How Asia Eats Spaghetti
The first chapter of our ongoing 'western food in Asia' series, a look at three Spaghetti dishes in Hong Kong, Japan, and Thailand. (黑椒炒意粉/拿破仑意面/泰式香辣培根意面)
Black Pepper Spaghetti (黑椒意粉)
Ingredients:
Dried Spaghetti, 100g
Flour (面粉), ½ tbsp
Onion (洋葱), ¼. Sliced.
Garlic, 2 cloves. Minced.
Shallot (干葱), ½. Minced.
Black pepper, 1 tbsp. Freshly ground.
Sauce:
Dark soy sauce (老抽), 1 tsp
Soy sauce (生抽), ½ tsp
Oyster sauce (蚝油), ½ tsp
Sugar, 1 tsp
Salt, ¼ tsp
MSG (味精), ¼ tsp
Worcestershire sauce (喼汁), 1 tsp
Water, 6 tbsp
Ham (火腿), 30g
Butter (牛油), 1 tbsp
Process:
Cook the spaghetti until done. If holding for a bit, transfer to a plate and jiggle in front of a fan or AC to vent out some steam. Reserve.
Mix together the ‘sauce’ ingredients and set aside.
To make the final black pepper sauce, first fry the ½ tbsp flour in 2 tbsp oil over a medium flame. Once combined, add in the onion and cook until slightly softened, ~1 minute. Add in the shallot and the garlic, and fry everything until the roux’s cooked through, 2-3 minutes more. Add in the black pepper and fry until fragrant. Add in the sauce, swap the flame to high. Once thickened, transfer to a bowl.
Same wok, add another tablespoon of oil over a medium flame. Fry the ham until slightly darkened, ~1 minute, then add in the spaghetti. Stir fry for ~30 seconds, then mix in the sauce, and finish with a tablespoon of butter.
Naporitan (ナポリタン)
Ingredients:
Dried Spaghetti, 100g
Onion, 1/8. Sliced.
Hot dog, 1. Sliced.
Ketchup, 4 tbsp
Seasoning:
Salt, ¼ tsp
MSG, ¼ tsp
Sugar, ½ tsp
Kewpie Mayo, 1 tbsp
Green bell pepper, ¼, sliced
Butter, 1 tbsp
Optional powdered parm & Tabasco to serve
Process:
Optional: For a Yoshoku restaurant style spaghetti… first boil the spaghetti until done, then thoroughly coat with oil. Let it sit in the fridge for at least 4-5 hours, or up to overnight. Re-blanch for 15 seconds to re-heat before frying.
For us, we simply boiled the spaghetti until done, and then transferred directly from the cooking pot.
Either way, first fry the onion in ~2 tbsp oil over a medium flame. Once slightly softened, ~1 minute, add in the hot dog. Once the hot dog begins to curl, ~1 minute, scooch up the side of the wok. Add in the four tbsp of ketchup, fry in the oil for 1-2 minutes. Add in the spaghetti, stir fry for ~30 seconds. Add in the seasoning and the mayo, mix well. Add in the bell pepper, fry for ~15 seconds. Add in the butter and mix.
Dried Chili Spaghetti (สปาเก็ตตี้ผัดพริกแห้ง)
Ingredients:
Dried spaghetti, 100g
Bacon, 100g. Sliced into ~1 inch sections.
Water, ½ cup
Onion, 1/8. Diced
Garlic, 2 cloves. Minced.
Spicy dried chilis, 8. Sliced in half.
Seasoning:
Oyster sauce, 1 tbsp
Fish sauce, ½ tbsp
Sugar, ½ tsp
MSG, ¼ tsp
Black pepper, ¼ tsp
Cornstarch, ½ tsp
Water, 1.5 tbsp
Thai basil (or sweet basil), 3 large handfuls
Cook the spaghetti until done. If holding for a bit, transfer to a plate and jiggle in front of a fan or AC to vent out some steam. Reserve.
To a wok or pan, add in the bacon and the water, and let it boil over a high flame. Once the water is evaporated, swap the flame to medium. After another 2-3 minutes, there should be a good bit of bacon fat to fry in. Add the diced onion and fry for 1-2 minutes, or until slightly golden, then add in the garlic. Once fragrant, add in the chilis. Once those are fragrant, add in the spaghetti and stir fry for ~30 seconds. Add in the seasoning and mix thoroughly to coat. Add the basil and mix for ~30 seconds to wilt.