The secret weapon? Experience
As for the manufacturing process for Hsinchu rice noodles, Lee likens it to a steam bath and massage:
“Each stage in the process might look easy, but it’s taken us a good 30 years of practice to get the texture and mouthfeel of the noodles just right.”
So what’s their secret?
First comes getting the mix of ingredients right, which can be tricky.
Lin Ming-hsing explains that the thickness of the cornstarch determines the firmness of the noodles, while the wheat starch and indica rice milk impact their stickiness. The exact proportions of these three ingredients vary from company to company, and are closely guarded secrets.
Next, the mixed ingredients are moved on to steaming, steamed to about 20% cooked, and then pressed through a cylinder, the holes in the end plate forming the long, thin noodles. After that, the noodles are coiled up and steamed to completion at 120ºC.
A few minutes later, the cooked noodles are taken out of the steamer and put on a table, filling the room with steam and the scent of rice.
Women at each end of the table then take hold of the ends of the noodles like a tug-of-war, quickly lifting the two-meter-long noodles into the air and stretching them out. After a couple of rounds of this tug-of-war, the “warriors” are drenched with sweat.
After this, the hundreds of long, fine noodles are almost as elastic as rubber, but retain the characteristic softness of rice noodles. This is how Xiang Yi give their noodles the consistency and texture they are so proud of.
But there’s more to come, as the noodles are still wet at this point. A group of employees then cut the noodles to lengths of about 40 or 50 centimeters, while another group use long bamboo chopsticks to fold the noodles, finishing one batch of noodles in just three seconds.
Once everything’s ready, the racks of noodles are then sat in a room to dry at about 50°C. When asked how long the noodles take to dry, Lee says “it’s hard to say for sure,” and that it depends on the weather on the day and how many noodles are in each rack.
“Some people say wind-dried noodles are better quality, but that’s not really the case; the humidity, temperature, and wind level outside are hard to control, but inside we can adjust the temperature and humidity, and thus control the drying time,” explains Lin Ming-hsing.
Lee Chiu-hsia, one of the founders of the Yunlin-based Xiang Yi Foods, was the 1994 recipient of a Shennong Award. As well as being involved in the rice noodle business, she is also an active part of the local leisure farms association, designing rice-noodle-based menus for visitors. This photo shows Lee and a summery meal of cold rice noodles and vegetables created by her and members of the association.