Aug 2, 2014

By Judy in Recipes, Rice, Noodles & Pasta 28 Comments

Beijing Fried Sauce Noodles Zha Jiang Mian
Zha Jiang Mian (), or Fried Sauce Noodles So famous in China that the mere mention of it
immediately makes people think of Beijing. Its sold everywherefrom street vendors to restaurants in five
star hotels. Prices can vary from 10RMB (about $1.60) to 100RMB, but trust me: higher prices dont
necessarily guarantee better taste. A dish of perfectly chewy noodles with a rich, meaty sauceits just
another one of those perfect dishes that you dont really mess with too much.
One of our readers asked if we could share a recipe for this famous noodle dish, so I asked a local Beijing
friend for their family recipe. He didnt let us down, asking his sister (the best cook in their family) to write
down her recipe for us. When I finally got the paper in my hands, I wasnt quite sure what to say.
All the ingredients were there, of course. But no amounts were specified. It was much like asking for
directions in Beijing. The usual reply youll get is something along the lines of, Its ahead! No one seems to
think youd need any more information than that. How far ahead? What landmarks do I look for? Should I be
walking or taking a cab? I looked at the recipe and felt simultaneously confusedand flattered that she
seemed to trust that Id know what to do with her very cryptic and vague instructions. With her recipe, it
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PORK BUNS
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seemed to trust that Id know what to do with her very cryptic and vague instructions. With her recipe, it
ended up taking two tries to get it right. Dont worry, its easy!
For the noodles, look for any kind of thick, flour-based noodles. We used these wide, flat ones that tasted
really delicious, but whatever you can find will work. Look at your local Asian market for the sweet bean
sauce and the ground bean sauce. Sweet bean sauce, or tian mian jiang () is a thick, dark brown sauce
made from wheat flour, sugar, salt, and fermented yellow soybeans. It can be found in a can, or in plastic
tubs. Some brands and recipes use Hoisin sauce and sweet bean sauce interchangeably, but generally I find
hoisin sauce brands (especially the more commercial ones) are thinner, lighter and sweeter. Better if you can
find the darker, more concentrated version for this dish. Just look for these Chinese characters: . Ask
the staff at your local Chinese grocery store to help you find it!
The ground bean sauce is also made with fermented yellow soybeans but is quite salty and less sweet. Look
for this jar or something similar:

EASY ROASTED
CAULIFLOWER STIR-FRY
STREET FOOD
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SARAHS NECTARINE
SALAD W/ CARROT
GINGER DRESSING
Ok, lets start. Youll need:
6 oz. ground pork
teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cornstarch
teaspoon oil, plus 1 tablespoon
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 oz. pork fat, finely minced (optional)
3 slices ginger, minced finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 fresh shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped
2 tablespoons sweet bean sauce
3 tablespoons ground bean paste
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 cup water
8 oz. noodles (your favorite flour-based noodle. Fresh or dryboth will work).
1 cup julienned carrots
1 cup julienned cucumbers
1/2 cup julienned scallions
Marinate the pork with the following for 15 minutes: teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, teaspoon oil,
1/8 teaspoon white pepper.
Heat a tablespoon oil in your wok over medium heat and add the pork fat (if using). Cook for 1 minute to
render the fat down, and add the marinated ground pork to the wok. Cook for a minute to brown it, and then
add the ginger and garlic. Let everything caramelize together.
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Add the chopped mushrooms. Stir fry everything together for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the sweet bean sauce, bean paste, dark soy sauce, and water, stirring everything together well. Lower
the heat and cover the wok. Simmer the sauce for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
While thats happening, cook the noodles according to the package directions. Mix with the sauce
and toss with the julienned carrots, cucumbers, and scallions.
This amount of sauce should be good for 4 servings.
Let us know what you think when you try this Beijing classic!

