Dan Dan Noodles with Pickled Mustard Greens

We had an ice storm to day so it was a good day for hot noodles.

I bought a large bunch of mustard greens and had to do something with them.  I started searching for recipes and found one for dan dan noodles,  but it called for pickled mustard greens that it said, helpfully, I could locate in the nearest Asian store.  I love my Asian grocery store but it was the greens I had to cook so I decided to pickle the greens myself.  Why not?  I changed up the dan dan noodle recipe a bit to make it quicker.  Here is the adaptation that I came up with.

Noodles with Pickled Mustard Greens                                         

Marsha’s Recipe Repair, Dec. 2013

 This recipe originally called for ground pork.  I use the leaner cut of pork tenderloin. I have made this more of a noodle dish with a lot of broth.  Not quite soup but not noodles tossed with a light sauce either.  It is kind of spicy, hot and slurpy.  If you cannot find sambal oelek, a possible substitution would be Italian ground chili peppers, like that used on hoagies, but it won’t be quite the same.

Ingredients:

•  1 lb linguini or Chinese egg noodles if available
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp. canola or olive oil
• ½ cup sliced onion
• 1 lb pork tenderloin, sliced into ¼ inch thick pieces
• 2 Tbsp. tahini (sesame paste)
• 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. sambal oelek (Thai chili paste)
• 1 garlic clove, mashed
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups pickled mustard greens (recipe below)

1.  Cook noodles according to package directions and drain.  Toss noodles in large bowl with sesame oil and set aside.

2.  Heat oil in a large deep skillet or sauce pan over medium high heat.  Add onions and pork slices and saute (stir fry) until the meat is no longer pink, about three to five minutes.  It will cook quickly.  Remove pork from skillet and set aside.

3.  In a separate bowl mix tahini, vinegar, chili paste, and garlic.  Pour into same skillet and let is sizzle for about 30 seconds.  Add broth stirring up brown bits. Bring to a boil and then simmer for five minutes.

4.  Divide among four large soup bowls ¼ of the noodles, ¼ of the pork slices, ½ cup pickled mustard greens, and a ladle about ½ cup sauce over all.  Toss and eat.   Serves 4.

Pickled mustard greens

These need to be made at least 48 hours ahead of time.

In a saucepan combine 2 Tbsp. sugar, 1 Tbsp salt, ¼ cup white vinegar, and 2 cups water.  Bring to a boil.  Stir until sugar melts.  Remove from heat and let cool.

After cutting off larger stems, cut 1 bunch of mustard greens (about four cups) into thin strips, and then coarsely chop.  Cut any remaining stems into small 1-inch pieces.  Pack the mustard greens into a large quart canning jar.  Pour pickling liquid over the greens, covering them completely.  Screw lid on tight and place in refrigerator for at least two days.  The greens will wilt and soften somewhat, which is fine.