Known as spicy green bean jelly noodle at Dainty Sichuan, this is a delectable slippery noodle salad. The noodles are simple to make and once set at room temperature they’re cut into thin noodles with a brass Chinese noodle scraper. This tool can be difficult to find in Australia; you can simply hand-cut the noodles instead.
Ingredients
Mung bean noodles
Chilli oil dressing
Method
1.For mung bean noodles, whisk mung bean flour and 250ml water in a bowl until smooth and combined. Bring 500ml water to the boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisking continuously, add mung bean flour mixture in a steady stream until incorporated, then stir continuously until thick (1-2 minutes). Spoon onto a lightly oiled 20cm x 30cm tray, smooth top and stand at room temperature until set and cooled completely (4-6 hours or overnight). Turn out on a board, slice lengthways into 1cm-thick pieces, then thinly slice lengthways to form thin noodles. Set aside.
2.For chilli oil dressing, combine ginger, garlic and 80ml hot water in a bowl amd stand to infuse (20 minutes). Pass through a fine sieve (discard solids) into a clean bowl. Whisk in remaining ingredients to combine.
3.Combine noodles and dressing to taste in a large bowl, toss to coat and serve at room temperature topped with peanuts and spring onion.
Mung bean flour and Chinkiang black vinegar are available from Asian grocers.
Although chilli oil is readily bought, the chefs at Dainty Sichuan make their own by frying 50gm coarsely chopped dried chillies with a little vegetable oil until fragrant. Blend with 500ml vegetable oil, steep for 24 hours, strain and it’s ready.
Drink Suggestion: Nutty amontillado
Notes
