Description
A noodle dish splitting popularity with Laghman in Xinjiang. 'Gan Bian' is a technique of stir-frying in oil until all moisture is completely evaporated. Boiled hand-pulled thick noodles are flash-fried with mutton and chives on extreme heat until the noodle surface blisters into a crispy golden brown.
Restaurants serving Gan Bian Chao Mian (Xinjiang Dry-fried Noodles)
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On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Hand-pulled thick noodles
- Mutton
- Chives
- Bell peppers
- Dried red chilies
- Doubanjiang
- Soy sauce
- Sesame
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe]
- (Noodle Prep) Knead wheat flour with salt water and oil. Hand-pull into thick noodles. Boil, shock in cold water, and chop into short lengths.
- (Ingredients) Prepare shredded mutton, chives, onions, bell peppers, and dried red chilies.
- (Gan Bian Technique) Heat generous oil in a wok. Fry the mutton until its moisture evaporates and it turns crispy (transferring the meat umami into the oil).
- Add chilies, Sichuan pepper, and onions to bloom aroma. Add Doubanjiang and soy sauce.
- Dump in the boiled thick noodles.
- [Ultimate Pro Skill]: Turn the heat to absolute maximum. Press the noodles against the blistering wok sides, violently stir-frying until the surface moisture completely evaporates, leaving the noodles slightly charred, 'crispy outside, and chewy inside'.
- Toss in chives and white sesame, flicking the wok just before the chives go limp.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Roasted aroma of charred oil and soy sauce、Chili heat
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
(Boil frozen Udon al dente and pan-fry in generous oil)
Pairing
Black vinegar (for flavor change) / Carbonated Drinks
Trivia
[Trivia] If tomato-soaked Laghman is the 'moist' option, this Gan Bian Chao Mian is the ultimate 'heavy junk-food' option. Because you directly taste the roasted oil, it boasts immense popularity among young men and laborers as a Silk Road soul food.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Use a spoon and chopsticks to vigorously chew the short noodles and toppings together. The contrast between the 'crispy' charred exterior and the 'chewy' inside is phenomenal. Halfway through, splash table 'black vinegar' over it; this cuts the grease and makes it dramatically more delicious.
Allergen
Wheat, Mutton, Soybeans, Sesame, Wheat (Soy sauce)