Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Dan Dan Mian - Sesame Noodles

Two variations in as many nights.
Ingredients

  • 2tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 2tbsp peanut oil
  • 3tbsp chopped garlic
  • 2tbsp chopped ginger
  • 4tbsp chopped scallions
  • 2tbsp peanut butter or sesame paste (tahini)
  • 1tbsp sesame oil
  • 8oz chicken stock (or veg)
  • 3/4lb soba noodles
  • salt and brown sugar or honey to taste
  • VARIATION: 1tbsp black vinegar
  • 2tsp sambal olek / chili paste


set some water to boil. In a separate pot, add the peanut oil and cook the garlic, ginger, and scallions until aromatic, about a minute. Add all the other ingredients (except for the soba, of course) and let simmer for 5-7 minutes. In the mean time, cook the soba (doesn't take long). Drain the soba and toss together with the sauce. Done!

Thoughts: I did this recipe a day later, but used sesame paste instead of peanut butter. I left out the chicken stock (opting instead for just some water to loosen the sauce) and added some black vinegar. In both instances, we had to sweeten the recipe with a little honey or brown sugar. The original recipe called for caramelizing some pork that you mix in later. This would probably contribute the necessary sweetness just as well, actually, but we're saving the pork for another recipe. All in all, I think that we have the basics of a good recipe here. We just need to tweak it a little to get the flavors right. It shouldn't be TOO sweet, but it needs a LITTLE sweetness. Can't be TOO salty either. I'm not QUITE sure what this recipe needs, but it's pretty good already.

Disaster Index: 1/10

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