Zha Jiang Mian, or Fried Sauce Noodles is so famous in China that the mere mention of it makes people think of Beijing. It’s sold everywhere—from street vendors to restaurants in five-star hotels.
Notes
This amount of sauce should be good for 4 servings.
Ingredients
Pork & Marinade
- 6 ounces ground pork - 170 grams
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon oil
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper
Fats
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 ounce pork fat - finely minced; optional
Aromatics
- 3 slices ginger - minced finely
- 4 cloves garlic - minced
- 6 fresh shiitake mushrooms - finely chopped
Cooking sauce
- 2 tablespoons sweet bean sauce
- 3 tablespoons ground bean sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 cup water
Noodles
- 8 ounces dried wheat noodles - or 1 pound fresh wheat noodles
Vegetables
- 1 cup carrots - julienned
- 1 cup cucumbers - julienned
- ½ cup scallions - julienned
Instructions
Marinate the pork
- Add the marinade ingredients to a medium bowl along with the pork and marinate for 15 minutes.
Brown the pork
- Heat a tablespoon oil in your wok over medium heat and add the pork fat (if using).
- Cook for 1 minute to render the fat down.
- Add the marinated ground pork to the wok and cook for a minute to brown it.
Add the aromatics and cooking sauce
- Add the ginger, garlic, and mushrooms.
- Stir fry everything together for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the sweet bean sauce, ground bean sauce, dark soy sauce, and water, stirring everything together well.
- Lower the heat and cover the wok. Simmer the sauce for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
Prepare the noodles
- While that’s happening, cook the noodles according to the package directions.
Combine and serve
- Add the cooked noodles to the sauce and toss with the julienned carrots, cucumbers, and scallions and serve.