Asian Noodles

-Grubbing in Chicago
Five of a Kind: Noodle Nosh

The origin of noodles are shrouded in mystery but it’s pretty obvious that the Chinese were the first to make them an art. Back in 2005 archaeologists discovered an earthenware bowl containing 4,000-year-old noodles at the Lajia archaeological site in China. So while there’s no single inventor of noodles they more than likely became popular in China before extending off into other parts of Asia and the rest of the world. Here in Chicago we have seemingly endless options for noodles with pretty much every Asian cuisine on offer. But just recently has the city taken its noodle game to the next level thanks to a noodle renaissance of sorts. Back in the day noodles were just a small part of the menu whereas now there’s lots of spots where they make up the majority of the menu. I eat my weight in noodles every year and we've never had better options for slurping than we do right now. 

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Minyoli

We’ll start at one of the more interesting openings of 2024. Minyoli in Andersonville is a Taiwanese noodle shop serving Juàn Cūn cuisine. It’s ran by Taiwanese Chef Rich Wang who’s on a mission to preserve the fast disappearing cuisine that came about around 1949 when more than six hundred thousand of the Chinese nationalist party’s soldiers moved to Taiwan with families and settled down in Juan Cuns - “military dependents' villages” is how the Chinese term is often translated in English. Wang and his team serve up a small well rounded menu of the cuisine that came from these villages. Taiwanese beef noodle soup (Niu Rao Mian) is front and center along with a plethora of Taiwanese snacks both braised and chilled (Luwei) and also fried. The Taiwanese fried chicken starter is dusted with a sour plum powder - a popular condiment at Taiwan’s legendary night markets. Small chunks of chicken are twice fried in a crisp potato starch with the plum powder going on as soon as it comes out of the fryer for a second time. The first thing you taste is a sweet and tangy flavor that soon turns savory. It’s a crowd favorite and a great prelude to a bowl of red braised beef noodle soup. The broth is made by simmering beef bones along with root vegetables for more than eight hours. The menu also lists both premium Taiwanese black bean soy sauce, and spicy broad bean sauce among the ingredients. You choose between succulent braised beef or tender chunks of tendon with the option for half and half being the way to go. Wheat noodles are made daily and come in two different sizes with the thick and wavy ones used in the Niu Rao Mian. The end result is a subtle but soothing bowl of beef noodle soup with perfectly textured noodles and extremely tender beef. 

Taiwanese Fried Chicken and Beef Noodle Soup at Minyoli 
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Kajiken

This Japanese noodle franchise was recently brought to Chinatown by the neighborhoods unofficial mayor - Tony Hu (owner of Lao Szechuan). Kajiken specializes in soup-less ramen aka Abura Soba. It’s a chain from Nagoya with more than 40 locations in Asia plus a few more in North America including this outlet in Chinatown Square. I visited last year and enjoyed the “Homura” which includes spicy minced pork, poached egg, menma, scallion, fish powder, nori, and chives. You can customize each bowl to your liking with vinegar, minced garlic, chili oil, soy sauce, and some powdered pepper all of which is sitting at each table. Just mix it all up and start slurping. The noodles have nice texture. 

Abura Soba at Kajiken
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Szechuan Bistro

The food court in Chinatowns Richland Center basement is always an interesting stop as different food stalls regularly come and go. Szechuan Bistro popped up about two years ago and it didn’t take long for some of us to figure out that it was run by the former cook of Szechuan JMC which has since closed. JMC was a popular stop with locals and Chinatown regulars alike but it closed randomly forcing fans to find their Sichuan peppercorn kick elsewhere. Enter Szechuan Bistro. The menu is loaded with Sichuan classics including my favorite bowl of Dan Dan Noodles in town. Dan Dan are one of the quintessential dishes of Sichuan cuisine and arguably one of the most popular noodle dishes in all of Asia. They first popped up as a street snack in Chengdu back in the 1800’s and these days they’re one of the world’s most well known noodle dishes as Sichuan cuisine has become extermely popular on a worldwide level. There are many iterations of dan dan noodles across the globe but the signature flavor profile should be hot, sour, salty, sweet, and smoky. The sauce should always include Sichuan pepper, a numbing berry from Western China used as a spice. It has a tantalizing citrus, floral, and woodsy aroma and the Dan Dan at Szechuan Bistro is loaded with it. 

