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.
-
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!!!!
Erich
I just wanted to thank you for the great recipe! The broth is out-of-this-world yummy.
Cooking my raw crab in the soup added a lot of flavor AFAIk.
Can’t wait to try out more of your recipes.
Lianne
Just made this for dinner tonight and it was a big hit! We all loved it and drank every single drop of soup! YUMS! Thanks for sharing the recipe!! xx
Rasa Malaysia
Glad that you loved it. :)
kay818
Hello, what brand for guilin rice noodle do you recommend? Thanks!
longbeans
hi is guilin dry noodles the same as mee sua?
Rasa Malaysia
No.
Naz
hi dear, would like to try to cook my first crab dish *blush
But wat kind of crab am i suppose to use?
And where can i get the noodles mentioned? NTUC?
Rasa Malaysia
Mud crab. I am not sure what is NTUC.
Robert Danhi
Jun – Mellben is AMAZING (MUST go to Ang Mio Kio location) also make sure to try their Salted Egg Pork Ribs! Tell Mr Boon Chuan the owner I say hello!
lurve
Agree!! Love the crab bee hoon @Mellben. But we happen to love their Creamy Butter Crab even more! Thanks for sharing the recipes. Will using fresh milk instead of evaporated milk come up with similar taste?
Rasa Malaysia
Evaporated milk will be creamier. :)
noobcook
aiyoh, torture to see this now when I am so hungry. Looks so good. I have to get over my phobia of killing crabs :p
shatz
I tried this recipe last night. My husband & I loved it. It was simple, easy to prepare & delicious!!!!
A definite star in my book. And please keep the recipes coming…
Rasa Malaysia
Shatz – thanks for your sweet comment. I am so glad that you and your hubby loved my crab bee hoon recipe. Yes, will keep blogging and share great recipes, you can also try out other recipes here: https://rasamalaysia.com/rasa-malaysia-recipe-index/
vietfoodrecipes
Looks tasty. Probably better to remove the shell before adding to soup. Easier to eat! :)
Jun
I am putting this Melben in my list. i have no doubt that you have successfully recreate it. Beautiful dish indeed
Rasa Malaysia
Hey Jun – yes, I quite like the crab beehoon but don’t bother ordering the chili crab…I think my recipe is better than Melben’s. :)
Pris
Oh my Aunt brought me to Melben this time when I was Singapore and I was really intrigued by the combination of crab and beehoon. Takes a while to get used to though. Your recipe sounds interesting enough to try!
Hoi
I am so excited to see this recipe, can’t wait to try this out. Had crab bee hoon at Malben 4 years ago when I was back for a holiday and have been craving for it ever since.
Nicki
I’m Singaporean and LOVE LOVE LOVE Melben. Thanks for sharing this, I may have to make it myself when the craving hits someday! One question though, there’s nothing written on how you include the crab in your recipe?
Rasa Malaysia
Yes, it’s here: Add the evaporated milk and follow by the crab. Cook for a few minutes until the crab turns red and cooked. :)
Tastes of Home (Jen)
I’ve heard of Singapore’s crab noodles too, this looks great! I was planning to cook something similar but with those giant freshwater prawns instead. Thanks for sharing another great recipe!
Rasa Malaysia
Freshwater prawn will work for this recipe I think. Let me know how it goes Jen.
Rasa Malaysia via Facebook
Debbie – no, I haven’t tried crab bee hoon in Malaysia. Don’t have it in Penang. :)
Erik Anderson via Facebook
Crab and noodles can’t wait to try this one yumo!
Fern
I’ve never tried it before but it sounds delicious, and you make it look so easy to prepare! Also never used guilin rice noodles before, but they look like thin egg noodles in the photo.
food-4tots
This is our most favourite pick when we went to crab restaurant in Singapore. We do not only like the crab and enjoy the flavourful broth to bits. Thanks for cracking the secret! You are surely a crab expert!
tom
Have you tried “typhoon bay shelter’s crab), aka pei fong tong crab in Cantonese.Hope you can come out with a similar recipe
Rasa Malaysia
Yes, I know the typhoon shelter crab, I love it, too, but have never made it at home.
Cork @ Cork's Outdoors
Boy does this take me back to my childhood days breaking from school at Ulu Pandan and taking the bus to a nice small noodle shop in Holland Village!
Rasa Malaysia
I am happy that when a certain dish brings back sentimental memories to my readers. :)
JJu Le via Facebook
That looks amazing. There is a Vietnamese dish called bun rieu.. its also crab noodles soup and yummy!
Kiran
What a great recipe! I’ve never tried crab bee hoon before now I am intrigued :) Thanks for sharing this recipe Bee!
Rasa Malaysia
Kiran – you should try it.
Wan Suhairi via Facebook
hahah…i’m not a fan of bee hoon…but after seeing this, maybe i’ll try it sometimes….delicious looking..!!!! :p
[email protected]
Bee, this looks really good. I have to admit that I have not heard about the restaurant. This sounds and look very much like fish head bee hoon but I am sure the crab would have made the soup so much sweeter!
Rasa Malaysia
I can’t believe that you haven’t been to Melben. Which is your favorite crab restaurant? Anyway, the chili crab at Melben is not that great, but crab bee hoon is pretty good. :)
Debbie Chew via Facebook
Have you tried Crab Bee Hoon in KL , Port Klang , Teluk Gong ? it’ awesome !
peteformation
I like the sweet soup…..yummy!
Rasa Malaysia
Yes, the soup is sweet because of the crab, it’s also creamy because of the evaporated milk.
Ce Hovell via Facebook
It reminds me of the fish head noodles my mum loved
Jenny Kusaba via Facebook
Must try to cook,yummy.
Nami @ Just One Cookbook
What a beautiful crab dish and how interesting to add evaporated milk! Looks really delicious… yum!
Rasa Malaysia
Nami, this crab bee hoon is great, I love it.