Kimchi Dan Dan Noodles Recipe (with Video)

1. Mince all the aromatics (or use a food processor and pulse until finely chopped). Chop the fermented kimchi into small pieces.
2. Heat up a pot of water to cook the noodles.
3. While you wait for the pot of water to boil, you can start on the ground pork. Heat up a separate pan on medium heat, then add 1-2 tbsp of neutral oil and half of the aromatics. Once fragrant (2-3 min), add the ground pork. Break up the ground pork into small chunks, and cook until there’s no more pink left.
4. Season the ground pork and continue cooking until lightly caramelized.
5. Add the kimchi, and continue stir-frying for 2-3 min. Remove the ground pork and kimchi from the pan, leaving any oil in the pan.
6. Add the rest of the aromatics into the pan, and additional oil if necessary. Cook for 3-4 min, or until aromatics are fragrant and lightly caramelized. Set aside.
7. In the pot of boiling water, add the thin wheat noodles, and cook according to the package directions. For the ones I’m using (in the video), it only requires 3-4 minutes in boiling water. In the last minute of cooking, add the leafy greens.
8. Save 1/2 cup of the boiling water for the sauce. Drain the noodles and greens, then rinse in cold water to prevent overcooking.
9. Mix all the sauce ingredients together. The sauce is customizable to your preferences.
10. To assemble, ladle a few spoonfuls of the sauce at the bottom, a serving of the cooked noodles, the ground pork + kimchi, leafy greens, and any extra garnishes. I like to add chopped roasted peanuts, more kimchi, and scallions. Mix it all together and enjoy!