Description
The ultimate winter comfort food unconditionally eaten in Lanzhou homes. Contains NO rice. 'Pea flour' and 'wheat flour' are sprinkled gradually into hot water and stirred relentlessly until it cooks into a glue-like, thick sludge. Topped with homemade chili oil and pickled vegetables.
Restaurants serving Dou Mian San Fan (Lanzhou Bean Flour Porridge)
Researching
We are researching restaurants that serve this dish.
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
- Pea flour
- Wheat flour
- Potato
- Homemade chili oil
- Pickled greens(Suan Cai)
- Scallion
- Salt
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe]
- (Powder Prep) Blend the soul of the dish: 'Pea Flour (Wan Dou Mian)' and 'Wheat Flour' in a 1:
- ratio.
- Boil water in a pot, add diced potatoes, and cook until soft.
- [The 'San' Technique]: A battle of time and arm strength. Stir the boiling water violently in circles with a ladle to create a whirlpool.
- Using your left hand, sprinkle the blended flour 'little by little (San)' directly into the vortex.
- Stir continuously and furiously with your right hand to prevent lumps.
- Once the flour absorbs the water and the pot turns into an intensely thick paste—'so thick a chopstick stood in it won't fall'—kill the heat.
- (Topping) Ladle the hot paste into a bowl. Top heavily with salted greens, sour fermented pickles (Suan Cai), blazing homemade chili oil (Hong You), and scallions.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Roasted aroma of homemade chili oil、Rustic scent of pea flour
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
(Knead buckwheat flour or cornmeal in hot water like Sobagaki)
Pairing
Raw garlic (bitten alongside) / Tea
Trivia
[Trivia] 'San' refers to the action of sprinkling powder. The cooking method is identical to Italian Polenta or Eastern European Mamaliga. The ultimate survival meal created by farmers in the harsh Northwest—where only wheat and beans grow—to fill their stomachs and generate body heat.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Scoop with a spoon. It holds heat abnormally well due to the sludge texture, so beware of burning your tongue. The rustic bean aroma and fluffy potato mix with the sour pickles and chili heat. One bite will make you sweat profusely even in the dead of winter.
Allergen
Wheat, Soybeans (Chili oil)