Dan Dan Noodles at Szechuan Bistro
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Rudy's Ramen

I recently tried the tantanmen at this Noble Square ramen specialist and it warmed me up just right. Rudy’s Ramen is a hidden gem ramenya ran by a self taught ramen chef who specializes in tonkotsu (pork bone ramen). I feel like Rudy’s kind of got lost in the plethora of ramen openings we had despite being named one of the best ramens in town at The Infatuation. While I’ll always love tonkotsu due to it being the first real type of ramen I ever tried (shoutout to Santouka) it’s a bit rich for me these days and not something I commonly crave. So with that I decided to try the Tantanmen which is the Japanese version of Dan Dan. The recipe at Rudy’s starts with a fairly potent pork broth that’s got a very nice Sichuan peppercorn spice profile. It comes loaded with spicy miso minced pork, bamboo shoots, bok choy, scallions, and thin ramen noodles. Go ahead and add the ajitama egg to your bowl.

Tantanmen at Rudy's Ramen 
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Chengdu Bistro 

Last stop is what’s probably been my favorite opening of the year. Chengdu Bistro opened in May on Division in Wicker Park. It’s owned by the nephew of Tony Hu who also runs Chengdu Impression and Dongpo Impression. The menu at Chengdu Bistro is mostly made up of Sichuan noodle favorites though they also have soup dumplings and entrees like dry chili chicken and Mapo Tofu. But it’s the noodles that make this place stand out. I’ve long moaned about the lack of made on site noodles in Chicago and those days look to be numbered with Chengdu Bistro contributing to the change. Ordering wise there’s lots of good ways to go including spicy beef noodle soup. You choose what size noodles you want and they make them to order. When it comes to beef noodle soup I like ‘em thick and chewy and suggest going with the thickest noodle option, they have a great bite to them and the broth is legit spicy with that distinct taste of Sichuan peppercorns I’ve come to love. They also make a damn good Dan Dan that comes in two sizes including a small for just $5.95.

Sichuan Spicy Beef Noodle Soup 

Dan Dan Noodles

I must’ve picked up the spicy toothsome Sichuan Cold Noodles at Chengdu Bistro a handful of times this past summer when I didn’t feel like cooking on the hottest of days. Yibin Flaming Noodles aka Yibin Burning Noodles are a specialty of Yibin - a prefecture-level city in the southeastern part of the Sichuan province. So they say the name comes from an old wives tale that the noodles were covered in oil that’s flammable but I also read that it’s more likely because back in the day it was common to pour burning hot pork lard over the noodles before serving. Yibin Noodles are similar to Dan Dan with the most distinct difference being the use of alkaline noodles which are chewier than normal. The noodles are mixed with vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and lots of chili oil and topped with minced pork, yacai (preserved mustard greens), roasted peanuts, and scallions. I love how the noodles are tossed hot into the sauce giving it a unique taste and texture. Well worth the $10.95 pricetag.

Sicuhan Cold Noodles

Yibin Flaming Noodle

I've tried most of the noodle dishes at Chengdu Bistro and if I had to pick a favorite it would have to be the Sichuan Za Jiang Noodle with Stewed Pea. When I went to Beijing back in 2018 I visited this famous noodle shop from Chonqing where I waited in line for 30 mins for a bowl of their famous Wanza Mian which ended up being one of the most memorable bowls of noodles I’ve ever had. I’ve been on the search for something similar ever since and the Za Jiang at Chengdu Bistro is the closest I’ve come. At first glance it looks like a bowl of naked noodles topped with saozi (wet minced pork) and peas but a “mixed sauce” consisting of chili oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, huajio (sichuan pepper), roasted sesame paste, and lard lurks underneath. The made on site noodles have a wholesome bite while managing to soak up all the delicious sauce. Think of it as the bigger brother of Dan Dan.

Sichuan Za Jiang Noodle with Stewed Pea at Chengdu Bistro
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See ya next time @chibbqking
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