How to Make Dan Dan Mian or Dan Dan Noodles

It seems there are so many versions of Dan Dan Mian or Dan Dan noodles you wouldn't believe it.  I first came across it over at Kevin's blog, I made it and was hooked on it.  

Since then I've made it many times and have titivated it a little bit.

A nice tingly heat of the Szechuan peppercorns, although you can of course put in as much or little of them as you fancy.

You can get the Szechuan peppercorns and Ketjap Manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce) from either Sainsbury's or Waitrose.

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To serve 2 you will need:
400g pork mince - be sure to get a low fat one (less than 7%)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 a tablespoon of Shaoxing (Chinese rice wine)

a glug of vegetable oil

1 medium onion - chopped

4 fat cloves of garlic - finely chopped

fresh ginger - about 2 inches by 1 inch in size and then peeled and finely chopped

Mix together in a small bowl:

2 good heaped tablespoons of peanut butter

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons of chili oil

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons chili sauce (I use 'Maggi Extra hot') use less or more if you want

Toast and grind:

2 tablespoons of Sichuan peppercorns

You will also need:

200ml chicken stock - made form a Knorr stock cube

about 400g of fresh egg noodles

a little oil and a little Ketjap Manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce) to add to the noodles when stir frying your noodles

To serve:

a good handful of roasted peanuts - chopped if you want

2 or 3 spring onions - sliced

How to do it:

Start by toasting the Szechuan peppercorns in a dry frying pan.  Keep them moving so they don't burn.  

Remove and then bash them up in a pestle and mortar then put to one side.

Now heat up a large frying pan and fry the pork, soy sauce and Shaoxing until the pork browns nicely.  When it has, tip the pork and any juices into a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan, heat a glug of vegetable oil and add the onions.  Cook until they're nice and soft but not coloured.

Now throw in the garlic and ginger and cook for about a minute.

Pour in the mixture of peanut butter, soy sauce oil and chilli sauce.  

Also put in the toasted and ground peppercorns along with the chicken stock.  Give it all a good stir and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.  Then put the pork back in and stir, making sure everything is piping hot.

Meanwhile, stir fry some noodles in another pan adding a little Ketjap Manis or if you want, just a little soy sauce.  Ketjap Manis just adds a nice sweetness to the noodles.

Put the cooked noodles on a plate and top with the pork and sauce.  

Top with peanuts and spring onions and serve immediately.