Pigeon Cottage Kitchen

When she was a student, my daughter used to cook me a fiery bowl of Dan Dan noodles for supper topped with crispy pork and lots of chilli oil. This is in no way an authentic version of that famous Sichuan dish, it’s my less fiery recipe that doesn’t numb your lips for the entire evening! I l just love the crispy pork topping infused with soy and Five Spice and the creamy tahini sauce on its bed of egg noodles – without the heat. You can fire it up with extra chilli oil if you like it spicier of course.

Ingredients – serves 2

• 400g pork mince
• 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp Chinese Five Spice
• 4 tbsps light olive oil
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 4 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp tahini paste
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tsps chilli oil
• 200ml light chicken stock
• 2 nests of dried Chinese egg noodles
• To garnish: 1 tbsp fresh coriander, 1 red chilli – finely sliced, 1 tsp roasted and ground Sichuan peppercorns

To make…

• Combine the minced pork, soy sauce and Five Spice powder in a small bowl and mix well with a fork. Place a wok or sauté pan on the hob and heat until the pan itself is hot. Add the oil and fry the pork, stirring with a spatula to flatten it down and break it into small pieces . When the pork is deep golden brown and crispy-looking after about 5-6 minutes, remove it with a slotted spoon and drain on a plate lined with kitchen paper. It will crisp up as it cools slightly.
• Using the leftover pork oil in the pan, stir-fry the garlic, ginger and spring onions for 30 seconds. Add the sesame paste, soy sauce, chilli oil and chicken stock and simmer for about 4 minutes on medium heat.
• Cook the dried noodles in a large pan of salted boiling water for 6 minutes. Drain the noodles well in a sieve. Divide the noodles into two individual bowls. Ladle over the sauce, garnish with the fried pork, Sichuan pepper, chopped chilli and coriander, and serve at once.

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