PANDEMIC
NOODLES
Jiaxin Cao
Hometown: Nanjing, China
Economics and East Asian Studies Double-Major
Jiaxin Cao is a rising Junior at Emory College, majoring in Economics and East Asian Studies. She is an international student from Nanjing, China, but she attended Foxcroft School in VA since 2014. Jiaxin likes traveling, playing drums, and watching Korean TV show and dramas.
Reflection on Making
Noodles with Soybean Sauce 炸酱面
Zhajiangmian has always been my family’s comfort food. Whether it is the original Beijing style or the “international” version from Korea, we all love it with all our hearts. Every time I return home from the US, my parents prepare Zhajiangmian before they go to the airport, so I can have Zhajiangmian the first second I arrive home. Indeed, it is a family-oriented dish which means it is usually served at home, or at a “roadside” stand in the morning. There are few restaurants that have Zhajiangmian on their menus, at least in my city, as it is too casual for any formal restaurant. Therefore, I chose Zhajiangmian as my dish to present to the world because it is such a casual and satisfying dish that you can make with minimum ingredients and the shortest time at home.
The nutrition value of Zhajiangmian is decent. First, the noodles guarantee the basic intake of carbohydrates for the day, while the pork meat provides enough protein and fat. Also, if you need to control your consumption of fat, you can always choose to substitute pork with chicken or beef. Cucumbers and carrots, on the other hand, take care of the vitamins and food fibers in vegetables. More importantly, the sauce is the “soul” of Zhajiangmian. We use two types of sauce which are --- soybean paste (Huangdoujiang) and sweet soybean paste (Tianmianjiang). These sauces also contain various vitamins, proteins, fat, food fibers, calcium, iron, etc. Therefore, since Zhajiangmian has adequate nutrition intake for one meal, many Chinese people have it either for lunch or dinner.
Zhajiangmian originated from Beijing, the city where everything can blend in harmony. In Beijing, you can find and see everything. You can go to Sanlitun, one of the biggest shopping districts in China, where you can see the most fashionable people and the latest luxury collections; or you can go to small alleys (Hutong) in the neighborhoods, where you can see the “Beijing gangsters” (老炮儿) taking a walk with their birds. In my opinion, Beijing as a city has more vitality than some of other modern cities in China. Take Shanghai as an example, you can rarely see anybody in Shanghai wandering around the streets, casually talking to neighbors. People in Shanghai are always too busy to bother with such activities; the pace of life is too fast for them to take a rest from work. Therefore, as one of the signature dishes in Beijing, Zhajiangmian indeed represents Beijing people’s attitude toward life. It is just simple. In the old days, people in Beijing did not ask for more money or social reputation, they simply desired a smooth and stable life. Like Zhajiangmian, it does not have any precious or expensive ingredients, but it is delicious as is. Therefore, Zhajiangmian is no longer an ordinary noodle dish for empty bellies; instead, it is “a little blessing” when you come back home late from work or you discover there is only a little bit of food in the refrigerator, and you may prepare a small bowl of Zhajiangmian for yourself to end this ordinary day.
In cooking Zhajiangmian on my own, I found this dish as simple as it seems but obtained huge satisfaction from having it for lunch. The ingredients are easy to find. The cooking procedures are easy to follow. The finished dish is delicious to eat. How can I ask for more from this kind of noodles? It is and will always be my comfort food.
"Xue Cai Rou Si Mian, a Chinese Family Noodle Story"
By: Jiaxin Cao
Many Chinese families have legacy recipes, whether it is Zong Zi for the Dragon Boat Festival, homemade dumplings, or mooncake for Mid-autumn Festivals. My family actually has something that is more common and can be seen in everyday life: Xue Cai Rou Si Mian, also known as noodle soup with shredded pork and pickled greens.
Xue Cai Rou Si Mian actually does not have any religious or cultural purposes, it is a common noodle dish that you can find in any of the noodle restaurants in China. In my family, in particular, Xue Cai Rou Si Mian has always served as our favorite breakfast. Since the shredded pork and pickled greens are pre-made, it would only take five minutes to finish preparing. It was in 2005, my mom learned this dish from an old lady who ran a small noodle shop in our neighborhood for more than 30 years before we moved to another place. Nowadays, my family make this dish when I return from the US, and when we are simply craving for the taste.
I did not think that I would miss the taste that much until the fall of 2016. That’s when I first went to the US for a boarding high school in Virginia. Since I went to a boarding school, it was really hard for me to go out and buy food in the market in order to make my own food. All I had was exotic food from the cafeteria which did not taste so great. Now, moving to college means that I can have the chance to cook my own food in the school kitchen, so I decided to give it a try.
In order to cook an authentic Xue Cai Rou Si Mian, I asked my mom about all the ingredients and wrote them down on a long list, heading to the largest Chinese supermarket in Atlanta — Da Zhong Hua. However, the pickled greens have made me lose directions in the supermarket. My mom has told me so many times that I have to buy some specific pickled greens under some big brands, because the pickled stuff can do harm to the body if it is not under proper regulations. Not surprisingly, I failed to find any “safe” pickled greens, left the supermarket with everything else. Luckily, my mom was able to send a package of her own pickled greens from China, and it did not take too long for to receive it.
As soon as I got the packaged pickled greens, I cannot wait to cook on my own. I ran to the Kitchen, put out the pot that I have bought on Amazon a few days ago, and all the ingredients that I need for this delicious noodle dish. I took out the pickled greens, carefully washed it through to get rid of any extra salt and “chemicals” as my mom said. Chopping it into tiny pieces, and set it aside for later use. Then, I added salt, cooking wine, and soy sauce to season the shredded Pork and let it sit for another 15 minutes. Pouring oil in the pot, let the wonderful smell of garlic, green onions, and ginger spread the whole kitchen, it is time to put the pork and pickled greens in and stir as the pork changes its color. Then, there are only the easiest steps left: boil the water, add the noodles, then noodles are ready! By simply adding two full spoons of the pork and pickled greens sauce, Xue Cai Rou Si Mian is ready to serve.
“It is so good, and I should cook it whenever I have time!” I said to myself after finishing my dish in just five minutes. It has even given me more confidence on my cooking skills, motivating me to do more Chinese dishes in the future.
It has been 2 years after the first time I cooked Xue Cai Rou Si Mian, and I still love the taste of it no less than before. My mom has helped me more on the recipe where she told me I should add some chili oils and sesame to improve the taste. Since then, I would always make myself a bowl of noodle during the weekends or sometimes lunch breaks.
However, no matter how well I cooked this noodle dish, it would not be able to compare with a steaming bowl of homemade Xue Cai Rou Si Mian waiting on the table when I returned from the US. It is the taste of home, which I always trying to find and to imitate, but it never came close.