Misua

Misua, also sometimes spelled mee sua or miswa, is a very thin variety of salted Chinese noodle made from wheat flour. These delicate strands have a silken, almost feathery texture and a gentle saltiness baked right into the dough, so they taste seasoned even before you add anything else. They cook astonishingly fast — usually a minute or two in hot broth — and stay white to pale yellow when done. Because they're so fine, misua soaks up whatever it's swimming in, which makes it a wonderful carrier for a good chicken or vegetable stock. What it won't give you is a hearty, springy chew; this is a noodle you reach for when you want something light, soft, and comforting rather than something with bite.

A word on handling: misua is fragile. The strands break easily in the package and turn tender the moment they hit liquid, so most cooks slide them in during the last stretch of cooking and pull the pot off the heat almost immediately. Left too long, they go from silky to mushy in short order. Traditionally the noodles come in tight little bundles or nests, and the long, unbroken strands carry real meaning — in Chinese and Filipino kitchens they stand for long life, which is why you'll see misua at birthdays and other celebrations.

If you can't find it, the closest swaps are other very thin wheat noodles. Somen noodle is the nearest cousin in both thinness and delicacy, while angel hair pasta or a fine vermicelli will get you in the neighborhood, though you may need to season a touch more since misua brings its own salt.