MOHINGA VARIATIONS
When I arrived in Dawei and asked about mohinga, several people told me that I’d find a great version at this small café. Good advice, it turned out—it was so delicious, I went back there every day.
WHAT MAKES A DISH mohinga rather than something else?
Mohinga is made of a broth poured over fine rice noodles (rice vermicelli). You could think of it as the Burmese equivalent of Vietnamese pho, the rice noodle soup that has become well-known in North America. Pho is usually made with beef broth, mohinga with a delicate fish broth. There are pieces of banana stem in the broth (mostly for texture rather than flavor, although they are also believed to have health benefits), and there’s always a selection of toppings and accompaniments. Mohinga is a classic breakfast food in Burma, sold at street stalls and in little cafés, even in some tea shops.
In Rangoon, and in central Burma generally, the broth is clear, with a little fish in it and some banana stem; it comes with a wide choice of deep-fried toppings. In Dawei, in the south, mohinga has lots of fresh fish in it, may have tomato for a little acidity, and is flavored with galangal as well as ginger and shallots. In Rakhine State, along the west coast, mohinga generally has hot chile and no galangal and is served with an array of chile pastes.
I ate out with some people from Rangoon while I was in Dawei. I asked them about the local mohinga. They thought it was too thick, too heavy. Dawei people said Rangoon mohinga was too thin and watery, and Rakhine people told me there was not enough flavor in it! It’s just a fact: the mohinga from your home region is the one you prefer. No wonder, for mohinga is comfort food, a taste of home.
SERVES 6
Rakhine State is known for its spicy cuisine. More chiles and chile powder are used in dishes and even more chile pastes are out on the table as condiments. This version of mohinga is a good example.
Here fish is poached to make a broth, then the flesh is lifted off the bones, flaked, lightly fried in turmeric-flavored oil, and served on top of the noodles. The mohinga can be served with all the suggested extras, or you can simplify and omit some.
One 1¾- to 2-pound whole fish such as carp, trout, or snapper, or several smaller fish, cleaned and scaled
BROTH
5 cups water
½ teaspoon shrimp paste (ngapi; see Glossary)
About 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped galangal (see Glossary)
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped garlic
TAMARIND LIQUID
1 heaping tablespoon tamarind pulp (see Glossary), cut into chunks
½ cup hot water
Generous ¼ cup dried red chiles
¼ cup hot water
⅛ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon peanut oil
2 tablespoons peanut oil
¼ teaspoon turmeric
5 inches banana stem, peeled, sliced, soaked in cold water for an hour, and drained (see Glossary; optional)
2 teaspoons fish sauce
2½ to 3 pounds fresh rice vermicelli or thin rice noodles (flat or round) or 1½ pounds dried rice vermicelli or narrow dried rice noodles
OTHER ACCOMPANIMENTS AND FLAVORINGS
About 3 tablespoons fish sauce
½ cup chopped coriander
About ¾ teaspoon white or freshly ground black pepper
Rinse the fish thoroughly; set aside.
Pour the water into a wide pot or deep wide skillet and set over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp paste and stir to dissolve it, then add the galangal and garlic. If the fish is too long to fit comfortably in the pot, cut it crosswise in half (leave the head on; it will add flavor). Slide the fish into the water. Once the water comes to the boil, lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and poach for about 4 minutes. Turn the fish over and poach for another 3 to 4 minutes, or until just cooked through.
Use a spider or tongs to lift the fish out of the liquid and onto a platter. (Set the broth aside.) Let cool briefly, then lift the flesh off the bones, remove and discard the skin, and set the flesh aside to cool.
Return the bones to the broth. Raise the heat to medium-high and simmer vigorously for 10 minutes or so. Strain the broth; discard the solids. Add water to the broth if necessary to bring it up to 4 cups, and set aside.
Place the tamarind pulp in a small bowl, add the hot water, and stir and mash with a fork. Set aside to soak for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the chile paste: Break off and discard the chile stems; discard the seeds if you want less heat. Place the chiles in a small pan with the hot water, bring to a boil, and boil for a minute or two, until softened. Transfer to a mortar or a food processor, add the salt, and mash or process to a paste.
Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chile paste and cook until it sizzles, a minute or two. Transfer to a small condiment bowl; set aside.
Mash the soaking tamarind again with a fork or your fingers to get it to dissolve. Place a sieve over a medium bowl and pour in the tamarind mixture; press the mixture against the mesh of the sieve with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the solids and set the liquid aside.
As I pedaled around exploring the lanes and markets of Mrauk U, I was a surprising and odd sight to some people—including this young mother, standing outside the house of her extended family.
Pull the fish apart into flakes, discarding any stray bones. Squeeze out any excess liquid from the fish and add it to the broth.
