Foochow Longevity Noodles : Drying Soh Mien

Many years ago, there were very few Foochows in Miri. So whenever someone came over to Miri, he would bring a lot of longevity noodles made in Sibu as gifts for their relatives. Miri as a Cantonese and Hokkien town did not have shops selling Foochow food and ingredients.

Today it is different as many shops have been opened by the Foochow businessmen who have moved from Sibu in the late 70's.

And now it is quite easy to buy soh mien in the shops of Miri.



This is my cousin, Tiong Nai Hung, who owns Ing Kong Drug Store in Miri. Whenever he is free, he will make "rounds" of soh mien or longevity noodles. He said, "Drying the soh mien is not necessarily a woman's job. I can do it, other men can do it. We just have to share our chores. Family members have to share their work. Sharing is caring. Sharing is love."

the noodles are usually brought from Sarikei or Sibu and they have not been dried.

The Foochows dry their noodles in a special way. First you have to break a small bundle of the noodles from the whole bunch and then make a "bun" like a woman's hair bun or sangol. That is the small amount for a bowl of noodle for one person. The Foochows call it Suoh Ji (a small bundle)

When the rounds are completed, they are usually dried in a large bamboo tray in the hot sun.

These dried noodles are placed in an air tight tin and they can last quite a long time, especially if they are very well dried in the hot sun.






This is one of the loveliest sight we Foochows love.