Wokipedia Holiday Special: Nice Noodle Guide #2
Use your noodle. That’s a daft phrase, right? Does it mean noodle as in ‘head’ or ‘brain’, in which case the shape is all wrong (unless you’re talking about mao er duo – 'cat’s ears', so vaguely cranial). There’s a bar in Hanoi, Vietnam called Half Man Half Noodle. I bought a T-shirt there. But all this is just filler - starch, if you will. And now, the second instalment of our Wokipedia Noodle Guide! Like Dylan we’re bringing it all back home, with Beijing’s very own zhajiang mian, along with with the Sichuanese favourite of spice-addled Beijingers, dandan mian.
Beijing (北京)
Zhajiang noodles (zhajiang mian, 炸酱面)
Wheat noodles topped with a Bolognaise-like brown sauce that consists of ground, fatty pork stir-fried in a salty, fermented bean paste. The noodles are mixed together along with ‘mianma’, dishes of condiments like diced carrots and cucumber, soy beans, celery and coriander.
The noodle Thick, wheat noodles with a chewy bite. The best are hand-stretched for maximum elasticity. Old Beijingers may order the broth the noodles were cooked in for afters, said to help your food go down.
The local “Actually this is one dish that is hard to find good examples of in restaurants, it’s a home dish. The sauce needs time, experience and good quality ingredients – restaurants too often cut corners.” Li Zhang (taxi driver)
The restaurant The noodles in the picture come from Made in China in the Grand Hyatt. Admittedly about 8 times the price of the high street, but they use premium ingredients (see above), and the noodles are pulled fresh daily in open kitchens. Also try Yao Ji Chao Gan near the Drum Tower. The U.S. Vice President Joe Biden took his daughter there in August and they happily slurped through five bowls of zhajiang mian, according to the China Daily.
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Sichuan (四川)
Over the shoulder noodles (dandan mian, (担担面)
Simple snack of noodles dressed in a spicy sauce of chilli oil, sesame paste and preserved vegetables (ya cai), topped with minced pork, peanuts and scallions. According to ‘Sichuan Cookery’ by Fuschia Dunlop, the name harks back to Chengdu street vendors who carried their mobile noodle kitchens from a pole called a dan.
The noodle Typically thinner than those in zhajiang mian, and authentically (in Chonqing or Chengdu) would be served in a petite, snack-sized portion. The noodles are stirred before serving to ensure an even coating of sauce.
The local “A good dandan mian should be dry rather than soupy, and when the toppings (dongcai, minced pork, peanut crumbs and scallions) are evenly mixed with the sauce, it makes a very sophisticated fragrance and a lingering numbness from the huajiao (Sichuan peppercorns).” Emily Young (food-editor and writer)
The restaurant Our former dining writer and Sichuan native Emily recommends Sunxing Chuancai, a high-end teahouse chain from Chengdu, and Xinyudu Tantan Noodle in the ground floor of Shinkong Place in the CBD. The photos were taken at my favourite Sichuan dive, Zhang Mama on Fensiting Hutong off Andingmen Nei.
