U-Mian Dry at Xuan Miao Vegan — tabs's Review (Sep 5, 2021)

It’s finally my turn to try this!!! Been wanting to eat ever since I discovered this option via HappyCow & the rave reviews on abillion reinforced this. Still a pity I didn’t get to try while it still had the fried mushrooms back then.

If you are confused why it’s xiao bai chye instead of the usual spinach, it’s cos they apparently ran out/no stock on a mid Sun aftn…. Was initially v disappointed bc I normally prefer spinach (lovely tangles of soft, dark green veggies in soup) and had expectation to have it today. but this turned out completely fine! Cooked to perfect texture, cut to a good size, stem added great crunch contrast to the smooth umian. & I think topping the noodles with this made eating slightly neater??Ended up being a good change of veg haha

I actually left this sitting for some 6h after buying 🤭 but I was THANKFULLY able to revive it!!! I portioned out to the side the noodles which had pesto clinging to it (so I could taste it on its own), then mixed up the non-pesto main noodles with hot water till strands separate and noodles actually glided(!!), then further heated in microwave for 45sec. I think my method worked in restoring its to an almost original state 🥴. Bc it WAS good!!with Noodle still holding up - being QQ/ not overcooked /perfect bite haha

🍲 Portion - generous and perfect equal amounts of the veg/fish tofu/ beancurd. Fills your belly just nice & toppings portion matched the noodle carb 🥳 (silly but cos I personally cannot continue eating sides without sufficient carb staple to match😂)

Onto the FLAVOUR & ingredients: wow I’m actually quite blown by the number of components /flavours I actually tasted in this set & how they came tgt.
🍱 Overall - as others have shared, rly less salt or grease compared to other hawkers (such a plus point bc rly cannot be taken for granted 🥺!!) even with addition of garlic oil. Feel free to water down the noodles/soup w hot water individually as necessary. I did do that a little 😶 but it helped me enjoy the flavours better at varying/own level of salt intake that didn’t ruin the dish😅
🍱Noodle Sauce - tasty!! Unique - Holds its own. Brother said it smelled good aha
🍱(optional) garlic oil had a distinctive garlic smell & flavour - not overpowering but in a good way that elevates the flavour further 😋
🍱‘Pesto’ - added extra dimension of a lemony(?) citrus-y edge to the dish. Was initially surprised there wasn’t option to include Chili, but I totally get it now and this is way better. One need NO CHILI to disguise/cover up these sauces !
🍱 Soup - it’s own yummy slightly salted flavour
🍱 Beancurd - added chewiness + texture. not salty on its own 😁 bc too often dried tofu skins I eat end up being too salty cos preserved with sauce/salt??
🍱 ‘Fish’ Tofu - chunky good size, diff texture that isn’t tough. I think it’s done well bc not too flour-y or salty or ‘fishy’(?). Was given 3 large pieces
🥬 as mentioned earlier, different from usual spinach. Not on the menu & I’m not sure if you can specify that you want it. Great veg to pair this noodle set for crunch and you get a good amount of soup flavour coating the veg’s large surface as you bring it over to your noodles hahaha
🍱Noodles - Umian cooked perfectly - silky smooth good-sized strands but sufficiently al dente (sometimes rly turns to mush!! 😳) sauce coated nicely

Rly loved this how all these diff parts came tgt so well, great on their own but flavours blending well - it actually felt like I was going on a wonderful taste exploration journey hahaha. Even though it looks so unassuming.

Cost: $6.50 + $0.30(takeaway)

If you actually got to this part, Sorry for the overly extended review that no one rly needs 🙃🤭. But just happy/excited with this successful buy/dish LOL