Place a heavy medium skillet or a wok over medium heat, add the 2 tablespoons oil, and stir in the turmeric. Add the fish and cook, using a spatula to stir it and separate it further into flakes, until it has dried out a little and has all been exposed to the hot oil. Turn out into a bowl and set aside.
About 10 minutes before serving, place the broth back over medium heat, add the soaked banana stem, if using, and the fish sauce, and bring to a simmer.
Meanwhile, put out six large soup bowls. Pour about 8 cups of water into a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the noodles. If using fresh noodles (they’ll be heated and tender after 30 seconds or so), use a spider or tongs to lift them out of the hot water and distribute them among the bowls. If using dried noodles, bring the water back to the boil and cook until tender, 3 or 4 minutes. Drain and distribute among the bowls.
Add 1 teaspoon or so of the shallot or garlic oil to the noodles in each bowl and turn to coat them. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon toasted chickpea flour, ½ teaspoon fish sauce, 1 teaspoon tamarind liquid, a generous pinch of coriander, and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper over the noodles in each bowl and toss to mix and blend. Sprinkle the flaked fish onto the noodles and toss again.
Pour the hot broth into individual small bowls and serve alongside the bowls of noodles. Put out the chile paste(s) and small bowls of the remaining tamarind liquid, chickpea flour, fish sauce, and coriander, so guests can adjust flavorings as they wish.
West Coast Mohinga, topped with flavorings and accompanied by small bowls of broth and red chile paste.
SERVES 6
Mohinga as it’s made and served on the street in Rangoon can be a multilayered, extraordinary dish. The trick is to find a cook who cares a lot—look for a busy stall—and then keep going back to her each day.
Here’s one welcoming take on mohinga, not chile-hot, broth. I’ve included banana stem in case you have access to it, but you can make the soup without it. Do make at least one of the fried toppings.
One 2- to 2½-pound catfish or other freshwater fish such as tilapia or trout, or several smaller fish, cleaned and scaled
BROTH
4 cups water
1 teaspoon shrimp paste (ngapi; see Glossary)
1 teaspoon turmeric
3 garlic cloves, smashed
3 slices ginger
2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and smashed
½ cup minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced lemongrass
Salt
1 to 2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
¼ cup oil
¼ teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon fish sauce, or to taste
1 cup water
5 inches banana stem, peeled, soaked in cold water for an hour, sliced, and drained (see Glossary; optional)
10 small whole shallots, or 5 larger ones, cut in half
Finely ground black pepper
1½ pounds fresh rice vermicelli or rice noodles or 1 pound dried rice noodles (see Glossary)
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS AND CONDIMENTS (CHOOSE ANY OR ALL)
1 cup minced scallion greens
3 hard-boiled hen or duck eggs, cut into wedges or slices
2 limes, cut into wedges
1 cup chopped coriander
Rinse the fish thoroughly; set aside.
Pour the water into a wide pot and add the shrimp paste, turmeric, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. Add the fish and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes. Remove the fish and set aside to cool for a moment.
Strain the broth into a pot, discarding the solids, and set aside.
Pull the cooked fish off the bones, flake, and set aside. Add the bones and skin to the broth and boil for another 10 minutes, then strain and discard the bones and skin. Set the broth aside.
If you have a mortar, pound the minced shallots to a paste; set aside. Pound the lemongrass to a coarse paste with a pinch of salt; set aside. Pound the ginger and then the garlic and mix together with the lemongrass. Alternatively, combine the lemongrass, ginger, and garlic in a food processor, add a little salt, and process to a coarse paste.
Heat the oil in a wok or heavy skillet over medium heat, add the turmeric, chile powder, and pounded or minced shallots, and cook for several minutes, until the shallots are softened. Add the lemongrass-ginger paste and cook until aromatic, 3 minutes or so, stirring to prevent sticking. Add the reserved fish and the fish sauce and cook for several minutes more to blend flavors. Turn out and set aside.
Bring the broth to a boil. Stir the toasted chickpea flour or rice powder into the water, then stir into the broth. The broth will bubble and foam a little as it thickens. Add the fish mixture and the banana stem, if using, and cook at a low boil for about 10 minutes. Add the whole (or halved) shallots and black pepper and simmer for another 5 minutes or so, until the shallots are cooked. Taste and add fish sauce or salt if needed.
Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and boil gently until softened, about 1 minute for fresh noodles, 5 minutes for dried. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Drizzle on the shallot oil and toss gently to prevent the noodles from sticking together.
To serve, put out a platter with the toppings and condiments of your choice. Set out a large bowl for each guest. Place a generous cup of noodles in each bowl, top with some fried shallots, and ladle the soup over, making sure that each serving has some fish and whole shallots in it. Top with the coriander, and invite your guests to add other toppings as they wish.
The morning alms round takes a long line of monks through the main market in Hpa’an, in Karen State. In Moulmein a woman places rice in the bowl of a small monk, while those ahead of him rush to catch up to the procession of older monks up the street.
