Hong Kong ‘Zha Jiang’ Noodles (炸醬麵)

The Hong Kong style Zha Jiang Noodles is very different from the Shanghai one. My first encounter with this version was introduced by a friend to an old fashioned noodle specialty shop in Hong Kong many years ago. Both Shanghai Zha Jiang noodle versions are totally different tastewise. The only one thing in common is that they are “lo mein”, meaning “stirred noodles” (“撈麵” in Chinese).

As for this Hong Kong version, the sweet and spicy sauce goes pretty well with the springy egg noodles. Every bite of the noodles stirred with the sauce will entertain your taste buds. Best still, you can whip up this noodle dish as a light meal on a hectic day. All you need is to find the good quality noodles. For making the sauce, I used a secret ingredient to make the traditional sauce more delicious. Wonder what’s the secret ingredient? Are you curious enough to give this dish a try?

Hong Kong Style Zha Jiang Noodles (Printable recipe)
By Christine's Recipes
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Yield: 2 to 3 serves

Ingredients:

• 100 gm pork fillet, shredded
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 2 cakes egg noodles
• sesame oil, to taste, optional
• spring onion, diced

Marinade:

• ½ tsp light soy sauce
• ½ tsp cornflour / corn starch
• ¼ tsp sugar
• ½ tsp Shaoxing wine
• pepper, to taste

Sauce:

• 100 ml water
• 2 Tbsp chilli bean paste
• 2 Tbsp ketchup
• ½ Tbsp tomato paste
• ½ Tbsp white rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• salt, to taste
• ½ tsp chilli oil

Thickening:

• 1 tsp cornflour / corn starch
• 2 Tbsp water

Method:

1. Mix the pork with marinade. Set aside for 10 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Sauté garlic until aromatic. Add the pork and stir fry until its surface turns white. Set aside. Discard the garlic.
3. In the same pan. Pour the sauce ingredients. Cook over medium heat and bring it to boil. Continue to cook for 5 minutes.
4. In the meantime, blanch the noodles in boiling water. With chopsticks or tongs, give the noodles a stir to loosen them up. Following the instructions on packaging, cook the noodles until al dente. Mine needs cooking for about 2 to 3 minutes. Lightly mix with a dash of sesame oil if desired. Place noodles onto 2 to 3 serving plates.
5. Add the pork into the sauce. When it boils again. Add thickening and cook to preferred consistency. Drizzle over the noodles. Sprinkle spring onion for garnish. Serve immediately.

Notes：

• You can use fresh or dried egg noodles, available at Asian grocers. I used fresh ones.
• Make sure not to over-cook the noodles because you don’t want them mushy. You might like to rinse them under cold running water to help keep their springy texture.
• The key element of this noodle dish is the sauce. The secret ingredient, tomato paste makes the sauce look more appealing and taste more delicious. Make more sauce to mix with the noodles. Hope you’ll love it as much as I do.