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A bowl of Spicy Dan Dan Noodles topped with minced meat, baby bok choy, chopped peanuts, green onions, and sauce, served with chopsticks and a wooden spoon on the side.

Spicy Dan Dan Noodles

Spicy dan dan noodles are chewy wheat noodles tossed in a creamy sesame chili sauce and topped with crispy seasoned pork, peanuts, and blanched bok choy.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Calories: 372kcal

Equipment

Ingredients 

US Customary - Metric

Crispy Pork

Noodle Sauce

Noodles and Toppings

  • 8 oz dry wheat noodles
  • Chopped green onions
  • Crushed peanuts
  • Blanched bok choy

Instructions

  • In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground pork and fry for 2-3 mins until golden brown and crispy. Add soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Chinese five spice powder, sugar, salt, white pepper, and optional Chinese preserved mustard greens. Stir for another 30 seconds to 1 minute to combine. Set aside.
    8 oz ground pork, 1.5 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce, ½ teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder, 1.5 teaspoon granulated sugar, Pinch of salt, Dash of white pepper, 2 oz Chinese preserved mustard greens
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the sesame paste, soy sauce, chili oil, Chinkiang vinegar, sugar, grated garlic, and ground Sichuan peppercorn. It will be pretty thick at this point.
    ¼ cup Chinese sesame paste, 3 tablespoon soy sauce, ¼ cup chili oil, 1 tablespoon Chinkiang vinegar, 2 teaspoon granulated sugar, 1 clove garlic, ½ - 1 teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorn
  • Cook the wheat noodles according to package instructions, reserving about ½ cup of the starchy noodle water. This is more water than needed but good to have extra in case. In the last min of cooking, add the bok choy to quickly blanch. Drain the water and give the noodles a quick rinse to remove extra starch.
    8 oz dry wheat noodles
  • Pour about 4 tablespoons of the hot starchy water into the sauce and mix until loosened and creamy. If it is still too thick, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time to loosen the sauce to desired consistency.
    4-6 tablespoon hot noodle water
  • Add the noodles into the sauce and toss until coated, then top with the crispy pork, green onions, crushed peanuts, and blanched bok choy.
    Chopped green onions, Crushed peanuts, Blanched bok choy

Notes

Note: If you can't find Chinese sesame paste, I find that natural roasted peanut butter is closest to the flavor. While you can also use tahini, the flavor is less nutty because it is made from raw or lightly toasted hulled sesame seeds so it is paler and more mild than Chinese sesame paste, which is made from deeply roasted, unhulled sesame seeds.

Nutrition

Calories: 372kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 41mg | Sodium: 1417mg | Potassium: 251mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 7IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 2mg