Dan Dan Mian (擔擔麵 or 担担面)

Do you love noodle soup? I know I do!!!

There are many different types of noodle soup from all over the world, some of the popular noodle soups are;

·         Chinese – Mian (麵)

·         American - Chicken Noodle Soup

·         Vietnamese – Pho

·         Japanese – Ramen

·         Korean – Kalguksu

·         Etc.

There is only one noodle soup I have on my mind, which is Dan Dan Noodles or Dan Dan Mian (擔擔麵 or 担担面).

Dan Dan Mian is a classic Sichuan cuisine, containing minced pork, Sichuan pepper, preserved vegetables (榨菜), chili oil, peanut sauce or sesame paste, and scallions served over noodles. If you love noodle soup and spicy, then you’ll love this dish, let’s get started.

Ingredients: Serves about 4

1 tablespoon oil

½ lb lean ground pork

¼ fresh bamboo shoots *optional

5-6 dried Shiitake mushrooms *optional

½ packet of preserved vegetables

10 oz dried Chinese noodles

3 cups chicken broth

2 stalks chopped scallions

Baby bok choy for garnish

Sauce:

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons black rice vinegar

1 tablespoon light and dark soy sauce

2 tablespoons Sichuan hot chili oil (consists of hot chili oil and roasted Sichuan peppercorn)

Directions:

1.       Soak dried Shiitake mushrooms in boiling water for 30 mins. Chop mushrooms, preserved vegetable and fresh bamboo shoots in little cubes.

2.      Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl, whisk together.

3.      Cook the dried noodles according to the package directions, drain and set aside.

4.      Brown ground pork in a sauté pan over medium-high heat, drain and set aside. Heat oil in the same pan over medium-high heat; add chopped bamboo and sauté about 5-10 mins until tender, then add in chopped mushrooms and preserved vegetables and sauté for 5 mins, mix in ground pork. Bring chicken broth to boil, add in baby bok choy for 30 seconds.

5.      Assembly: Spoon about 1 or 2 tablespoons of the sauce, depending on your own taste, into individual bowls, dish in noodles, 1 or 2 ladles of chicken broth, 1 or 2 scoops of ground pork, garnish with chopped scallions and cooked baby bok choy.

Dan Dan Mian is full of flavor from many different ingredients that went into this dish. I like mine with lots of groud pork, as you can see in the photo below.
 

Does your Dan Dan Mian (担担面) looks like this? Until next time…Peace Out!