Shandong Seafood Da Lu Mian

| By: Cherie Wang |

The Da Lu Mian dish is essential to me as it reminds me of home and the warmth of family. Due to the current global pandemic caused by COVID-19, most regions across the world are under lockdown. I have missed my hometown and my grandma so much. Therefore, I called my grandma to get the recipe for her Da Lu Mian so I could prepare it myself. I called my grandma to ask for any secret ingredients she uses for her Da Lu Mian but she did not give me any. She explained that it was not essential to know the quantity of the different flavors to add to the Da Lu Mian sauce, but I should let my feelings guide my cooking.

Ingredients

Yield: 4-6 servings

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Total time: 50 minutes

Nutritional Info: Serving: 1serving | Calories: 340kcal | Carbohydrates: 100g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 7.5g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 785mg | Fiber: 8.6g | Sugar: 5.6g

For the "Lu" Part:

• Moderate olive oil

• Moderate green onion

• Moderate dry, red peppers

• Moderate garlic and ginger powder

• 2 tablespoons salt

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 2 spoons oyster sauce (Optional) (*Footnote 1)

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 pound pork

• 1/4 pound potatoes

• 1 pound green beans (*Footnote 2)

• 1 pound fresh shrimp

• 3000ml hot water

For the "Mian" Part:

• 600g Shandong fresh noodles (*Footnote 3)

Cooking Instructions

Prep:

1. Shell all fresh shrimp. Combine shrimp, 1 tablespoon cooking wine, 2 teaspoons ginger in a bowl. Mix well by hand and marinate for 15 minutes.

2. Chop all pork. Combine pork, 1 tablespoon cooking wine, and 1 teaspoon ginger in a bowl. Mix well by hand and marinate for 15 minutes.

3. Wash and finely chop green beans and potatoes.

Cook:

1. Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pot over medium heat until hot. Add fat pork into it. Stir and fry for 5 minutes on low heat until you see more oil come out. Discard all fat pork.

2. Add green onion, garlic and ginger. Stir a few times until fragrant.

3. Add the shrimp and pork. Stir and cook until the shrimp turns white and the pork is just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Then, add all potatoes and green beans. Stir and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Add 300ml hot water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, stirring constantly. Turn to medium low heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

5. Slowly add cornstarch water and stir until the gravy reaches the desired thickness (you will have some liquid left if you prefer a thinner gravy). Add sugar, salt, soy, and oyster sauce. Taste the sauce and add more salt if needed. The sauce should be slightly salty by itself.

6. When the sauce is about to finish, use another pot to cook the noodles according to instructions. Normally, once the water is boiling, cook 3 to 4 minutes.

7. Add cold water immediately after the noodles are done (* Footnote 4). Drain them and transfer to each serving plate.

8. Serve the sauce hot over the noodles. Enjoy your Da Lu Mian!

Notes

1. I added oyster sauce for more flavor and sweetness. If you do not have a bottle of it on hand, use 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 2 teaspoons sugar instead.

2. I bought green beans from China Town. I knew it is hard to buy long green beans in the United States. You can substitute green beans with other veggies or use more potatoes.

3. Wide, thick noodles made with wheat flour work the best. If you want the meal to be extra fancy, you can try to knead dough by yourself to make hand pulled noodles. My grandma used to cook in this way. I tried to knead them but I failed!