Taiwanese Zha Jiang Mian / Soybean Paste Noodles 台式炸醬麵

 

Zha Jiang Mian (炸醬麵), aka soybean paste noodles, is actually a very common street food in Taiwan. You may notice Korean ‘’Jajangmyeon’’ sounds quite like Mandarin Chinese ‘’Zha Jiang Mian’’ as Jajangmyeon originated from Chinese dish but then was transformed to Korean style noodles. Same in Taiwan, Zha Jiang Mian is a Northern Chinese classic but we took on and developed our own version as well. (I believe Taiwanese Zha Jiang Mian tastes slightly different from Zha Jiang Mian in China.) Personally I feel Korean Jajangmyeon has a sweeter taste of caramelised black bean paste and usually seasoning with sesame oil. Taiwanese Zha Jiang Mian, on the other hand, is more salty flavour with the mixture of pork gravy and soybean curd. And Here is how I made my Taiwanese Zha Jiang Mian :

Ingredients:

-Pork belly, cut into small cubes.
(or you can use minced pork)
-Firm tofu, cut into small cubes.
-Taiwanese Dou Ban Jiang/soybean paste (台式豆瓣醬), 2 tbsp.
-2 cloves of garlic, chopped.
-Oyster sauce, 1 tbsp.
-Soy sauce, 2 tbsp.
-Sugar, 1 tsp.

How to cook:

-Soak tofu cubes in boiling, salted water for about 3 minutes then drain it well.
-Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat, once pan is hot, place pork cubes in and stir fry until browned.
-Add chopped garlic.
-Add Taiwanese Dou Ban Jiang/soybean paste and stir fry over slow fire until aromatic.
-Add tofu cubes.
-Add oyster sauce. (here it’s supposed to add ‘’Tian Mian Jian’’ 甜麵醬- another type of Taiwanese sweet bean paste, I don’t have it so I used oyster sauce instead.)
-Add soy sauce, sugar, and water to taste. Let it simmer for 10 minutes over the lowest heat.
-Top above sauce on the cooked dry noodles and serve immediately.

Mayak Eggs / Korean Marinated Eggs 麻藥雞蛋

*The original article was posted on 05/11/2020 and re-edited with new photos & video in 2021.

The word ‘’Mayak’’ translates to ‘’illicit drugs’’ in Korean language which means Mayak egg (마약계란) is something delicious with addictive flavour. When I saw this dish online I can tell it would definitely taste good even I’ve never tried it in my life. After referring to some recipes online, I finally tried to make it at home and they were just exactly as delicious as I imagined. I think the main reason why I am so obsessed with these Korean mayak eggs is the recipe contains tons of garlic and spring onions (both are my fav ingredients) and they were truly rice killer as you would eat more rice than you usually did to extend the flavour. The method is easy as well, here is how I made it :

 

𝐓𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐱𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 :

-Kombu seaweed/dashi stock, 1/2 cup. (Cooked water is also fine.)

-Soy sauce, 1/2 cup.

-Sugar, 2 tbsp.

-White vinegar, 1 tbsp.

-Garlic cloves, chopped.

-Onions, chopped.

-Spring onions, chopped.

-Chilli flakes. (optional)

-Green & red chillies, chopped. (optional)

-White sesame seeds.

-Sesame oil, 2 tbsp.

Combine above ingredients and stir until everything well mixed.

*Make sure you bring enough sauce to cover your eggs. (I did 4 eggs at once.)

 

𝐓𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭-𝐛𝐨𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐠𝐠 :

-Have eggs at room temperate.

-Slowly place the eggs into boiling water and cook for 6 min 30 secs for running yolk.

-Once the time is up, run the eggs under cold running water immediately to stop them cooking.

-Peel and set the eggs aside.

 

𝐓𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞 :

-Place your soft-boiled eggs into the sauce mixture (in a container) and leave it in the fridge for at least 6 hours to overnight.

 

𝐓𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 :

-Scoop out the egg and place it over warm cooked rice.

-Add 1 or 2 tsp sauce mixture and a drizzle of sesame oil over the egg to enjoy.

You can also check my Reels to see how I made it:

 

在 Instagram 查看這則貼文

WAN TING | Cooks & Eats（@iswanting）分享的貼文

Also when you finish these delicious Mayak Eggs, don't waste any drop of marinade sauce, simply cook it with silken tofu to make the most of it! Click here to see the recipe.

 

To Makeover My Leftover : Curry Udon

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲, 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐭 ? 

Don’t just simply reheat or microwave, stir fry with instant noodles! I have left some beef curry at the fridge but don’t want to spend time cooking rice, therefore I decided to use instant noodles to stir fry with my leftover curry sauce and woohoo, it’s so quick and so good. This is also the recipe that you can use instant noodles in a different way without using it’s seasoning powder which should be healthier. (I hope ! 😅) Ingredients:⠀⁠ • Leftover curry • Instant noodles How to cook:⠀ • Reheat the curry in a saucepan and gently stir. • Meanwhile boil the instant noodles in hot water for 1-2 minutes. • Once the noodles start to soften, drain and then add to the saucepan to mix with curry together. • You can also prepare additional chopped carrots or cabbage, stir fry beforehand then add to the saucepan when you toss the noodles and curry.