Crab Bee Hoon (Crab Noodles)
Crab Bee Hoon (Crab Noodles) – Popular crab dish in Singapore. Easy Crab Bee Hoon recipe that you can make at home at a fraction of the cost.
During my most recent trip to Singapore (in April), my friends took me to Melben—a popular restaurant famed for its crab dishes. When the waiter came to take the order, I knew that I had to try crab bee hoon, a dish that I had read so much about on Singaporean food blogs.
The crab bee hoon was served in a clay pot, with a big and succulent crab swimming in a milky broth. At the first taste, I was transported to crab heaven.
I love crab and have tried many versions: chili crab, ginger and scallion crab, black pepper crab, creamy butter crab, roasted crab, my mother’s version of chili crab, but I had never tried the soupy combination of crab and bee hoon.
It was simply delicious! After the meal, my friends told me that the restaurant chain makes millions every year just selling crab. They asked me if I could crack the secret crab bee hoon recipe.
I told them that I would try and that we could then start a crab restaurant and make a boat load of money…
So, here it is, my crab bee hoon recipe. To be very honest, I think the taste of this crab bee hoon is extremely close to the ones I had in Singapore, except that Dungeness crab is used instead of Sri Lankan crab, which is not available in the United States. The secret ingredient is evaporated milk, hence the milky color of the crab bee hoon. It’s also a very easy recipe, one that anyone can attempt at home. If you love crab bee hoon, try this recipe and let me know how it’s compared to the real ones served in Singapore!
Crab Bee Hoon Recipe
Crab Bee Hoon is a popular crab dish in Singapore. Easy Crab Bee Hoon recipe that you can make at home at a fraction of cost.
Ingredients
- 6 oz Guilin rice noodles, dry
- 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
- 6 slices peeled ginger
- 1 cup canned chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk
- 2 lb crab, cleaned and cut into pieces
- 5 baby bok choy, cut lengthwise into halves
- 1 tablespoon rice wine
- 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce, or to taste or salt to taste
- 3 dashes white pepper
- 1 stalk scallion, cut into 1-inch lengths
Directions
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1Boil the dry Guilin rice noodles per the package instructions until al dente. Rinse the noodles with cold running water to remove the starch of the noodles (the noodles should be smooth and clean of starch after rinsing). Drain the noodles dry and set aside.
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2In a pot, add the butter and saute the ginger. Add the chicken broth and water and bring it to boil. Add the evaporated milk and follow by the crab. Cook for a few minutes until the crab turns red and cooked. Add the baby bok choy, rice wine, fish sauce, white pepper, scallion, and the noodles. Bring it to a quick boil and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Add 2 more tablespoons of evaporated milk if you like your crab bee hoon creamier.
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bobby
hi can i use coconut milk instead of milk?
Rasa Malaysia
The taste will be different but you can use.
Yvonne
I first attempted this recipe in around 2012 or something and although it was great, I was afraid to attempt it again as I’m not savvy with killing/washing crabs. I remember the gravy was delicious and I tried it again today with prawns and imitation crab stick. My family love it :) I substituted the noodles with Mee tai bak as it can be slurped up easily (kids around). Thank you for the recipe! If I may make a request, please decode the recipe for cheese prawn bee hoon and carnation milk crab from Malacca ??? They’re heavenly and I can’t find such food in Singapore :(
Rasa Malaysia
Hi Yvonne, thanks for trying my recipe. I haven’t tried cheese prawn bee hoon and Carnation milk crab from Malacca. :(
siska
what brand for guilin rice noodle do you recommend? Thanks!
Phyllis
Thank you for this recipe! It was so easy to make and my family loved it. I added more fish sauce, ginger and wine for a stronger taste. Will be making this again for my friends soon!
Rasa Malaysia
Awesome! :)
indian cuisine
oh how i love to eat crabs..i havent try this yet.and i would love to, i’ll keep this recipe so i could cook it in time.
Yen
I made this for dinner tonight…it was sooooo good and easy to make. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. As a Malaysian living in Hong Kong, I am so glad I could make this on my own now whenever I miss home food. I would however, add more ginger, spring onion and wine in future as it gives even more flavour to the dish and would make it even closer to those in Melben :)
Santhi
I am going to try this recipe during the long Hari Raya cum National Day break. It is mouth-watering. Cany wait to post the results of my attempt! Thank you Bee!
MalaysiaTrulyAsia
Omg!!!! Just made this for dinner and it’s super yummy and super quick!!!
I didn’t use crab, but use prawn wonton and fish balls instead, both pre-made in advance that
I kept frozen in the freezer. So all up prep and cooking time took me less than
15 mins!!!! Great recipe!!!! Spot on!!!!