Rice Noodle Rolls (Cheung Fun). Steamed soft chewy rice noodle rolls with scallions, sesame seeds and soy sauce. A delicious Chinese dim sum dish great for breakfast, as a main or side - made with simple ingredients!
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What are Rice Noodle Rolls?
Rice Noodle Rolls ("Cheung Fun" or "Chee Cheong Fun" in Chinese) are fresh rice noodles made of rice flour, glutinous rice flour, salt and water.
They are chewy and tender and usually served with sweet dark soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and peanut butter sauce (or equal parts of these sauces all mixed into one).
Rice noodle rolls can also contain fillings such as shrimp, ground beef, dried shrimp or dried scallops, scallions, char siu or deep fried dough fritters.
Cheung fun is a popular Chinese dish that comes from Hong Kong. These are often served at many Chinese dim sum restaurants.
You'll see waiters rolling their carts around with bamboo steamer baskets filled with these rice noodle rolls, among many tasty dim sum dishes.
Rice noodle rolls are easy to make at home with simple pantry ingredients! A thin layer of the simple batter is steamed in a well-oiled baking tray and gently rolled with a dough scraper and served piping hot with sauce.
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
Batter
- Non-Glutinous Rice Flour: not glutinous rice flour. You can easily find this at most grocery stores.
- Glutinous rice flour: or substitute with cornstarch, tapioca starch, or potato starch. This makes the rice noodle rolls chewy in texture.
- Salt
- Cold water
- Neutral oil: like grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil.
Garnishes
- Sweet dark soy sauce: aka kecap manis. This is a sweetened dark soy sauce. Or substitute with dark soy sauce and dissolve white granulated sugar into the soy sauce to taste.
- Chopped Scallions
- Sesame seeds
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients or check Amazon.
Expert Tips
- Use a bamboo steaming basket instead of a wire rack for best results so the baking sheet remains levelled for evenly thin rice noodle sheets.
- Use a clean and smooth baking tray with a lip so the batter doesn't spill out.
- Make sure the baking tray is perfectly levelled on the bamboo steamer basket or wired rack or the batter will be thicker or thinner in some areas making it challenging to roll.
- Whisk the batter again before pouring it into the baking pan so the ingredients are well distributed.
- Pour the batter into the middle of the tray so it evenly distributes across your tray for an even texture.
- Cover and do not lift the cover to check. Allow this to cook for the full four minutes.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make rice noodle rolls:
- To make the batter: In a large bowl or a large measuring cup with a lip, whisk together rice flour, glutinous rice flour and salt until well combined. Pour cold water into the dry ingredients and whisk well. Set aside.
- In a large wok, fill it one-third of the way with water and place a wire rack or a bamboo steamer on top of the water. Place a 10 x 8-inch baking tray onto the wire rack or bamboo steamer and ensure it's perfectly levelled or batter will pool in certain areas creating a uneven texture. Brush 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil on the tray. Then bring the water to boil over medium-high heat.
- Mix the batter again and then pour ½ cup or 250 ml into the tray, aiming for the middle, to create a thin rice noodle sheet.
- Cover with a lid and steam for 4 minutes until you see large bubbles form under the rice noodle sheet. Do not open the lid.
- Next turn off the heat completely and remove the lid. Use two spatulas or a dough cutter to lift the edge of the rice noodle sheet and roll it away from you. The roll should be 1 inch thick.
- Slice in the roll in half with a thin bladed spatula or dough cutter. Transfer to your serving plate. Repeat this process until you have 3 more rolls. Garnish with sweet soy sauce, scallions, and sesame seeds and enjoy!
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave for 2-3 minutes or re-steam until hot.
- Freezer-friendly? I don't recommend freezing rice noodle rolls because they will become hard in texture.
Pairing Suggestions
Rice noodle rolls serve well with:
- starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, hot and sour soup, wontons or dumplings
- fried rice, chow mein, lo mein, soup noodles
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- protein dishes like Soy Sauce Chicken, Oven-Roasted Char Siu or Air Fryer Char Siu, or Chinese Roasted Pork Belly.
FAQ
Rice noodle rolls can be made up to 2-3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave for a few minutes or re-steam them until hot.
📖 Recipe
Easy Rice Noodle Rolls (Cheung Fun)
Ingredients
- 4 teaspoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
Batter
- 1 cup rice flour (not the glutinous kind)
- 1 tablespoon glutinous rice flour or sub with cornstarch/tapioca starch/potato starch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups water cold
Garnishes
- 3 tbsp sweet soy sauce or dark soy sauce mixed with 2 teaspoon white sugar
- 1 scallion finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- To make the batter: In a large bowl or a large measuring cup with a lip, whisk together rice flour, glutinous rice flour and salt until well combined. Pour cold water into the dry ingredients and whisk well. Set aside.
- In a large wok, fill it one-third of the way with water and place a wire rack or a bamboo steamer on top of the water. Place a 10 x 8-inch baking tray onto the wire rack or bamboo steamer and ensure it's perfectly levelled or batter will pool in certain areas creating a uneven texture. Brush 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil on the tray. Then bring the water to boil over medium-high heat.
- Mix the batter again and then pour ½ cup or 250 ml into the tray, aiming for the middle, to create a thin rice noodle sheet.
- Cover with a lid and steam for 4 minutes until you see large bubbles form under the rice noodle sheet. Do not open the lid.
- Next turn off the heat completely and remove the lid. Use two spatulas or a dough cutter to lift the edge of the rice noodle sheet and roll it away from you. The roll should be 1 inch thick.
- Slice in the roll in half with a thin bladed spatula or dough cutter. Transfer to your serving plate. Repeat this process until you have 3 more rolls. Garnish with sweet soy sauce, scallions, and sesame seeds and enjoy!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
That was a great tip for what kind of flour to use. I really love both the texture and flavors of these fun little rolls!