Dan Dan Mian （担担面）

I was craving some dan dan mian, a typical sichuan noodle dish and when i went to the supermarket i saw a premade mixed so i decided to give it a try as I have no idea how to make the sauce from scratch.

Cook time: 20 minutes

Serving: 2

Ingredients:

  • 120g egg noodles

  • 1 onion, diced

  • 120g ground pork or beef

  • 1/2 cup water (8 tbsp)

  • 4 tbsp sichuan noodle sauce (I used lee kum kee sichuan spicy noodle sauce)

  • some cooked bok choy, spinach, or stir-fry vegetables (optional)

  • Crushed peanuts or cashews (optional)

Method:


1. Saute the diced onion (I had some leftover bell pepper) in oil until tender. Then add the minced meat and cook until done.

2. Cook the egg noodles in boiling water according to packet instructions or until tender. Drain and put on a serving plate.

3. add the 4 tbsp Sichuan Spicy Noodle Sauce and 1/2 cup of water and mix in with the meat. (I had to boil it for some time as it was quite watery then it became salty, Next time i might try the ratio of 4 tbsp sauce and 3 tbsp water)

4.Put vegetables on top of noodles if you have then place meat sauce on top of that. add crushed peanuts or cashews if you have. then Mix it all well together and serve hot.

it was good but nothing like i had in china, it wasn’t as spicy as it should have been and the ratio i had followed according to the recipe for the noodle sauce made it so watery then when i tried to reduce it it ended up making it too salty. after mixing it with the noodles and vegetables it was better but still on the salty side. next time i will change the ratio and maybe add some more chili or peppercorns when cooking to add that extra spice it was missing. and maybe i will try to make my own sauce as well, it doesn’t look too difficult the only difficult ingredient to find would be sesame paste but i will check next time i am at the asian supermarket.

this recipe is not quite there but it was a good first try, there are improvements to make so i will update once i can get it right.

cooking, chinese, dinnerJackie Wongdan dan mian, sichuan, noodlesComment