This Chinese pork mince noodles recipe is budget-friendly, delicious, healthy, quick and easy to make! Ready in less than 30 minutes, it's an excellent quick WFH lunch or an express weeknight dinner.
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Ingredients
Dried noodles are available from major supermarkets (like Coles or Woolies in Australia) or any Asian grocery stores. Unlike dried pasta, dried noodles cook very quick and usually ready in around 4 minutes in boiling water. Make sure to read and follow packet instructions as they can become overcooked quickly which turns into mushy soft and break apart easily.
Soy sauce, Shaoxing wine are classic Chinese condiment combinations. This recipe calls for 1 tbsp of soy sauce and 1.5 tbsp of dark soy sauce. Dark soy sauces are richer and as the name suggests, is darker which adds colour to this dish.
Sesame oil is used to provide a nutty aroma and for this dish, a few drops are sufficient.
Five-spice powder enriches the pork sauce and makes it deliciously fragrant. The 5 spices are; star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel. Note, although it contains Sichuan pepper, it's not spicy at all so don't worry if you don't eat spicy foods.
White pepper adds a mild heat to the sauce.
Sugar is used to balance the saltiness of the soy sauce.
Ginger and garlic are non-negotiables for this dish. Tip: use a cheese grater to mince instead of a knife - much quicker!
Step by step instructions
STEP 1 In a hot pan, on medium / high heat, saute pork mince, ginger and garlic mince with a tbsp of oil. Once meat turns brown, pour in Shaoxing wine and allow it to evaporate for about 20 seconds.
STEP 2 Now simply add remaining ingredients and bring pork sauce to the boil then turn the heat down to low and simmer for about 5 - 8 minutes until the sauce has reduced by ⅓. Pork sauce is ready!
STEP 3 Cook noodles according to packet instructions. Once noodles are cooked, rinse under cold water in a colander for 10 seconds to stop the cooking process.
STEP 4 Arrange serving bowl with noodles and some Asian greens (cook veggies by boiling them in noodles cooking water). Spoon pork mince sauce over noodles.
Spoon a couple of tbsp of noodles cooking water into each bowl of noodles to help loosen the noodles and ensure even mixing.
Tips for making this dish perfect everytime
- Cook the noodles just before serving - these Chinese noodles cook very quickly (about 3 - 4 minutes) and taste best as soon as they're out of the boiling water. So if you've got guests coming over, prepare the pork mince sauce in advance and cook the noodles once your guests arrive.
- When serving, add about ¼ cup of noodle cooking water into the serving bowl. This will help loosen the noodles and prevent them from sticking together (which they will!)
This recipe makes 4 good-sized bowls of pork mince with noodles.
Other awesome and easy Asian dishes
- Ginger beef and kale - learn how to tenderise cheap beef cuts and make it sing!
- Chicken noodle stir fry - quick, easy and healthy
- Easy pork wontons - no folding techniques required, super easy and tasty
- Chinese broccoli (gai lan) with shiitake mushrooms - wonder side to any asian meals!
Thank you for checking out my recipes! Let me know what you think and/or if you have any questions, drop me a note in the comments section below. 🙂
Happy cooking!
Gen
📖 Recipe
Chinese pork mince noodles
Ingredients
- 300 g dried noodles
Chinese pork mince sauce
- 300 g pork mince can substitute for other mince
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1.5 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- ¼ tsp five-spice powder
- ½ tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- ⅛ tsp sesame oil equivalent to ~3 drops
- ¼ tsp white pepper
- ½ cup water
- 1 tbsp neutral tasting oil like canola or sunflower
Serve with
- 2 bunches bok choy or your favourite Chinese greens
Instructions
- In a hot pan on medium / high heat, saute pork mince, ginger, garlic with oil until fragrant and meat browned.
- Add Shaoxing wine into the pan and allow the wine to evaporate for about 20 seconds.
- Add remaining pork mince sauce ingredients.
- Bring pork mince sauce to the boil then turn the heat down to low and simmer for 5 - 8 minutes or until sauce has reduced by a third. Once the sauce has reduced, it is ready to serve.
- Whilst pork sauce is reducing, cook noodles according to packet instructions. Once noodles are cooked, rinse under cold tap water for about 10 seconds in a colander. (see note 1) Reserve noodles cooking water.
- Boil bok choy in noodles cooking water for about 2 - 3 minutes.
- Arrange serving bowls with noodles and bok choy, spoon pork mince sauce and 2 tbsp of noodles cooking water on top of noodles and serve immediately. (see note 2)
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