Homemade Alkaline Noodles/Ramen Noodles (碱水面)

Step 1

Add flour and salt to a mixing bowl. Mix water with lye water then pour into the flour gradually. Stir the flour constantly with chopsticks to evenly distribute the liquid.

Step 2

Use your hand to bring the lumps together to form a rough-looking dough. As this dough is on the dry side, this process may take some time to finish. You don’t need to make it smooth. It’s fine as long as everything is combined into one piece.

Step 3

Cover the dough with plastic wrap/cling film or a damp cloth. Leave to rest at room temperature for 1 hour.

Step 4

Knead the dough for 1-2 mins to make it smoother (Don’t worry if it’s not perfectly smooth). Then divide into four portions.

Step 5

Use your hands or a rolling pin to flatten one piece of dough (cover the rest to prevent drying) until it’s thin enough to go through your pasta maker on the widest setting.

Step 6

Feed it through the machine. Then fold the dough lengthway and repeat the procedure another couple of times.

Step 7

Reduce the thickness setting. Pass the dough through twice. Then repeat the process while reducing the setting one number up at a time until the dough reaches the desired thickness. My pasta maker has settings from 0 to 9, I usually stop at No. 3 (2.4mm) or No. 4 (1.8mm).

Step 8

Dust the dough sheet with a thin layer of corn starch (or other types of starch) to prevent the noodle strands from sticking.

Step 9

Pass the dough sheet through a cutting attachment (I use a spaghetti cutter) to produce noodles. At about halfway through the process, use your hand to catch the noodles.

Step 10

Bring a large pot of water to a full boil. Add the noodles. Once the water comes back to boil, cook for a further 1-2 mins. Taste one strand to check the doneness (Do not overcook).

Step 11

Rinse the noodles under running water for a few seconds then drain well. Serve with a sauce, toppings or in a soup (if serving as a cold dish, rinse until cooled).

Step 12

Place uncooked noodles in sealed bags/containers. Store in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for 3 months.

Step 13

Cook the usual way. No need to defrost if frozen.