Hello hi everyone! This is a recipe for a Chinese Dan Dan Mian that ive been working on based on a pretty traditional Dan Dan Mian take out from a restaurant here in Oakland called Shan Dong. It deviates in one pretty important element in its use of peanut butter (in lieu of the more traditional sesame paste or tahini).
The peanut butter is obviously an Americanized sub, but it comes closer to the version that I grew up eating though, and is a bit more nostalgic for me than the sesame paste versions that I've had. Hope you try it.
serves 2-3
INGREDIENTS (dry)
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp ginger (about 1 inch)
1 small carrot
1/4 cup cucumber
1/3 cup peanuts
1/2 lb ground meat (pork or beef)
8 oz Shanghainese flat noodles (or similar)
INGREDIENTS (wet)
2 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp oyster sauce
4 tbsp low sodium soy sauce (or 2 tbsp full sodium soy sauce)
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp sambal oelek
kosher salt
vegetable oil
1/3 cup chicken stock
PREP
CRUSH and mince the garlic, set aside
PEEL and mince the ginger, set aside
PEEL and julienne the carrots, set aside
JULIENNE the cucumber, set aside
CRUSH the peanuts, set aside
SEASON the ground meat with 3 tbsp soy sauce and 2 tbsp oyster sauce, combine, and set aside
COMBINE the garlic, ginger, 4 tbsp soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, peanut butter, rice vinegar, sambal oelek, chicken stock, and a pinch of kosher salt to taste. Stir until combined, then set aside
ADD noodles to a bowl and mix with boiling water for 5 minutes until tender, then strain and set aside
SEASON the meat with 3 tbsp of soy sauce, 2 tbsp oyster sauce, and a pinch of kosher salt, then set aside
ON THE STOVE
HEAT a wok as hot as possible
ADD 2 tbsp vegetable oil, then saute the ground meat until no longer pink
ADD sauce to the wok, and toss to combine
FINISH with carrots, cucumbers and peanuts