螞蟻上樹 (Ants Climbing a Tree)

There is no english name for this dish. The literal translation of 螞蟻上樹 is “ants climbing a tree.” sounds super unappetizing, right?  I don’t even see a correlation between the look and name of this dish. Anyway, forget the name–I can tell you this dish is delish!

Ingredients:

• 2 bundles bean thread/glass noodles
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 lb ground pork
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tablespoon soy bean paste with chili sauce (辣豆瓣醬, Hsin Tung Yang brand)
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 cup green onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil

Before you do anything, soak the bean thread in water for about 30 mins:

Mix the chicken soup and water together to make 1 cup. Cut the bean thread in half (at the loops, longitudinal section).

Heat the pan on high. When the pan is pretty warm, pour in the oil.  When the oil is hotter, put in the ground pork.  Quickly divide and separate the pork into smaller pieces.  Do this until the pork is partially cooked (half cooked, half raw).  Place the ginger, garlic, and soy bean paste with chili sauce in. Mix and continue separating the pork.

When the pork is fully cooked, pour the chicken/water mixture in. Also, add the sugar and soy sauce. Mix it around a couple times. After it boils for about 30 secs, add the bean thread in. Mix. After 30 secs, turn the temperature down to medium. Continue mixing until the dish becomes more dry* (yet still pretty moist. chicken/water mixture should pretty much be all soaked up by the bean thread. this may take approx 7 minutes).  Add the green onion and sesame oil. Continue mixing for about 3-4 minutes.

 

*Troubleshoot: If you put in the bean thread and it quickly becomes more dry than expected (where you’re not sure if the bean thread has actually cooked all the way), then add about 3 tablespoons of water and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce in the pan, and mix.

Tags: glass noodles, pork