Wonton Noodle Soup

Cantonese wonton noodle soup is the canonical noodle dish of southern China and one of the most refined examples of the region's approach to food: each component is executed to a high standard, and the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. A correctly made bowl is a very specific thing.

The noodles are thin, springy egg noodles — a mixture of wheat flour and egg, sometimes with a small amount of lye water (jian shui) to give them their characteristic yellow colour and firm, slightly alkaline bite. The texture should be al dente with a bite that does not give immediately. Poor wonton noodle soup is identifiable by flabby, overcooked noodles; the best houses cook the noodles in rapidly boiling water for 45 seconds and pull them immediately.

The wontons are small — no larger than a walnut — and wrapped to a specific shape: the skin folded over and crimped at the top, leaving a small opening. The filling is a mixture of whole or roughly chopped prawns with a small amount of minced pork and sometimes a touch of water chestnut. The prawn should be firm and fresh, not mushed into a paste. A bowl contains six to eight wontons.

The broth is a long-simmered stock from dried shrimp roe and pork bones, clear and golden, seasoned simply with salt and white pepper. The shrimp roe note is the distinctive flavour of a properly made Cantonese wonton broth. Garnish is spring onion only.

Hong Kong has the best-known houses: Mak's Noodle (Wyndham Street), Tsim Chai Kee (Wellington Street), Wing Wah Noodle Shop (Hennessy Road). The dish is available across the Guangdong province, in Guangzhou noodle houses, and wherever Cantonese-diaspora restaurants exist. The mainland versions tend to be larger and slightly less precise. In Hong Kong it is typically eaten as a quick lunchtime meal rather than a sit-down event.