Dan Dan Noodles (担担面:DànDàn miàn) ー the iconic spicy Sichuan noodles, a flavour explosion with slippery noodles tossed in an intense spicy sesame sauce and pork. You'll need to visit an Asian grocery store but once you've got what you need, it's a cinch to make! (Plus, I've provided loads of substitution options)
The beautiful Northern Beaches area of Sydney in which I live is many things .... but certainly not known for great authentic Sichuan food!!!
And given that Dan Dan Noodles is literally one of my all time top 3 foods, it was essential that I arm myself with a totally doable home version that is everything you want in a bowl of slippery, spicy noodles laced with the sesame flavoured Dan Dan Noodles Sauce, wafting with the scent of Chinese five spice.
With the signature slick of fiery red chilli sauce in the surface, it actually looks more fierce than it is. I'm one of those people who likes to think they can handle really spicy food - but actually, I can't at all. So while the recipe provided has a good kick to it (I wouldn't serve it to a toddler), it is not blow-your-head-off spicy!
Usually I'd start with a visual of the ingredients, but in this case I think it's better to give you an overview of how it's assembled so you can see the different components of Dan Dan noodles.
How to make Dan Dan Noodles
Unlike most noodles, such as Lo Mein and Chow Mein noodles, Dan Dan Noodles aren't tossed together with sauce, vegetables and proteins. Instead, it's served layered for a DIY toss situation, as follows:
1⃣ Dan Dan Sauce in first ー the savoury, Five Spiced sesame sauce with a slick of the signature chilli oil that you know and love about spicy Sichuan noodles!
2⃣ Noodles next ー but don't mix it through;
3⃣ Toppings ー stir fried pork, preserved mustard greens(Sui Mi Ya Cai), choi sum and green onions;
4⃣ Peanuts ー finish with a sprinkle of chopped nuts;
5⃣ Serve it just like that, with the sauce pooled at the bottom; then
6⃣ To eat, you toss it all together so the white noodles become stained red with the spicy sauce, then devour!
What goes in Dan Dan Noodles
Here's an overview of what you need and how to make each component for these spicy Sichuan noodles.
1. DAN DAN NOODLES SAUCE
Here's what goes in the sauce ー it's not cooked, it's just mixed up in a bowl.
・Chinese Five Spice Powder is a spice mix of (don't fall of your chair!) five different spices. It's a common spice blend sold at grocery stores (Australia:Woolies, Coles);
・Sichuan Pepper is the pepper that's used in Sichuan cooking and other iconic Chinese dishes such as Kung Pao Chicken. It has a spiciness that is numbing rather than the usual fiery heat, and a slight lemony flavour. Available at Asian stores and some grocery stores with speciality spices (eg Australia: Harris Farms), it's best to freshly grind your own if you can but for convenience, just use pre ground. Substitute with white pepper.
・Chilli Oil ー Bright red in colour, and as spicy as it looks! You'll find Chinese chilli oil in any Asian grocery store, otherwise, any chilli oil will do just fine, Substitute 1
part sriracha to 2 parts oil.
・Chinese Chilli paste in oil ー My favourite is Fuyun Xiang La Wang(chilli sauce) which is sold at most Chinese grocers. Substitute any Asian chilli paste (preferably in oil), a plain chilli paste, sambal oelek, and add an extra glug of chilli oil;
・Chinese Sesame Sauce or paste (pictured below) ー a key ingredient for the sauce flavour, it's made from ground sesame and is like tahini(used in Hummus) but has a more intense sesame flavour, and it's darker. Sold at Asian stores, substitute with tahini. Also used in Creamy Sichuan Sesame Sauce for Lettuce Salad.
From the Aussie's blog
iconic adj)象徴的な･伝説的な
spicy
explosion n)爆発 flavor explosion, taste-explosion 激うま
slippery adj)つるつるすべる
toss v)トスする、軽く混ぜ合わせる toss with, toss in
intense adj)強烈な
cinch n)簡単にできること･朝飯前のこと
provide
load
substitution
literally
arm
doable
laced
wafting
scent
signature
slick
fiery
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