mai5 fan2米粉
Jyutpingmai5 fan2
Yalemáih fán
Definition
Rice vermicelli; a thin variety of rice noodle.
colloquialfooddim sum
How it's used
Distinguishing between different types of noodles is essential in Hong Kong, as rice vermicelli is significantly thinner and more delicate than rice noodles like 河粉 or 米線. It is often served in clear broth or stir-fried with soy sauce and meat. When ordering, specifying the type of noodle is standard practice to ensure you get the texture you prefer.
Measure word
wun2碗wúnExamples
Do I want to eat a plate of stir-fried beef ho fun, or should I have rice vermicelli?
The soup rice vermicelli at this restaurant is very famous.
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse 米粉 with 米線, as they have different textures and thicknesses. While both are made from rice, 米粉 is much finer and breaks more easily, whereas 米線 is thicker and chewier.
Grammar color guide
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Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
