Dan dan noodles (cold noodles in a spicy sesame dressing)

[mizducky]

Dan dan noodles (cold noodles in a spicy sesame dressing)

Serves 8 as Side.

This recipe's starting point was the recipe for "cold sesame noodles with chicken and vegetables" from Madhur Jaffrey's Far East Cookery, only minus the chicken (turning it back from "bon bon chicken" to "dan dan noodles"). I then juiced up the seasoning here and there as inspired by various recipes for dan dan noodles out there on the web.

• 1 lb fresh Chinese lo mein style egg noodles
  
• 1 carrot
  
• 1 stalk celery
  
• 1 pickling cucumber
  
• 2 scallions
  
• 1/2 c sesame paste (tahini will do fine)
  
• 1/4 c dark sesame oil
  
• 2 tsp chili oil, or to taste
  
• 1/4 c Chinese light soy sauce
  
• 2 T rice wine vinegar
  
• 2 tsp sugar
  
• 1 thumb-sized chunk fresh ginger root, peeled and minced
  
• 2 big cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  

1. Boil a large quantity of water. Add the noodles, bring back up to a boil, and simmer, stirring occasionally to keep noodles separated, until they are just barely done. Drain and shock with cold water to halt furter cooking; drain thoroughly. If you're not going to dress the noodles immediately, toss with a tablespoon of sesame oil to keep them from sticking to each other.

2. Julienne the celery, carrot, cucumber, and scallion. Blanch each briefly in boiling water to just barely soften and to brighten the colors. Shock and drain as with the noodles. Add to the noodles and toss well.

3. Combine the remaining ingredients to make the dressing. Note that the measurements for the dressing ingredients are all approximations--adjust all quantities to your personal taste preference. In particular, feel free to juice up the heat with your preferred chile weapons of choice. Ground sichuan peppercorns are also a fine addition.

4. Add enough dressing to coat the noodles well; toss thoroughly. Chill, covered, for at least a few hours to let the flavors combine. Toss again and correct seasonings as desired before serving.

Keywords: Pasta, Side, Chinese, Easy

( RG2092 )