Mǎyǐ Shàng Shù

ants climbing a tree, the Sichuanese classic: mung starch noodles braised in a spiced pork and chilli-bean sauce until they drink it up, the minced pork clinging to the strands like ants on a twig

Origin: China

From the journey of Mung Bean.

The cellophane noodle is a Chinese invention and it is made from mung bean starch, washed out of the ground bean, dried, and extruded into threads that are opaque and brittle when dry and turn glassy and slippery when soaked. Its virtue is structural rather than gustatory: mung starch sets into a gel that holds its bite in liquid almost indefinitely, where a wheat noodle would go to paste, which is why fěnsī, powder thread, is the noodle of soups, hotpots, and braises. Mǎyǐ shàng shù is its most famous outing, a Sichuan home dish of extreme simplicity whose name is a piece of pure observation: the fragments of minced pork cling along the pale strands like ants crawling up a twig. The name is attached in Chinese popular tradition to the heroine of the Yuan drama The Injustice to Dou E, who is said to have improvised the dish from almost nothing, which is a good indication of its standing as thrift food. Its character comes from doubanjiang, the fermented broad bean and chilli paste of Pixian that is the foundation of Sichuanese cooking, fried in oil until it releases its colour before the liquid goes in. The technique that matters is that the noodles finish cooking in the sauce rather than in water, so they absorb it entirely and arrive seasoned through rather than dressed.

Ingredients

Noodles

120 g dried mung bean cellophane noodles (fěnsī)

Sauce

150 g minced pork, not too lean
2 tbsp neutral oil
1.5 tbsp Pixian doubanjiang (fermented chilli bean paste), chopped
3 clove garlic, finely chopped
15 g fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
300 ml chicken stock or water
0.5 tsp caster sugar

To Finish

3 whole spring onions, green and white parts separated and sliced
1 tsp sesame oil

Method

Soak the cellophane noodles in warm, not boiling, water for 10 minutes until pliable but still firm at the core. Drain, and cut roughly through the bundle two or three times with scissors.
Heat the oil in a wok over a medium heat and fry the minced pork, breaking it up hard with the spatula, for 3 to 4 minutes until it has lost its pink and the fragments are separate and lightly browned.
Push the pork aside, add the doubanjiang to the oil, and fry gently for 30 seconds until the oil turns red and smells fragrant, then stir in the garlic and the white parts of the spring onion for a further 20 seconds.
Splash in the Shaoxing wine, then add both soy sauces, the sugar, and the stock. Bring to a simmer, then add the drained noodles and stir to submerge them.
Simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, turning the noodles with tongs, until they are translucent, slippery, and have absorbed nearly all the sauce. Take off the heat, stir through the sesame oil and the green parts of the spring onion, and serve at once.

Notes

Buy noodles labelled as mung bean or pea starch; sweet potato starch noodles are thicker and chewier and belong to Korean japchae rather than here, and rice vermicelli is a different product entirely that will turn to mush. Pixian doubanjiang is worth seeking out and there is no real substitute, though a good chilli bean sauce will serve. For a vegetarian version, replace the pork with finely chopped rehydrated shiitake and a spoonful of chopped preserved mustard greens, and use vegetable stock; the texture holds up surprisingly well. The dish is meant to be eaten as part of a spread with rice and one or two other dishes rather than alone, and it is emphatically a home dish rather than a restaurant one.

The Gastrographer

Name: Mǎyǐ Shàng Shù
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 3
Cuisine: China
Ingredients: 120 g dried mung bean cellophane noodles (fěnsī); 150 g minced pork, not too lean; 2 tbsp neutral oil; 1.5 tbsp Pixian doubanjiang (fermented chilli bean paste), chopped; 3 clove garlic, finely chopped; 15 g fresh ginger, finely chopped; 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine; 1 tbsp light soy sauce; 1 tsp dark soy sauce; 300 ml chicken stock or water; 0.5 tsp caster sugar; 3 whole spring onions, green and white parts separated and sliced; 1 tsp sesame oil

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control