Dan Dan Noodles

Brit and I have recently made a Dan Dan Noodle dish not just once, but twice in the past month. The recipe comes from a reader of Bon Appetit requesting their favorite Sichuan dish from a restaurant in Georgia, and the dish sure does deliver. Brit and I worked to improve the dish by doubling the sauce quantity, adding some garlic, and also some vegetables to give the dish color and round it out as a nicer meal. Well, tonight I perfected it.

It. Was. Incredible. 

I'm re-printing the ingredients and directions below so that I have the adapted recipe, in its entirety, in one location for easy reproducibility.

Dan Dan Noodles

Serves 4

12 oz Udon noodles
2-3 carrots, chopped well (I used a mini food processor)
1-2 bell peppers, sliced
12 oz. ground turkey
2-3 tbsp ginger, minced
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 cups chicken stock
4 tbsp chili oil
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
4 tbsp soy sauce
8 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp roasted peanuts, chopped
4 tbsp scallions, sliced thin

Cook udon noodles according to package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.

In a skillet with some olive oil, saute carrots and bell peppers over medium heat until soft. Season with some salt and pepper while they're cooking. When ready, transfer to a clean bowl.

Add some more olive oil to the same skillet used for the veggies and begin cooking the ground turkey. Season with salt and pepper and cook over medium heat, breaking apart, until about halfway cooked. Stir in the garlic and ginger and continue cooking all the way through.

Add back the veggies to the cooked turkey and stir in the stock, chili oil, red wine vinegar, soy sauce, tahini, and some extra ground black pepper. Stir well and simmer over low heat until the sauce thickens. Be patient as this will take up to 10 minutes, but it's totally worth it.

After the sauce is deemed thick enough, spoon the mixture over the udon noodles in individual bowls. Garnish with the peanuts and scallions and eat! OM NOM NOM NOM NOM NOM!!!!!

The chili oil gives the sauce a nice, but fairly subtle heat. You can add some sriracha if you want to spice it up a bit more.