Yunnan Small Clay Pot Rice Noodles

| By: Zheqi (Jessie) Shen |

A clash of flavors and textures reach a perfect harmony: hints of spiciness and sourness in the soup, al dente noodles, and crispiness of vegetables. It is a must-eat for noodle lovers and “comfort food” for Yunnan locals. This dish is traditionally cooked and served in a small copper pot, but considering we are quarantine times, this recipe demonstrates the version of using pots easily available in our kitchen such as clay pots as alternatives.

Ingredients

Yield: 2 servings

• 10g lard

• 80g ground pork (fully thawed)

• 50g Chinese pickled cabbage (with juice) A handful of rice noodles (approximately 150g) Half a handful of flat garlic chives (approximately 30g), cut into inch-long pieces

• A handful of green bean sprout (approximately 40g)

• 800g Pre-prepared pork stock

• 3 halves of garlic

• 2 dried small red pepper

• 4g Salt

• A spoonful of Soy Sauce

• Black Chinese vinegar and dried ground chili in oil, for serving

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat the pre-prepared pork stock over medium heat. In the meantime, wash the garlic chives and cut them into inch-long pieces. Wash green bean sprout. Mince the pickled cabbage, garlic, and red pepper.

2. Boil a pot of water and add rice noodles. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes over medium-high heat until noodles have softened. Make sure to stir during the cooking process to prevent overflow. Remove from the heat and rinse the cooked noodles with cold water.

3. Heat lard in an empty pan until it turns liquid. Pan-fry the ground pork and garlic. Once brown, add minced pickled cabbage, garlic chives, and green bean sprout.

4. In the small clay pot, add rice noodles and stir-fried mixture to the pork stock over medium heat. Add red chili, soy sauce, and salt for seasoning.

5. Skim the foam on top of the soup. Serve the noodles hot with vinegar and chili oil on the side.

Notes

• Making pork stock from pork rib bones can be very time-consuming, so buying it from the market is an option. Chinese pickled cabbage, dried small red pepper, rice noodles are available in Asia grocery store, which can be stored for a long time and used in other delicious dishes. The quality of the finished products depends on the quality of ingredients to a large extent.

• The recipe above is the most traditional and original, but the level of spiciness and sourness is reduced to accommodate the tolerance of the public. Once familiar with this recipe, you could switch up the vegetables and adjust the level of spiciness and sourness according to your preference by adding more or less pepper and pickled cabbage.

• Clay pot is better at preserving heat, so be aware when you are enjoying the noodles. It is recommended to finish it in one sitting and fresh out of the kitchen.