Cellophane noodles

Cellophane noodles, orfensi(traditional Chinese:粉絲;simplified Chinese:粉丝;pinyin:fěnsī;lit.'flour thread'), sometimes calledglass noodles, are a type of transparentnoodlemade fromstarch(such asmung beanstarch,potato starch,sweet potatostarch,tapioca, orcannastarch) and water. A stabilizer such aschitosan(oralum, illegal in some jurisdictions) may also be used.
They are generally sold in dried form, soaked to reconstitute, then used in soups, stir-fried dishes, orspring rolls. They are called "cellophane noodles" or "glass noodles" because of theircellophane- orglass-like transparency when cooked.
Cellophane noodles should not be confused withrice vermicelli, which are made fromriceand are white in color rather than clear (after cooking in water).
Cellophane noodles are made from a variety ofstarches. In China, cellophane noodles are usually made ofmung beanstarch or sweet potato starch. Chinese varieties made frommung beanstarch are calledChinese vermicelli,bean threads, orbean thread noodles. Chinese varieties made from sweet potato starch are calledfentiaoorhongshufen. Thicker Korean varieties made with sweet potato starch are calledsweet potato noodlesordangmyeon.
Cellophane noodles are available in various thicknesses. Wide, flat cellophane noodle sheets calledmung bean sheetsare also produced in China. In Korea,napjak-dangmyeon(literally "flatdangmyeon") refers to flat sweet potato noodles.
In China, the primary site of production of cellophane noodles is the town of Zhangxing, inZhaoyuan,Shandongprovince. However, historically the noodles were shipped through the port ofLongkou, and thus the noodles are known and marketed as Longkoufensi(simplified Chinese:龙口粉丝;traditional Chinese:龍口粉絲).
InChinese, the most commonly used names arefěnsī(Chinese:粉絲;lit.'noodle thread') andfěntiáoorhóngshǔfěn(Chinese:粉條orChinese:紅薯粉;lit.'noodle strip' or 'sweet potato noodles'). They are also marketed under the namesaifun, theCantonesepronunciation of the Mandarinxìfěn(Chinese:細粉;lit.'slender noodle', though the namefánsī(粉絲) is the term most often used in Cantonese.
In China, cellophane noodles are a popular ingredient used instir fries, soups, and particularlyhot pots. They can also be used as an ingredient in fillings for a variety of Chinesejiaozi(dumplings) andbing(flatbreads), especially invegetarianversions of these dishes. Thicker cellophane noodles are also commonly used to imitate the appearance and texture ofshark's finin vegetarian soups. Thicker varieties, most popular in China'snortheast, are used in stir fries as well as cold salad-like dishes. A popular shanghai cuisine using the ingredient is fried tofu with thin noodles (Chinese:油豆腐線粉湯;pinyin:yóu dòu fu-xiàn fěn tāng). A popularSichuandish calledants climbing a treeconsists of stewed cellophane noodles with a spicy ground pork meat sauce.
InTibetan cuisine, glass noodles are calledphingorfingand are used in soup, pork curry or with mushrooms.
InJapanese cuisine, they are calledharusame(春雨), literally "spring rain". Unlike Chinese glass noodles, they are usually made from potato starch. They are commonly used to make salads, or as an ingredient inhot potdishes. They are also often used to make Japanese adaptations of Chinese and Korean dishes.Shiratakinoodlesare translucent, traditional Japanese noodles made from thekonjacyam and sometimestofu.
InKorean cuisine, glass noodles are usually made fromsweet potatostarch and are calleddangmyeon(Korean:당면;Hanja:唐麵; literally "Tangnoodles"; also spelleddang myun,dangmyun,tang myun, ortangmyun).  They are commonly stir-fried in sesame oil with beef and vegetables, and flavoured with soy and sugar, in a popular dish calledjapchae(잡채). They are usually thick, and are a brownish-gray color when in their uncooked form.
InIndia, glass noodles are calledfalooda(seefalooda, the dessert dish), and are served on top ofkulfi(a traditional ice cream). They are usually made from arrowroot starch using a traditional technique. The noodles are flavorless so they provide a nice contrast with the sweetkulfi.Kulfiandfaloodacan be bought from numerous food stalls throughout northern and southern parts of India.
