Beef brisket braised two to three hours with star anise, cassia bark, ginger, and rock sugar until it pulls apart at the edge of a chopstick, then sliced and laid over a nest of thin egg noodles in a clear, amber broth. The broth is not rich or heavy — it is clean, with just enough fat to coat the lips.
Hong Kong noodle shops are measured by their brisket — the dish is a direct test of the kitchen's braising patience. The 清湯 (clear broth) style, as distinct from the curry version, became standard in Kowloon noodle shops from the 1950s onward.
A shallow bowl with a tangle of thin yellow egg noodles and four or five thick slabs of brisket, amber from the braise. The broth is clear, pale gold — not opaque — with a visible oil sheen but no fat pooling. Star anise and cassia come through as a light background note, not as a dominant flavour. The brisket should pull at the chopstick but not shred; the collagen layers at the edge are the target pieces.
Brisket has two layers of interest: the lean muscle (坑腩, hang naam) that firms up around 85°C, and the tendon-and-fat seams (爽腩, sóng naam) where collagen hydrolyzes into gelatin above 70°C over 2–3 hours. Cutting after braising rather than before keeps the cut surface from absorbing too much soy during the braise, which would make the exterior over-salty. The clear broth is a separate stock from the braise liquid — most commonly beef-bone based (some shops also use pork bone), skimmed clean, and lightly aromatised with the spices; many shops also add dried flounder (大地魚) for extra savouriness, the same umami backbone as their wonton-noodle broth. The brisket and broth are combined only at service.
Variations
Clear soup (清湯) vs curry brisket (咖喱牛腩) — both are common in Hong Kong noodle shops, often from the same kitchen. Some shops offer tendon (牛筋) or tripe (牛柏葉) as additions. Kau Kee Restaurant (九記牛腩) in Sheung Wan is the most-cited benchmark.
On the Palate
Where Brisket Noodle Soup sits in the Chinese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
6 steps · 3 hours
- 18 min
Blanch pork bones and brisket chunks separately in boiling water for 3 minutes each; drain and rinse under cold water.
- 235 min
In a heavy pot, combine the cleaned pork bones, 2L water, star anise, cassia, and ginger; bring to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer for 30 minutes to build the base broth.
- 3120 min
Add the brisket chunks, light soy sauce, and rock sugar to the broth; bring back to a simmer, then reduce to the lowest heat and braise partially covered for 2 hours until the meat gives way at the edge of a chopstick.
Watch outA rolling boil during the braise makes the brisket fibrous and tight — keep it at a bare tremble throughout. Check the liquid level at 1 hour and top up with hot water if needed.
- 45 min
Remove the brisket and slice against the grain into 1cm pieces; strain the broth and season with salt.
- 55 min
Cook the egg noodles in a separate pot of boiling water for 2–3 minutes until just done; drain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking and remove surface starch.
- 63 min
Portion the noodles into deep bowls, ladle the hot amber broth over until the noodles are submerged, then arrange the brisket slices on top and garnish with scallions.
