Beijing Meat Sauce with 'Knife-Cut' Noodles (Zhajiangmian) 🇨🇳

For me, this Beijing classic is bowl food at its best, remarkable in its simplicity and flavour. Pork mince is stir fried in aromatics and hot oil, then cooked with sweet bean paste or 'tian main jiang' and chicken stock until it has reduced and thickened.  The delicious meat sauce is then stirred into a bowl of noodles together with thinly sliced cucumbers, shredded carrots and spring onions.  There are many savoury Chinese sauces and pastes made from fermented soybeans and sweet bean paste is one of them (which can be found in jars or packages from Asian grocery stores). The hero of the dish, however, is the noodles.  I use dried 'knife-cut' noodles which look like white ribbons when cooked and have a lovely mouthfeel.  Other types of thick wheat noodles, dried or fresh, that hold up to the chunky texture of the sauce also work.  

Serves 4

 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Lebanese cucumbers
• 2 spring onions
• 1 medium-size carrot
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 200g / 7oz dried or 500g / 1lb 2oz fresh thick wheat noodles
• 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
• 300g / 10½oz pork mince
• ½ cup sweet bean paste (tian mian jiang)
• 1 cup chicken stock

METHOD

1. Slice the cucumbers lengthwise in half.  Scoop out the seeds with a spoon, then slice thinly into matchsticks.  Finely shred the carrot.
2. Slice spring onions diagonally into thin strips.  Separate white and green parts.
3. Cook the noodles according to the manufacturer's instructions.  Drain and divide between the bowls.
4. Heat a wok over high and add the oil.  When hot, add the garlic, ginger and white part of the spring onions.  Stir fry for 1 minute or until fragrant. 
5. Add the pork mince, breaking up the meat with the spatula and cook until lightly brown.  Stir in the sweet bean paste and cook for a minute.  Add the chicken stock and stir to combine.
6. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.
7. Top the noodles with a portion of the meat sauce, cucumbers, carrot and green spring onions.
8. Serve each bowl with a pair of chopsticks to be used for mixing up the noodles with the meat sauce and vegetables prior to eating.