InIndonesian cuisine, they are calledsoun,suunorsohun, probably fromPe̍h-ōe-jī:suànn-hún(traditional Chinese:線粉;simplified Chinese:线粉;pinyin:xiànfěn;lit.'thread flour'). Its usually eaten withbakso,tekwan, andsoto. InKlaten, there aresohunmade fromarenstarch.
InMalaysia, they are known astanghoon(冬粉). They are sometimes confused withbihun(米粉) which arerice vermicelli. Sometimes also known assuhunorsuhoon.
InMyanmar, cellophane noodles are calledkyazan(ကြာဆံ;lit.'lotus thread'), more specifically calledpe kyazan(ပဲကြာဆံ,lit.'bean lotus thread'), which is typically made with mung bean flour. The other form ofkyazan, calledhsan kyazan(ဆန်ကြာဆံ), refers torice vermicelli.
Kyazanis the primary starch used in a Burmese consommé calledkya zan hinga, and is also used inBurmese salads.
InFilipino cuisine, the noodles are called a similar name:sotanghonbecause of the popular dish of the same name made from them using chicken andwood ears. They are also confused with rice vermicelli, which is calledbihonin the Philippines.
InThai cuisine, glass noodles are calledwun sen(Thai:วุ้นเส้น). They are commonly mixed with pork and shrimp in a spicy salad calledyam wun sen(Thai:ยำวุ้นเส้น), or stir-fried asphat wun sen(Thai:ผัดวุ้นเส้น) and sometimes used as the noodles forpad thai.
InVietnamese cuisine, there are two varieties of cellophane noodles. The first, calledbún tàuorbún tào, are made frommung beanstarch, and were introduced by Chinese immigrants. The second, calledmiếnormiến dong, are made fromcanna(Vietnamese:dong riềng), and were developed in Vietnam. These cellophane noodles are a main ingredient in the dishes:miến gà(chicken),miến lươn(eel),miến ngan(muscovy duck), andmiến cua(crab). These cellophane noodles are sometimes confused with rice vermicelli (Vietnamese:bún) andarrowrootstarch noodles (Vietnamese: arrowroot:củ dong, arrowroot starch:bột dong/bột hoàng tinh/tinh bột khoai mì).
InFrench Polynesia, cellophane noodles are known asvermicelle de sojaand was introduced to the islands byHakkaagricultural workers during the 19th-century. They are most often used inmaʻa tinito, a dish made with cellophane noodles mixed together with pork, beans and cooked vegetables.
InHawaii, where cuisine is heavily influenced by Asian cultures, cellophane noodles are known locally aslong rice, supposedly because the process of making the noodles involves extruding the starch through apotato ricer.They are used most often inchicken long rice, a dish of cellophane noodles in chicken broth that is often served atluaus.
Glass noodles were introduced toSamoabyCantoneseagricultural workers in the early 1900s where they became known as "lialia", a Samoan word meaning "to twirl", after the method of twirling the noodles around chopsticks when eating. A popular dish calledsapasui(transliteration of theCantonesechop suey) is common fare at social gatherings. Sapasui, a soupy dish of boiled glass noodles mixed with braised pork, beef, or chicken and chopped vegetables, is akin to Hawaiian "long rice".
There were severalfood safety incidents originating in China. In 2004, a number of companies inYantai, China, were found to be producingLongkoucellophane noodles withcornstarchinstead of green beans, to reduce costs. In order to make the cornstarch transparent, they were addingsodium formaldehyde sulfoxylateandlead-based whiteners to their noodles.
In December 2010, Czech food inspection authorities inspecting Chinese cellophane noodles determined that 142 mg/kg (0.00227 oz/lb) ofaluminiumhad been added to them.Above 10 mg/kg (0.00016 oz/lb) is an illegal amount for noodles in Czech and EU markets (see Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 669/2009 and its amendments (EU) No 187/2011, 618/2013 annex I).