Dan Dan Noodles
Chengdu's famous street noodles: springy wheat noodles sitting in a pool of chili oil, sesame paste and black vinegar, topped with crispy savoury pork and preserved vegetable. Toss everything together before eating.
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Ingredients
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Steps
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Start your free weekContinue with free accessCrisp the pork
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Fry the pork, breaking it up, for 6–8 minutes until it's dry, brown and crispy at the edges. Add the Shaoxing wine, dark soy and ya cai and fry 1 minute more.
Make the sauce
Divide the sauce between four bowls: in each, stir together the sesame paste, chili oil, light soy, black vinegar, sugar, Sichuan pepper and garlic. Loosen each with 2 tbsp of hot water from the noodle pot.
Cook the noodles and greens
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Assemble
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Crisp the pork
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Fry the pork, breaking it up, for 6–8 minutes until it's dry, brown and crispy at the edges. Add the Shaoxing wine, dark soy and ya cai and fry 1 minute more.
Make the sauce
Divide the sauce between four bowls: in each, stir together the sesame paste, chili oil, light soy, black vinegar, sugar, Sichuan pepper and garlic. Loosen each with 2 tbsp of hot water from the noodle pot.
Cook the noodles and greens
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Assemble
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
The Story Behind the Dish
Dan dan noodles are named after the bamboo shoulder pole (dan) that street vendors used to carry their kitchens through Chengdu's lanes: a pot of boiling water on one end, noodles and sauces on the other.
The vendors served small portions as a snack, calling out to customers as they walked. Today the dish is a fixture of Sichuan restaurants worldwide.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Every mouthful hits all the Sichuan notes at once — nutty, spicy, numbing, salty, sour and sweet.
💡 Fun Fact
In Chengdu, dan dan noodles are traditionally served almost dry, with just a little sauce at the bottom, not as a soup.
Chengdu, Sichuan
30.57°N, 104.07°E
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