Soup · Old Hong Kong Cart Food

Wun Zai Chi (碗仔翅, Imitation Shark's Fin Soup)

Photo: Gloumetcadao / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

It's nicknamed 'the poor man's shark fin soup' — by the 1960s, street vendors had entirely swapped the real shark fin for cheap noodles, and no one seemed to mind.

A thick, savory soup of shredded chicken or pork, mushrooms, egg, and mung bean vermicelli is thickened until the noodles mimic the texture of real shark fin, then ladled into small bowls from street carts and finished with vinegar, sesame oil, and white pepper.

Why it's made this way: Invented by 1940s Mong Kok street vendors as a cheap way to recreate the luxurious mouthfeel of an expensive banquet dish using inexpensive vermicelli, it let ordinary people taste a 'shark fin soup' experience for a few coins.