Zha Jiang Mian 炸醬麵 Recipe

Zha jiang mian 炸醬麵 has always been a favorite, classic, comfort food for me.  I still remember my mom used to call it Chinese spaghetti, although Chinese bolognese is probably a more accurate description.  Either way, similar to spaghetti/bolognese, everyone's favorite rendition is probably his/her mother's recipe that he/she grew up eating, which means you can adjust ingredients and toppings as you see fit.  For me, the zha jiang sauce includes diced bean curd/braised tofu (豆腐干), which is a more Taiwanese twist to the Beijing classic.

Without further ado, here's my base recipe for the zha jiang sauce.  Feel free to customize to your liking!

Ingredients (~6 servings)
1 pound ground pork
3 oz. sweet bean sauce (甜麵醬), or  hoisin sauce
6 oz. yellow bean sauce (豆瓣醬)

1-2 squares bean curd/braised tofu (豆腐干), diced
3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
5 slices ginger, minced
8 cloves garlic, minced
4 stalks scallions, chopped, with green tops and white bottoms separated
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
White pepper, to taste
1 julienned carrot, optional
1 julienned cucumber, optional

Directions
Heat oil in pan, and add ground pork and salt.  Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, to brown.  Add ginger, garlic, and white bottoms of scallions and cook for another minute.  Add diced bean curd, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil and stir for another minute.  Add the sweet bean sauce and yellow bean sauce.  Simmer until pork is cooked through.  *No matter how you end up substituting ingredients, the key ratio for the sweet bean sauce to the yellow bean sauce is 1:2.

Serve over chewy noodles, and top with green parts of scallions, julienned carrots, and/or julienned cucumbers.

*The meat sauce keeps well, so feel free to freeze extra sauce for a quick reheated meal on another day!