Rice vermicelli

Rice vermicelli is a thin round noodle made from rice dough pressed through small holes. In Vietnam it is called bún, in Thailand sen mee. Do not confuse it with Italian vermicelli: that is pasta made from wheat flour, while here the base is rice.

Vietnamese bún is made from fermented rice. Researchers at the Japanese institute JIRCAS, who watched production in factories, describe the sequence: washed rice is soaked for about a day, which starts lactic acid fermentation; the rice is ground with water, left to ferment overnight, drained and refined into flour. The flour is mixed into a thick batter and pressed through a mould with many small holes straight into boiling water. The strands are round in cross-section, and fermentation gives a smooth, bouncy texture. Bún is traditionally eaten for breakfast.

Thai sen mee is made differently. Rice is ground with water, the water is pressed out of the dough, small lumps are formed and partly steamed. The part-cooked and raw dough are mixed together, passed through an extruder into thin round strands, steamed again and dried. According to the Royal Society of Thailand, fresh sen mee has 20–25 % moisture and dried 10–12 %.

In Vietnamese cooking the soft white threads of bún go into soups such as bún bò Huế and bún riêu, into spring rolls and salads, and are served with grilled meat as in bún chả. Rice vermicelli is a close relative of flat rice noodles, but those are flat and this one is round.

Why it matters to you. Fresh noodles hold a lot of water and spoil quickly, so dried strands are kept in a tightly closed pack and fresh ones are eaten at once. Check colour and smell before use: fresh vermicelli is white, with no sour or rotten odour and no dark spots.