蚂蚁上树 (pronounced Ma Yi Shang Shu) is the most delectable and easy to whip up Sichuanese noodle dish. Translated into layman’s english, it means ants climbing up a tree. I know the name is the the most appetising but boy, the spicy pork sauce from this dish really wows so makes up for any shortcoming. After all, as Shakespeare would say, “what’s in a name? By any other name would smell so sweet.”
So, let’s get down to it. Rumour has it, the glass noodles resemble the branches of a tree, the scallions the leaves, and the ground pork the ants. I ran out of scallions at home so just substituted it for chopped coriander leaves here. Feel free to stick with scallions.
Glass noodle are simply clear simply bean thread noodles (n.b. not vermicelli) made from mung bean which can easily be attained in any Asian grocer. What you need to find is Dou Ban Jiang’ a spicy bean sauce. Other key ingredients will be the minced pork and chicken stock.
Ants Climbing Up a Tree Sichuanese noodle dish
Without further ado, let’s check out the recipe.
Ingredients
- 300g ground pork
- 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of dark soy
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
- 2 tablespoon dou ban jiang
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 inch garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon of rice wine
- 150ml of chicken stock
- 1 bunch of scallions, diced
Instructions
- Marinate pork in a bowl with sesame oil, light and dark soy. Sit aside for 10 minutes or use instantly if you don't want to wait.
- Soak the glass bean noodles in a bowl of hot water in the meantime for a few minutes till it goes soft. Drain.
- Heat pan on medium high heat with a tablespoon of cooking oil.
- Add minced ginger, garlic and minced pork. Stir fry for a minute or two till some of the pork changes color.
- Add the dou ban jiang and fry for 30 seconds before adding the chicken stock.
- Cook for 6-7 minutes till all the minced pork is cooked and add the soaked bean noodles and scallions. Give it a good stir in the pan before dishing up to serve in a bowl. Garnish with more chopped scallions before serving.
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