Hand-Smacked Hot Sauce Noodles

By: Brendan Pang, excerpted from This Is a Book About Noodles

By: Brendan Pang, excerpted from This Is a Book About Noodles

Similar in style to the hand-pulled noodles, these flat noodles are hand-smacked into shape by taking your dough and slapping it up and down on your kitchen counter as you stretch it out at either end (a bit like a skipping rope). Biang refers to the shape of these noodles, being thick, flat and wide like a belt, but is a bit of a double entendre, as I think it makes a “biang biang biang” sound as it stretches and slaps on the counter.

The traditional way to have this dish is you po (pronounced “yoh-po”) style. It involves mounting all your seasonings onto your noodles and pouring some hot oil on top. I prefer to make the chili oil in advance, for all the spices to infuse. The tomato sauce might seem weird, but helps balance out the bold flavors and gives the dish a nice mouthfeel.

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Serves4

Ingredients

Spiced Vinegar Sauce
3/4 cup + 2 tsp (200 ml) light soy sauce
1/3 cup + 2 tsp (100 ml) Chinese black vinegar
3 tablespoons + 1 tsp (50 ml) water
1 tablespoon (13 g) superfine sugar
1 small cinnamon stick
1 star anise
1 bay leaf
Pinch of fennel seeds
Pinch of Sichuan peppercorns
Tomato Sauce
1 tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil
1 (14-oz [400-g]) can whole tomatoes
3 tablespoons (48 g) tomato paste
1 lb (450 g) Hand-Smacked Noodles
Dash of sesame oil
Chinese Chili Oil
1 cup (100 g) julienned cucumber, for garnish
1/2 cup (50 g) finely sliced spring onion, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Make the spiced vinegar sauce: In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients for this sauce and simmer over low heat until fragrant, about 10 minutes. Drain through a sieve into a bowl, discard the spices and set the sauce aside.
Make the tomato sauce: In a blender, combine all the ingredients for this sauce and blitz on high speed. Transfer to a small pot and cook over medium heat, stirring, until thickened, 6 to 8 minutes. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then cook the noodles for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and transfer to a bowl. Toss with a dash of sesame oil to stop them from sticking.
Divide your noodles among four serving bowls. Add a generous amount of the tomato sauce, spiced vinegar sauce and Chinese Chili Oil, to taste. Toss slightly and top with cucumber and spring onion. Serve immediately.