🥶 Deep in the throes of big, bad, Berlin winter, I like to think back to warmer times and comforting food. This interview with my brother, while we were in Taiwan back in October, provides exactly that.
Favorite Food interviews real people about their favorite food.
It’s a heaping pile of noodles, and who doesn’t love that?
We’ve been eating zhajiangmian for as long as I can remember. And while I’ve always liked it, my brother Brian loooves it.
He loves zhajiangmian so much that it’s made its way to our Thanksgiving dinner table, often his preferred option over the traditional turkey spread.
While in Taipei, we tracked down a shop with a 1.3 star Google Maps rating (more on that later). As we sit and compare the zhajiangmian with our Mom’s, Brian explains the different types of zhajiangmian and why “Beijing bolognese” is his favorite food.
*Bonus: Brian shares our Mom’s recipe below.
What's your favorite food and what is it?
炸醬麵 or zhá jiàng miàn.
The name literally means “fried sauce noodles”, which tells you about as little as a name can tell you. It is commonly translated as “noodles with fried bean sauce” which is only slightly more helpful. But while the name is inexplicably vague, the actual dish is not – and it is delicious.
The dish originated in northern China, but has long since spread all over Asia, including versions in Korea (jajangmyeon), Japan (jajamen), and of course Taiwan, which is what I grew up eating. There are countless variations on the dish, but they are all based off tianmianjiang, which is a sweet flour paste that gives the dish its sweet, salty, and umami richness.
For me, zhajiangmian consists of the eponymous “fried sauce”, stir-fried with chopped dougan (a drier, firmer form of tofu) and ground meat, served over noodles, with shredded cucumbers and carrots, and a drizzle of sesame oil.
Why is this your favorite food?
Sometimes zhajiangmian is described as “Beijing bolognese”, because they sort of look similar and because of its widespread popularity, but I think the similarity also works because they’re both incredible comfort foods. First and foremost, it’s a heaping pile of noodles, and who doesn’t love that?
The sauce is simultaneously salty and sweet, while the crunch of the veggies contrasts with the soft chewiness of the dougan and the meat. We like to add a little sriracha on top as well for some additional acidity and spiciness as well. It’s aesthetically pleasing as well with the dark sauce balancing the white noodles, with splashes of bright green and orange from the vegetables on top. It has everything!
It is extremely difficult to not eat too much of it in one sitting. I have fond memories of eating a heaping plateful of it for dinner, and when I visit my parents for the holidays, it’s still the one dish I request every time.
Describe the perfect zhajiangmian.
Zhajiangmian is truly customizable, which you can see in the proliferation of regional versions all over Asia and the rest of the world, so I hesitate to say there is one perfect version – but at least for me, it is the version my mom and grandmother made, which goes something like this:
Brown one pound of ground beef or pork
Cut into small pieces and sautee three to four green onions
Dice into small cubes about six pieces of dougan (bean curd)
Put one jar of tianmianjiang (called “sweet bean sauce”) into a pan and stir fry it (this is where the “fried sauce noodles” name comes from), then throw in all of the above ingredients, add a little water, and simmer until done. Don’t put too much water, or it will reduce the “fried sauce” effect.
Serve on medium thickness wheat noodles, with strings (julienned, sliced, or shredded) of carrots and cucumber
Splash a bit of sesame oil and sriracha on top to taste
Eat way more than you should
Any interesting facts about zhajiangmian?
In another case of strangely translated names, tianmianjiang literally translates to “sweet noodle sauce”, but is usually labeled as “sweet bean sauce”, despite the fact that it’s made primarily of flour (with some brands containing zero soybeans). I have no idea why.
What’s one memory you have of zhajiangmian?
I have no distinct individual memory of eating zhajiangmian. It’s just a constant presence throughout my entire life as long as I can remember from when I was a kid to today when I return home to visit my parents.
Where can I get the best zhajiangmian?
Since most of you probably aren’t going to visit our parents’ house in California anytime soon, you will have to settle for making it yourself (use our recipe) or hunting it down at a Chinese or Taiwanese restaurant. Even though the dish is quite widespread in Asia, it’s not super popular in the US, so many places don’t serve it.
If you find yourself in Taipei, check out 麵懸一生 - 職人麵館. Sara and I went on our recent trip to Taiwan. Don’t be put off by the 1.3 star review - the owner deliberately asks patrons to rate the restaurant 1 star in exchange for a free drink. It’s a marketing ploy… but it worked!
❤️ Thanks Bdubs for yet another excuse for us to eat more zhajiangmian.