Spicy Chilled Noodle Dish Perfect for Hot Summer Days; Sesame, Vinegar Brings Out Deep Yet Refreshing Flavor

By Ryo Kato / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

13:30 JST, September 15, 2024

Chilled noodles are perfect for this hot summer season when appetites are waning. Chef Ryo Imai introduces chilled tantanmen, spicy noodles paired with a soup that can be made by simply mixing ingredients.

The richness of sesame seeds, the spiciness of chili oil and the umami of soboro ground pork combine with chilled noodles to create a truly appetizing dish.

Although this recipe uses a chilled soup, serving it hot is also a good option.

“Since it’s so hot outside, let’s avoid using fire as much as possible and make the soup by simply mixing seasonings and other ingredients,” Imai said.

The soup is made with sesame seeds, chicken broth powder, soy sauce and vinegar.

The key is to use both white sesame paste and ground white sesame seeds. Sesame paste has a deeper flavor and ground sesame has a stronger aroma, so using both brings out the seeds’ full flavor.

Adding vinegar gives the soup a lighter and more refreshing flavor. After pouring the soup over the noodles, add a small amount of chili oil, being careful not to make the dish too spicy.

Another key ingredient in tantanmen is soboro ground meat.

To make the soboro, combine ground pork with Chinese sweet bean sauce and soy sauce, and stir-fry until all the liquid is absorbed.

If there are any juices from the meat left over, they will combine with the soup when the dish is assembled.

The thickness of the noodles is a personal choice, but Imai said that thicker noodles are more satisfying. After boiling the noodles for the time indicated on the packaging, drain them well to prevent the soup from becoming diluted.

Chingensai bok choy is often left in long strips for visual appeal when used as a topping, but Imai chopped it into bite-size pieces for the noodle dish.

The red of the chili oil and the green of the bok choy stand out well against the golden color of the soup.

When I slurped down the noodles, the aroma and richness of the sesame seeds filled my mouth. With sesame, you don’t need any special ingredients, and you will want to enjoy this refreshing tantanmen again and again.

***

Cold-brew oolong tea

Oolong tea goes well with the chilled tantanmen. Taiwan’s dong ding oolong tea, which has a fruity aroma and a hint of sweetness, is the recommended pairing with this noodle dish.

Add 10 grams of tea leaves per liter of water into a container and let them slowly steep in the refrigerator for 24 hours. The resulting tea is bright green, and the leaves open like flowers in the water. Using a transparent container makes the tea more attractive on the dining table. 

***

Chilled tantanmen

Ingredients (Serves 2):

Soup

• 2 tbsp finely chopped green onion
• 1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
• 2 tbsp white sesame paste
• 2 tbsp ground white sesame seeds
• ½ tsp chicken broth powder
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp rice wine vinegar



Soboro ground pork

• 100 grams ground pork
• 1 tbsp Chinese sweet bean sauce
• 1 tsp soy sauce



Tantanmen

• 2 balls of Chinese noodles
• 1 medium chingensai bok choy
• chili oil to taste



Directions:

1. To make the soup, add the green onion, ginger, sesame paste, ground sesame seeds and chicken broth powder to 200 milliliters of water, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and 2 teaspoons of vinegar in a bowl and mix. Place the bowl in a refrigerator.

2. To make the soboro ground pork, heat 1 tablespoon salad oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat, add the ground pork and fry for 3 minutes. Add the Chinese sweet bean sauce and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, and stir-fry until all the liquid is absorbed.

3. Cut the chingensai bok choy into bite-size pieces and add to a pot of boiling water. Remove from the pot.

4. Boil Chinese noodles in the same water according to the time indicated on the packaging. Rinse with cold water and drain in a colander, pressing and squeezing to drain thoroughly.

5. Add the noodles to a bowl and pour the soup over them. Top with the soboro and bok choy, and sprinkle chili oil to taste.

• 

  The Yomiuri Shimbun
  Step1: To make the soup, add the green onion, ginger, sesame paste, ground sesame seeds and chicken broth powder to 200 milliliters of water, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and 2 teaspoons of vinegar in a bowl and mix. Place the bowl in a refrigerator.

• 

  The Yomiuri Shimbun
  Step2: To make the soboro ground pork, heat 1 tablespoon salad oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat, add the ground pork and fry for 3 minutes. Add the Chinese sweet bean sauce and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, and stir-fry until all the liquid is absorbed.

• 

  The Yomiuri Shimbun
  Step4: Boil Chinese noodles in the same water according to the time indicated on the packaging. Rinse with cold water and drain in a colander, pressing and squeezing to drain thoroughly.

• 

• 

•