodles following the package directions. Drain them, and toss with the oil in a separate bowl. Cover and put in the fridge.
- Prepare the other ingredients and leave them to cool in the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Divide the noodles into two small containers. Add the toppings. Add the sauce and mix well. Enjoy your refreshing chilled noodles!
Quick questions
- Should you have a high or low amount of salt in your diet?
- Can you name a shopping district where street snacks are sold?
- Which word in the story is a measure of energy?
