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Seriously Asian: Dan Dan Noodles

As far as famous noodle dishes go, there are few that rival the complexity of flavor of Dan Dan noodles, a staple of Chinese cooking from Sichuan province. The sauce for these noodles possesses a combination of spices that never gets old. There's the heat of the dried chili peppers, the oiliness from the sesame paste and chili oil, the savoriness of Tianjin preserved vegetables, and best of all, the mouth-tingling feeling that could only come from Sichuan peppercorns.

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5 Comments | Posted by Chichi Wang, September 17, 2010 at 2:15 PM
Tagged: bean sprouts, Chinese, Dan Dan noodles, noodles, pasta, peppercorns, Seriously Asian, Sichuan

Serious Heat: Peppercorns 101

Note: On Wednesdays, Andrea Lynn, senior editor of Chile Pepper magazine, drops by with Serious Heat. [iStockphoto: Juanmonino] Come on now, let's be adventurous. Why fill that pepper grinder with just black peppercorns when you can spice it up with a variety of options. Penzy's offers a great selection of mixed peppercorn blends. But how do you know the difference? Here's a breakdown: Black Peppercorns Grinding black peppercorns create a strong flavor, aroma and heat. Harvested before the berry is fully ripe, they are boiled briefly and then dried by machine or by sunlight (which causes the wrinkly skin). Most generic black pepper sold in grocery stores contains Brazilian black pepper that isn't as pungent as other varieties. Tellicherry Peppercorns...

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9 Comments | Posted by Andrea Lynn, August 26, 2009 at 10:00 AM
Tagged: Chile Pepper magazine, pepper, peppercorns, Serious Heat, spicy