Content

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1. Why This Recipe Works
2. Ingredients Required
3. How to Prepare Everything Before Cooking
4. Step-by-Step Cooking Instructions
5. A Few Tips From My Kitchen 
6. Common Mistakes to Avoid 
7. Variations
8. More Recipes to Try

Why This Recipe Works

• Interesting ingredients: Century egg, ginger, and wood ear mushrooms give this noodle dish a character that you don’t often find in other Chinese noodle recipes.
• Crispy Yee Mee: Since Yee Mee is already lightly fried, you can use it straight from the package without blanching or cooking it first. The hot gravy softens the noodles while they still retain some of their original crunch, especially when served immediately.
• Quick to cook: Once everything is sliced and ready, the chicken, prawns, vegetables, and gravy come together quickly in one pan.
• Very forgiving: There is no rigid formula for the ingredients, so you can adjust the protein, vegetables, and broth based on what you have available.
• Easy at home: Most of the work is preparing the ingredients. Once everything is ready, the cooking itself is straightforward and doesn’t require complicated techniques.

Ingredients for Kong Nam Mee

• Key ingredients: Century egg, wood ear mushroom, and ginger give this noodle dish its distinctive character.
• Yee Mee: Lightly fried noodles that soften when the hot gravy is poured over them while retaining some crispness.
• Chicken and prawns: The main proteins, adding savory flavor and substance to the dish.
• Shiitake mushrooms: Dried shiitake mushrooms add a deeper mushroom aroma to the gravy.
• Choi sum: Adds vegetables and a fresh bite to balance the noodles and gravy.
• Carrot and onion: Carrot adds a little natural sweetness, while onion provides fragrance during stir-frying.
• Green onion: Adds freshness and aroma to the finished gravy.
• Seasoning: Oyster sauce and light soy sauce provide the main savory seasoning, while sesame oil adds aroma at the end.
• Chicken stock: Forms the liquid base of the gravy and brings all the ingredients together.

How to Prepare Everything Before Cooking

This recipe comes together quite quickly once you start cooking, so I recommend preparing everything before turning on the pan. Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms until they are soft, then rinse them well. Slice the shiitake mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms into bite-size pieces.

Thinly slice the chicken and carrot. Peel and devein the prawns, remove the heads, and leave the tails attached. I like keeping the tails because they make the finished dish look more presentable.

Cut the onion into approximately 2 cm pieces. Cut the choi sum and green onions into short sections, and slice the ginger thinly. Cut the century egg into wedges.

For the gravy, have the chicken stock, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, and white pepper measured and ready. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Mix the cornstarch with the cold water to make the slurry, and give it a quick stir again just before adding it to the gravy.

Most importantly, keep the Yee Mee aside and do not blanch or cook it. The Yee Mee I use is already cooked and lightly fried, so it goes directly onto the serving plates before the hot gravy is poured over it.

The complete ingredient quantities and measurements are provided in the recipe card below.

Step-by-Step Cooking Instructions– Kong Nam Mee

1. Stir-fry the aromatics, chicken, and prawns

Heat a pan over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the sliced ginger and onion and stir-fry until fragrant and the onion starts to soften.

Add the sliced chicken and stir-fry until it is almost cooked. Add the prawns and continue stir-frying until they start to turn pink. They do not need to be completely cooked at this stage because they will continue cooking in the gravy.

2. Add the mushrooms and vegetables

Add the sliced shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and carrot. Stir-fry briefly, then add the choi sum and green onion. Continue stir-frying until the vegetables are slightly softened but still have some texture.

3. Make and thicken the gravy

Pour in the chicken stock and add the oyster sauce, light soy sauce, and white pepper. Bring everything to a boil, then simmer for about 2–3 minutes.

Add the century egg and gently mix it with the other ingredients, being careful not to break it up too much. Stir the cornstarch slurry again, then gradually add it to the simmering gravy while stirring until the gravy is lightly thickened.

4. Add the egg and sesame oil

Slowly drizzle the beaten egg into the simmering gravy while stirring gently. The egg will cook into soft strands throughout the gravy.

Turn off the heat and stir in 2 teaspoons of sesame oil.

5. Pour the gravy over the Yee Mee

Place the Yee Mee directly onto the serving plates. Ladle the hot gravy and all the chicken, prawns, mushrooms, vegetables, and century egg over the noodles.

Serve immediately while the Yee Mee still has some of its crisp, chewy texture.

Variations of Kong Nam Mee

• Change the broth: Use another type of broth instead of chicken stock. For a vegetarian version, vegetable broth works well.
• Use pork or beef: Replace the chicken with thinly sliced pork or beef if you prefer a different protein.
• Make it vegetarian: Omit the chicken and prawns and use firm tofu instead. Use vegetable broth to keep the dish vegetarian.
• Skip the beaten egg: You can leave out the beaten egg if you don’t prefer egg in the gravy. Adjust the amount of cornstarch as needed to achieve the consistency you prefer.

More Recipes to Try

• Yi Mein (Yee Mee / 伊面) – If you enjoy the Yee Mee used in this Jiangnan Mian, my Yi Mein recipe is a natural one to try next. It uses the same type of already-cooked, fried Cantonese egg noodles, together with chicken, shrimp, choy sum, and a savory gravy.
• Wat Tan Hor (滑蛋河) – Wat Tan Hor is another Malaysian Chinese noodle dish with a thick egg gravy poured over the noodles. It uses flat rice noodles with meat, prawns, and vegetables, so the cooking style is different but the gravy-based approach is similar.
• Zha Jiang Mian (炸酱面) – For something different, try my Zha Jiang Mian, a Beijing-style noodle dish served with a savory fermented bean sauce, minced pork, and crunchy vegetables. Unlike Jiangnan Mian, it doesn’t use a broth-based gravy, so it gives you a completely different way to enjoy Chinese noodles.

Quick Takeaways

Jiangnan Mian is a flexible Malaysian Chinese noodle dish that is easy to make at home. I like this version with Yee Mee, chicken, prawns, century egg, and wood ear mushrooms. The key is to place the Yee Mee directly on the serving plate without cooking it, then pour the hot gravy and toppings over it and serve immediately while the noodles still have some crispness.