275g dried meehoon

2 tbsp black peppercorns

10 shallots, peeled

5 cloves garlic, peeled

3 tbsp vegetable oil

2 bunches garlic chives (kucai), cleaned and trimmed into 2″ strips

½ tbsp mushroom seasoning powder

1 tsp salt, or more to taste

1. In a large bowl, soak the meehoon for 10 minutes in room temperature water (our fail-proof method to avoiding soggy meehoon).
2. In the meantime, grind the peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. When the pepper is at a medium grind, add in the shallots and garlic and pound together with the pepper.
3. Heat a wok over medium heat, then pour in the vegetable oil. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the ground ingredients from the mortar. Fry for at least 5 minutes, until the onions turn translucent.
4. Add the kucai and stir to mix well for about a minute, the add the mushroom powder and salt.
5. Turn the heat up to the highest your burner can go. Transfer the soaked meehoon directly into the wok with a pair of tongs (no straining necessary). Immediately stir everything together as quickly and carefully as possible so nothing flies out of the wok. There will be some water carried over during the transfer—this is fine! Use this as an indicator: once the liquid has evaporated from the bottom of the wok, your noodles are done and ready to serve.