Growing up in Saigon, our father would take us to this Chinese diner which only had one dish on the menu – Braised Duck Noodles Soup with mushrooms or Mi Vit Tiem. As the place was always crowded, you know that the signature dish must be good!
Mi Vit Tiem is an egg noodles dish served in a dark rich broth with a whole duck leg which has been braised till the meat is tender and falls off the bone, a bit like Duck Confit… The broth is flavored with aromatics, spices and an herbal mix such as red dates and dry mandarin peel. If you can’t find dry mandarin peel, you could use instead grated orange zest.
Another key ingredient is the dry shiitake mushrooms. In this version, I have added other types of fresh mushrooms such as enoki, oyster and reishi mushrooms, to add more texture. If you do, these additional mushrooms should be added to the boiling broth, together with the green vegetable as they only need a quick blanching.
The list of ingredients is quite long, but most of them are staples in any Asian kitchen, and could be found in most Asian supermarkets.
I’m making this dish in my Instant Pot to save time. You could also use a regular pot, just increase the cooking time to 1-1/2 hour.
This braised duck noodles soup is usually served with pickled green papaya, the acid and crunchy fruit contrasts well with the rich broth and tender duck meat.
Since I could not find green papaya, I have used instead thinly sliced Granny Smith green apple. You can also use green mango, as long as the fruit is still green, crunchy and sour.
Braised Duck Noodles Soup – Mi Vit Tiem
Equipment
- Instant pot
Ingredients
- 4 Duck Legs
- 1/2 tsp Five-Spice Powder
- 4 inches Fresh Ginger, minced
- 2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine or sake
- 1 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
- 2 tbsp Shallots, chopped
- 1 tbsp Garlic, crushed and chopped
Soup Ingredients
- 8 cups water
- 6 red dates
- 1 tbsp dried mandarin peel – If this is unavailable, substitute with 1 tbsp of orange zest
- 8 dried Shitake mushrooms
- 1 tbsp cardamon powder
- 4 star anises
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 6 garlic cloves
- 3 shallots
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 onion
- 2 tspn palm sugar or brown sugar, to taste
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1/2 tbsp oyster dauce
Garnish
- 4 cups Thin egg noodles or Ramen noodles, blanched
- 2 cups Blanched Chinese Green vegetable like bok choy, Chinese broccoli
- 2 cup Assorted Asian mushrooms (Enoki, Oyster mushrooms, white beech) – Optional
- 1/2 cup Coriander
- 1/2 cup Sliced green onions
- 1 cup Pickled green papaya, thinly sliced (if not available, use instead Granny Smith apple or green mango)
Instructions
- Wash and pat dry the duck legs. Rub the duck legs with the first 6 ingredients, and marinate for an hour for the flavors to blend well.
- Preheat over to 450 degrees. Shake off the marinade from the duck legs. Place the duck legs in foil-lined baking tray, and roast for 15-20 minutes until the skin is golden brown. Remove from the oven.
- In the meantime, soak the dates and shitake in room temperature for 15 minutes to hydrate them. Remove and squeeze dry.
- Prepare the pickled green papaya (or green mango or Granny Smith green apple). Slice into very thin pieces and marinate with 1/4 cup white vinegar with a pinch of sugar and a pinch of salt.
- In instant pot, add all the soup ingredients including the soaked dates and shitake mushrooms and the duck legs. Close the lid, set pressure cook on high for 10 minutes. When done, release steam manually. (If using a regular pot, put all the broth ingredients in a large pot, heat to boiling. Add the roasted duck legs, lower the heat to simmer and cook for around one hour and half. Make sure to add more water to replace the evaporated liquid.)
- In the meantime, cook the noodles in boiling water according to package instructions, and divide in 4 bowls
- When steam has been fully released, open the lid and cancel pressure cook function. Skim any fat rising to the top. Remove the duck legs and put one duck leg in each bowl. Put 2 shitake mushrooms in each bowl. Set on saute function. When the broth is boiling, briefly blanch the green vegetable and additional mushrooms (optional) and divide among the 4 bowls. Taste the broth and adjust the seasoning. Laddle the broth in the bowls of noodles.
- Sprinkle the sliced green onion and coriander on top. Serve piping hot with a side dish of pickled green papaya.
Your family and friend would great enjoy this very popular dish in Vietnam. The duck is succulent and the broth is rich with great depth of flavors!
If you enjoy duck dishes like we do, check my other recipes: Vietnamese Duck with Bamboo Shoots noodles soup and Thai Duck Noodles soup.
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Duck and Bamboo Shoots Noodles Soup – Bun Vit Sao Mang
My favorite duck noodle soup! I just made it for to-morrow dinner. Tasted the broth: it’s to die for! And the pickles… I used green papaya and green mango as love them both.
Thanks for sharing.