← Back to recipes
Northern-style · Recipes

Home-style Zhajiang Noodles

家常炸酱面 · Jiā cháng zhá jiàng miàn

Pork mince in a savoury bean sauce, spooned over noodles with cucumber. Add sauce by taste rather than drowning the whole bowl.

Jump to recipe ↓
Prep15 min
Cook25 min
Serves2
DifficultyEasy
Home-style Zhajiang Noodles — illustrative dish photo; ingredients may differ
Illustrative dish photography · credits below · 我乃野云鹤 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Recipe guide · not yet kitchen-testedAI-assisted editorial draft. Timing depends on your stove, pan, and ingredient size. Use the doneness checks below.

Let’s get cooking

  1. 01

    Prepare

    Wash cucumber and cut into strips. Mix both pastes with measured sauce water.

  2. 02

    Cook pork

    Heat oil over medium heat. Add ginger and pork, breaking up clumps. Cook until ground pork reaches 71°C.

  3. 03

    Simmer the sauce

    Lower heat, add diluted bean sauce, and simmer 8–12 minutes, stirring often so it does not catch.

  4. 04

    Boil noodles

    Cook noodles in a separate pot to package directions and drain.

  5. 05

    Serve separately

    Divide noodles into bowls and add cucumber, scallion, and a modest amount of meat sauce. Offer more sauce at the table.

A little kitchen wisdom

Bean sauces vary a lot in salt and sweetness; do not add soy sauce automatically.

Can’t find an ingredient?

Sweet wheat sauce: Hoisin makes a sweeter, differently spiced version; start with less.

Cook safely

Whole cuts of pork must reach 63°C / 145°F, then rest at least 3 minutes. Ground pork must reach 71°C / 160°F.

FoodSafety.gov guidance ↗