Ohnno Kaukswe- Burmese wheat noodles in coconut chicken soup

WIth some friends, we were invited today for a typical Burmese fare that apparently can be found at food stalls in every corner of Burma or Myanmar. I think it is called Ohnno Kaukswe or it sounds like that. It really is very flavorful,  a bit like a cross between mee jawa and mee rebus.

I hope this is not shaping out to be a food blog rather than a travel blog. :-))

You start with a tray of condiments from ( clockwise) coriander leaves, onions, chili, fish sauce, salt and lime juice. You add all these condiments according to your preference to a bowl of noodles.

More condiments ranging from boiled egg, crackers made from noodles, a 'lentil' like from the bean family ( this was yummy and can be eaten on its own) and a bowl of chicken cooked in a secret (?) ingredient sauce.

You then add the gravy which is made from coconut milk, chicken stock, pea powder on to the noodle. The fried stuff like the crackers can be added in after the soup so the condiments are not so soggy. The noodle was really authentic.

Voila...the finished product for consumption.

We were then offered a tray of most interesting after meal 'desserts'. 

On the bottom left was fried garlic. Clockwise, we have ginger in lime juice ( takes getting used to), followed by fermented tea leaves ( apparently plucked as young shoots and then buried in a jar in the ground for several months to ferment the tea leaves) , fried dried shrimps , sesame seeds and in the middle of the tray broad beans. We were supposed to mix all together. The combined mixture complemented each other and was very edible unlike the sampling of the individual ingredients.

A lovely way to spend an afternoon experiencing a different food culture. Thanks to April Guess.