NOODLESFlip Flop
Slip dinner plate and
olive dish in Teal by
The Fortynine Studio.
All other props
stylist’s own.
Stockists p175.Chongqing noodles
Our resident expert on Asian cuisines,Tony Tan, has the lowdown
on this fiery, addictive dish.Chongqing,the sprawling city along
the Yangtze River, until recently part of
Sichuan province, is noted for its distinctive
and assertive cooking. It’s relatively different
to the cuisine of the Sichuan capital, Chengdu
- spicier, more pungent and more incendiary
than anywhere else in China. Chillies, Sichuan
pepper, hot bean paste (doubanjiang), sesame
seeds, ginger, garlic and pickles form the
backbone of Chongqing’s distinctive style,
creating dishes of great complexity.
One of the most famous dishes from this
city is Chongqing noodles. A dish that will
bring tears of nostalgia to Chongqingren folk,
this local speciality is mouth-numbingly
spicy and addictive. Simply called xiao mian,
meaning small noodles, this street food has
an obscure history – some of my friends in
Chongqing believe it first appeared in the
early 20th century in the city’s humbler
neighbourhoods. A bowl of noodles built
typically on everyday ingredients with some
fiery, belly-warming spices, it rapidly became
the noodle dish of choice for locals. Since
then, this mala – hot and numbing – dish
has spread globally.
The simple combination of fine wheat
noodles, chicken stock, peanuts, pickled
vegetables and seasonings is not tricky to
prepare. It’s the seasonings and pickledgreens that make the dish – if you’re after
authentic flavours that will dazzle diners, it
pays to make a trip to Chinatown or to your
Asian supermarket for the key ingredients.
Look for dried Sichuan chillies; if you
can’t find them, Indian or Thai dried chillies
are acceptable. And seek out green Sichuan
peppercorns – more fragrant with a lemony
scent than the pinkish-red variety and far
superior. Look out also for Sichuan preserved
vegetable (zha cai), a salty-sour pickle made
from a kind of mustard tuber. The other
umami-packed salted vegetable is ya cai from
Yibin in Sichuan. I use the Suimiyacai brand.
Even though these are specific ingredients
sourced from Asian grocers, by all means
use substitutes such as Tianjin preserved
vegetable or other fermented Chinese greens;
they won’t detract from the essence of the
dish. For authenticity, chef Tina Li, of
Melbourne’s Dainty Sichuan, uses extra-
virgin rapeseed oil to make her chilli oil,
which her restaurant imports along with a
thickish Sichuan soy sauce. Li also makes her
own sesame oil – she considers commercial
ones inferior. I’ve used sunflower oil for the
chilli oil and Pun Chun premium soy sauce,
which both work well.
These are the keys to making the dish
sing: make your own chilli oil (shop-bought
versions are pale imitations), roast and
grind green Sichuan peppercorns to order
(commercial ones lack punch), and make
a thin purée of ginger and garlic to add
depth and complexity.
Making Chinese chilli oil isn’t difficult, but
take care because dried chillies burn easily,
and if they burn you’ll have to start over again.
Snip off the stems and discard any exposed
seeds, then stir-fry the chillies continuously
in a teaspoon of oil over low heat until they’re
fragrant (turn on the rangehood – chilli fumes
can be irritating). Cool them completely, then
pound them with a mortar and pestle to
coarse flakes (I find this the best method,Chongqing noodlesMASTERCLASS