Sichuan · noodle
Dan Dan Noodles
担担面 · Dàndàn Miàn
Thin wheat noodles in a sesame-chilli sauce topped with spiced minced pork and preserved vegetables.
Dan dan noodles originated as a street snack sold by vendors carrying a shoulder pole (dàndàn) with a pot of noodles on one end and a brazier on the other. The dish is thin wheat noodles dressed with a sauce of sesame paste, chilli oil, Sichuan peppercorn, soy and rice vinegar, then topped with spiced minced pork fried with yacai (Yibin preserved mustard greens). It is eaten in Chengdu as a small portion — a liǎng (50 g dry weight) — often as a snack between meals rather than a main course. The interplay of sesame nuttiness, sharp vinegar and the anaesthetic tingle of mala spice is its hallmark. Some versions are brothy; the drier, saucier Chengdu style is considered the original.
Where to try
Chengdu: Zhong's Dumplings and local noodle shops near Chunxi Road. Available throughout Sichuan province at lunchtime noodle stalls.
Dietary notes
Contains wheat, sesame, pork. Vegetarian versions available at some restaurants — confirm no lard in the sauce.
Cities to try Dan Dan Noodles
Other southwest dishes
- Baba Flatbread粑粑
Yunnan's daily flatbread — a thick wheat or rice-flour round cooked on a griddle and eaten plain or stuffed.
- Bang Bang Chicken棒棒鸡
Cold poached chicken shredded by hand, dressed in chilli oil, sesame paste and Sichuan peppercorn.
- Boiled Fish in Chilli Oil水煮鱼
Fish slices submerged in a deep pool of chilli oil and Sichuan peppercorns. Served bubbling.
- Chongqing Hotpot重庆火锅
The original mala hotpot — a simmering cauldron of beef tallow, Pixian doubanjiang and Sichuan peppercorn for communal dipping.