Luosifen (螺蛳粉 (luósīfěn))
Overview
Luosifen is a famously pungent rice noodle soup from Liuzhou in Guangxi, southern China. Round, chewy rice noodles are served in a spicy broth made by simmering river snails and pork bones for hours with spices such as star anise, cassia and fennel. The bowl is topped with sour pickled bamboo shoots, which give the dish its strong smell, along with fried peanuts, crispy fried tofu skin, wood ear mushrooms, green vegetables and plenty of red chilli oil. The snails flavour the stock but are not usually served. The soup is hot, sour, spicy and rich, and people either love it or cannot stand it.
History
Luosifen is said to have started in the night markets of Liuzhou in the late 1970s and 1980s, when stall owners served rice noodles in the snail broth that was already popular in the city. It became a local favourite, and in the 2010s factories began selling instant packs. Luosifen then became a national craze online, and the city now produces millions of packs every day.
Main ingredients
Rice noodles, river snail broth, pickled bamboo shoots, peanuts, tofu skin, chilli oil. The soup is built on river snail and pork bone broth and is usually served hot. Diet: contains meat; not usually gluten-free.
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Recipe
Method
- 12 h
Simmer the pork bones in 3 l water for 2 hours.
- 21 h
Fry the snails with the spices and chillies, add to the stock and simmer for 1 hour, then strain.
- 3
Cook the noodles in boiling water until soft and divide into bowls.
- 4
Ladle over the broth and top with bamboo shoots, peanuts, tofu skin, mushrooms, greens and chilli oil.
- ✓
Serve. About 3h 20m from start to bowl.
Sources
Description, history and recipe written by SoupWiki and checked against the sources above. Calories and times are rough estimates.
