Black sesame noodles with mushrooms and baby bok choy

Black sesame noodles with mushrooms and baby bok choy

Black sesame paste (also sold asblack tahini) is available at Chinese and Japanese supermarkets, and also online. It is rich and nutty, with a slight bitterness. It can be used in both savoury and sweet recipes (the black sesame and sweet potato bundt in Tenderheart is one of my favourites). You can substitute with regular white sesame paste or tahini, which is less intense but still earthy and creamy.

The result of this dish is very close to dan dan noodles. I used frozen ramen noodles in my testing. I love the bouncy texture and the long strands. However, any noodles would work here. Obviouslyif you are making ramen, you shoulduse ramen noodles, or for Singaporenoodles, then you should absolutely seek outthe right rice vermicelli noodles, but I always encourage flexibility and anopenspirit when it comes to cooking.

Serves 4

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Ingredients

• 300g (10 ounces) fresh or frozen egg, wheat, udon or ramen noodles Neutral oil
• 225g (1/2 pound) mushrooms, such as fresh shiitake, oyster, trumpet, sliced
• sea salt and white/black pepper
• 400g (14 ounces) baby bok choy (small), cut through the stem into quarters
• 2 scallions, trimmed and sliced
• black or toasted white sesame seeds (or both), for serving

Black Sesame Sauce

• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1/4 cup black sesame paste (or white sesame paste or tahini)
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon chili oil/crisp
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari
• 1 teaspoon black vinegar (or rice vinegar

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the noodles.Cook according to package instructions until tender and then drain. Refresh under cold water and then drain again.

2. In a bowl, combine the garlic, sesame paste, sesame oil, chili oil/crisp, soy sauce or tamari and black vinegar with 3 tablespoons of water and whisk to combine. If the sauce is too thick, add a little more water, a tablespoon at a time, until completely smooth and pourable.

3. Heat a large wok or skillet (frying pan) on medium high heat for 2 minutes until very hot. Drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons of oil andadd the mushrooms, season with sea salt and pepper and leave to cook undisturbed for 30 seconds to allow them to get a slight char. Toss and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have softened and are golden around the edges, about 2-3 minutes. Add the greens, season with sea salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally until just wilted but still bright green, another 2-3 minutes. Add the noodles to the pan, along with the black sesame sauce and toss thoroughly until well coated. Turn off the heat.

4. To serve, top with scallions and sesame seeds.