kimchi dan dan noodles - smelly lunchbox (2024)

• 8 oz thin wheat noodles ideally fresh, but dried will work
• yu choy, gailan, spinach, or other dark leafy greens
• neutral oil for cooking (avocado, canola, vegetable, etc.)
• 4-5 cloves garlic
• 1 inch knob of ginger
• 1 shallot or ¼ onion
• 1-2 stalks scallions whites and greens separated

ground pork mixture

• 5 oz ground pork
• ¼ cup fermented kimchi chopped
• 2 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
• 2 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• tiny pinch sugar
• tiny pinch salt

sauce

• cooked aromatics (garlic, ginger, shallots, scallion whites)
• ¼ cup peanut butter or sesame paste (I like chunky peanut butter for the crunchy bits)
• 1 tbsp fermented kimchi brine or ½ tablespoon Chinese black vinegar, or rice vinegar)
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
• 2 tablespoon chili crisp + oil (use more if preferred!)
• ⅛ teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon sesame oil
• 4-6 tablespoon hot water (depending on how thick of a sauce you prefer)

garnish

• chopped roasted peanuts
• chopped fermented kimchi
• scallion greens

Prepare the ingredients

• Mince all the aromatics (or use a food processor and pulse until finely chopped). Chop the fermented kimchi into small pieces.

  4-5 cloves garlic, 1 inch knob of ginger, 1 shallot, 1-2 stalks scallions, ¼ cup fermented kimchi

Cook the ground pork and noodles

• Heat up a pot of water to cook the noodles.While you wait for the pot of water to boil, you can start on the ground pork.

• Heat up a separate pan on medium heat, then add 1-2 tablespoon of neutral oil and half of the aromatics. Once fragrant (2-3 min), add the ground pork. Break up the ground pork into small chunks, and cook until there’s no more pink left.

  neutral oil for cooking, 5 oz ground pork

• Add the seasonings for the ground pork and continue cooking until lightly caramelized.

  2 teaspoon Shaoxing wine, 2 teaspoon light soy sauce, 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce, tiny pinch sugar, tiny pinch salt

• Add the kimchi, and continue stir-frying for 2-3 min. Remove the ground pork and kimchi from the pan, leaving any oil in the pan.

  ¼ cup fermented kimchi

• Add the rest of the chopped aromatics into the pan, and additional oil if necessary. Cook for 3-4 min, or until aromatics are fragrant and lightly caramelized. Set aside.

• In the pot of boiling water, add the thin wheat noodles, and cook according to the package directions. For the ones I’m using (in the video), it only requires 3-4 minutes in boiling water. In the last minute of cooking, add the leafy greens.

  8 oz thin wheat noodles, yu choy, gailan, spinach, or other dark leafy greens

• Save ½ cup of the boiling water for the sauce. Drain the noodles and greens, then rinse in cold water to prevent overcooking.

Mix the sauce together and assemble

• Mix all the sauce ingredients together. Taste and adjust to your preferences.

  cooked aromatics (garlic, ginger, shallots, scallion whites), ¼ cup peanut butter or sesame paste, 1 tablespoon fermented kimchi brine, 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, 1 teaspoon gochugaru, 2 tablespoon chili crisp + oil, ⅛ teaspoon sugar, ½ teaspoon sesame oil, 4-6 tablespoon hot water

• To assemble, ladle a few spoonfuls of the sauce at the bottom, a serving of the cooked noodles, the ground pork + kimchi, leafy greens, and any extra garnishes. I like to add chopped roasted peanuts, more kimchi, and scallions. Mix it all together and enjoy!

  chopped roasted peanuts, chopped fermented kimchi, scallion greens

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