Dan Dan Noodles

Hot, spicy, and satisfying, this streamlined version of the classic Sichuan dish will take the chill off any evening. It’s traditionally made with fresh noodles; but by cooking dried spaghetti right in the sauce, the flavors meld into some cross between a pasta casserole and a Chinese classic. Have lots of beer on hand!

Cuisine

Modern

Course

Main Course

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

15-30 min

Cooking Technique

Max Pressure Cook, Pressure Cook

Keywords

15-30 min, 4 servings, balsamic vinegar, chicken broth, contributed, cook 16 min, dried spaghetti, dry sherry, dry vermouth, easy, garlic cloves, honey, lean ground pork, main course, max pressure cook, modern, or water, peanut oil, peeled fresh ginger, prep 5 min, pressure cook, sambal oelek or a hot red pepper sauce such as sriracha, scallions, soy sauce, tahini, worcestershire sauce

Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

16 min

Servings

4 servings

Ingredients

2 tbsp peanut oil
1 lb lean ground pork
6 medium scallions
2 tbsp sambal oelek or a hot red pepper sauce such as Sriracha
3 medium garlic cloves
1 tbsp peeled fresh ginger
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp dry sherry, dry vermouth, or water
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cups chicken broth
8 ounces dried spaghetti

Instructions

Press Saute, set time for 10 minutes.
Heat the oil in the cooker for a minute or two. Crumble in the pork and cook, stirring often and breaking up any clumps, until gray but not browned, about 4 minutes. Stir in the scallions, sambal oelek or hot sauce, garlic, and ginger. Cook until aromatic, just a few seconds.
Add the tahini, soy sauce, vinegar, honey, sherry (or its substitutes), and Worcestershire sauce. Stir well until the tahini is uniform in the mixture, then stir in the broth. Turn off the SAUTE function, add the spaghetti, and submerge the noodles in the sauce without their touching the bottom of the insert. Lock the lid onto the pot.
Optional 1 Max Pressure Cooker
Press Pressure cook on Max pressure for 4 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off.
Optional 2 All Pressure Cookers
Press Pressure cook (Manual) on High pressure for 6 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off.
Use the quick-release method to bring the pot’s pressure back to normal. Unlatch the lid and open the cooker. Stir well before serving.

Notes

Beyond
• You must halve the recipe for a 3-quart cooker.
• To make the flavor more authentic and less like sesame noodles, substitute sunflower seed butter for the tahini. Or skip the fancy stuff and use natural-style creamy peanut butter.
• To be more authentic, you can also substitute ¼ cup Chinese black vinegar for the balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce.
• And substitute Shaoxing (a Chinese rice wine) for the sherry, vermouth, or water.
• Finally, use roasted Chinese chiles in oil, particularly Laoganma Spicy Chili Crisp Sauce, instead of the sambal oelek or hot sauce.

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