Dan Dan Noodles

Dan dan noodles are thin wheat noodles tossed through a fiery, numbing sauce of chilli oil and Sichuan pepper, topped with a little minced pork. They are Chengdu's street-vendor classic, named for the shoulder pole — a dan dan — vendors once carried them on through the streets.

What it really is

The sauce is built in the bowl rather than cooked as one pot — chilli oil, soy sauce, sesame oil and ground Sichuan pepper go in first, so the numbing, fragrant heat is already waiting when the hot, freshly boiled noodles are dropped straight on top and tossed through. A small amount of minced pork, stir-fried until browned and slightly crisp, sits over the noodles as a topping rather than being mixed evenly through the whole bowl.

The pork is a garnish, not the bulk of the dish. Dan dan noodles carry only a spoonful of meat on top; the dish is really about the noodles taking on the sauce, not about a generous portion of pork.

How it is served

• In a small bowl, sauce and pork sitting on top until tossed by the diner.
• Without broth, unlike many other Chinese noodle dishes.
• As a starter-sized portion or a light main, rarely a large one.

How to write it on the menu

• Flag the wheat in the noodles, the soy in the sauce, and the sesame oil.
• Rate the heat and the numbing effect honestly, since Sichuan pepper's tingling sensation surprises guests who haven't had it before.
• Say if a vegetarian version without the pork topping is available.

The ingredients, allergens and dietary notes listed here describe a typical recipe. They are not a binding declaration for any particular restaurant: recipes, portion sizes and the products used can differ.