Noodles are one of the foundations of Chinese cuisine and are known worldwide. Did you know that they may have been eaten in China as early as 4,000 years ago? That makes for an interesting piece of history. Read all about it in this blog and try our delicious recipe yourself.
The first variant
Archaeological finds near China’s Yellow River have suggested that noodles may have been eaten as early as 4,000 years ago. During the Song Dynasty, the noodles were also sold in the larger Chinese cities and they started to become really popular. We now know a lot of variations. Just think of the Japanese udon, or how about spaghetti?
Did you know that writer, traveler and chef Jen Lin-Liu has even written a book about the extraordinary journey and development of noodles? In her book ‘On The Noodle Road’ she describes the connections between the noodles from China and the spaghetti in Italy. She begins in Beijing and ends her story in Rome while sharing delicious culinary discoveries from her experience with locals.
The connection with bread
Not only is there a connection between noodles and spaghetti, there is also a link with bread. The first noodles were made from bread dough at the time. Nor were they “strings”, but small pieces. These small pieces of dough are also called mian pian and are prepared in a wok with boiling water.
By now, however, we know many types of noodles. Take, for example, noodles made of wheat, egg, rice or starch. The traditional variant that is most popular in many countries is made from wheat flour, rice flour and mung bean starch. The real professionals then make the “strings” completely by hand, but of course it is also possible by machine or with a knife. Here you can watch how they are made by hand.
A delicious recipe
Try out a simple BBQ noodle recipe for yourself now. This is what you need:
- 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce
- ½ tablespoon of soy sauce
- Black pepper
- 100 grams of noodles
- Tbsp oil
- 10 grams of ginger
- 20 grams of spring onion
- 15 grams of garlic
- 20 grams of water
- 100 grams of shrimp or meat
How to prepare it:
- 1: cook the noodles according to the instructions
- 2: mix a little water with soy sauce, black pepper and barbecue sauce
- 3: heat the pan with oil and stir-fry the spring onion, ginger and garlic. Then add the shrimps and fry them until the shrimps have a nice pink color
- 4: add the barbecue sauce mix and the noodles, stir fry for about 2 minutes
Enjoy!
Are you curious about a tasty udon recipe? Here you can find a simple recipe from our chefs.