Print
Prep Ti me: 15 minutes
Cook Ti me: 25 minutes
Tot al Ti me: 40 minutes
Yi el d: 4 servings
BRAISED OXTAILS SIMPLE WONTON SOUP Beef Rendang
Beijing Fried Sauce Noodles Zha
Jiang Mian
Ingredients
6 oz. ground pork
teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cornstarch
teaspoon oil, plus 1 tablespoon
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1 oz. pork fat, finely minced (optional)
3 slices ginger, minced finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 fresh shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped
2 tablespoons sweet bean sauce
3 tablespoons ground bean paste
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 cup water
8 oz. noodles (your favorite flour-based noodle. Fresh or dryboth will work).
1 cup julienned carrots
1 cup julienned cucumbers
1/2 cup julienned scallions
Marinate the pork with the following for 15 minutes: teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, teaspoon
oil, 1/8 teaspoon white pepper.
Heat a tablespoon oil in your wok over medium heat and add the pork fat (if using). Cook for 1 minute to
render the fat down, and add the marinated ground pork to the wok. Cook for a minute to brown it, and
then add the ginger, garlic, and mushrooms. Stir fry everything together for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the sweet bean sauce, bean paste, dark soy sauce, and water, stirring everything together well.
Lower the heat and cover the wok. Simmer the sauce for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent
sticking.
While thats happening, cook the noodles according to the package directions. Mix with the sauce and
toss with the julienned carrots, cucumbers, and scallions. This amount of sauce should be good for 4
servings.
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Judy
Born in Shanghai, came to the U.S. at 16. Pretty much a boss when it comes to languages,
being fluent in both English and three separate Chinese dialects. And boy, can she fold a
spring roll (the rest of ours tend to just fall apart. Its sad). Plus, shes the only one in the
family whos actually good at reading Chinese, so shes our professional menu-translator
when were tooling around Beijing.
Judy
A Duo of Dippables with
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28 Comments
BIBS @ TASTEOMETER
AUG 02, 2014 @ 06:46
This is my kind of noodle dish, thanks.
REPLY
SARAH
AUG 02, 2014 @ 11:55
Thanks Bibs!
REPLY
VICTOR
AUG 02, 2014 @ 07:48
Awesome! Thank you!
REPLY
SARAH
AUG 02, 2014 @ 11:55
Youre very welcome, Victor. Hope your family enjoys it!
REPLY
ERLENE
AUG 02, 2014 @ 15:54
My mouth is drooling right now. I love eating this type of food. Pinned.
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 03, 2014 @ 05:44
Thank you, Erlene, you need to give it a try! You will love it.
REPLY
CATHY @ OUR MINI FAMILY
AUG 05, 2014 @ 09:20
This looks so tasty! My husband really loves noodles, and I think I will have to share this
recipe with him so he can try yours out!! :D
Thanks for linking up to our Betwitchin Party! Be sure to come back every Sunday
starting at 6am EST over at OurMiniFamily.com to link up your projects again!
~Cathy Mini~
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 06, 2014 @ 10:09
Thank you very much!
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 05, 2014 @ 10:59
Every recipe looks so delicious I am almost fainting. Your photography is stunning as
well.
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 06, 2014 @ 10:07
Thank you! Judy.
REPLY
PENNY
PENNY
AUG 05, 2014 @ 21:46
For the sweet bean sauce, I was only able to find chee hou sauce. Would that work?
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 06, 2014 @ 10:02
Hi, Penny, to tell you the truth, Ive never used Chee Hou Sauce, I did a
little research, Chee Hou Sauce is closer to Hoisin Sauce but with more
spices. Sweet Bean Sauce is usually a bit more sweeter thank Hoisin Sauce,
so Ill say to use the Chee Hou Sauce plus a little bit of sugar.
REPLY
PENNY
AUG 06, 2014 @ 19:41
Ok thank you, cant wait to try it.
REPLY
MAGGIE
AUG 06, 2014 @ 11:59
I finally found the perfect way to take Zha Jiang Mian photos! I remember shooting the
photo when I just started blogging, blown mess of sauce on tope of the noodles, not
appetizing at all
Your recipe looks great. It amazes me that the ways people cook this dish are really
different. I like the idea to add mushroom in it, sounds so delicious!
REPLY
KAITLIN
AUG 06, 2014 @ 21:47
Hi Maggie, I totally feel your pain. I made a noodle soup a couple months
ago and had to scrap all the photos because it literally looked like scraggly
beans, veggies and pork, on top of scraggly noodles all floating in soup.
Hahaha anywaysglad youre inspired by the recipe! Cant go wrong with
the old Beijing tai-tais
REPLY
GINNIE
AUG 06, 2014 @ 17:14
This looks super delicious! Do you think it would work without the pork? Vegetarian
here;)
REPLY
KAITLIN
AUG 06, 2014 @ 21:51
Hey there Ginnie, if youre going pork-less, I would definitely say to add
more mushroomseither double the amount of shiitakes called for or
combine a few different varieties to really get that earthy flavor and body
that the pork lends. You may even want to add a large diced shallot to
make things more complex. Youll also need more oil when cooking the
mushrooms as theres no pork fat, and be careful to stir-fry the sauce
thoroughly to get that deep cooked flavor. A bit more of a careful
approach and you should be able to approximate it! Pork kind of heals all
errors, I find Let us know how it turns out :)
REPLY
ALEXIS @ UPSIDE DOWN PEAR
AUG 08, 2014 @ 11:12
This looks super delicious! I love how easy to follow your directions always are! I cant
wait to try this :)
REPLY
SARAH
AUG 08, 2014 @ 22:25
Thanks Alexis!
REPLY
MARISSA | PINCH AND SWIRL
AUG 08, 2014 @ 20:50
Oh my, does this look amazing! Bookmarked
REPLY
THALIA @ BUTTER AND BRIOCHE
AUG 08, 2014 @ 22:58
wow this is a seriously good looking noodle dish.. totally salivating just looking at your
images!
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 08, 2014 @ 23:19
Thank you, Thalia!
REPLY
AUDREY
AUG 08, 2014 @ 23:44
This looks amazing and I have everything except the noodles. Have to get
those at the store to make this soon.
fund you at Pinterest Foodie
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 09, 2014 @ 09:46
Hi Audrey, you will love this recipe. Thank you for stopping by.
REPLY
MING
AUG 19, 2014 @ 01:51
Love the ease and versatility of this dish. I made this for dinner tonight in less than an
hour! Substituted ground chicken for the pork, added some more veggies in the stir fry
ie. zucchini, bell peppers. Delicious!! Ive been to Beijing twice with tour groups but
never got a chance to try this dish Thank you for transporting me back to the city.
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 19, 2014 @ 03:36
Hi, Ming, so glad to hear that you made it and enjoyed it. The added
vegetable sounds great. Thank you very much for sharing your
experience.
REPLY
JEANNE
AUG 19, 2014 @ 19:51
I found this on Pinterest a few days ago, made it tonight and it is AWESOME!! My
daughters loved it and on a scale of 1 10 gave it an 11! I couldnt stop eating and and it
will definitely be made many times in our house. Thank you!!!
REPLY
JUDY
AUG 20, 2014 @ 03:15
Hi, Jeanne, thank you so much for commenting. It always delights us to
hear our readers love of our recipes. Please tell your daughter we really
appreciate her rating of 11. Come back often and try our many yummy
dishes.
REPLY
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