Chinese Broad Bean & Potato Stir-Fry with Noodles
This is a classic dish in Northern China, it's usually made with broad beans, potatoes, pork or beef chunks as you wish, and freshly made noodles. This is an easier version by using spaghetti, I also omit the meat to make it a meatless but still very tasty.
Yield
4 servingsPrep
15 minCook
25 minReady
40 minIngredients
| Amount | Measure | Ingredient | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | ounces |
spaghetti
reserve 2 cups cooking pasta water |
|
| ½ | tablespoon |
sesame oil
|
|
| 3 | tablespoons |
vegetable oil
|
|
| 4 | cloves |
garlic
freshly minced |
|
| ½ | inch |
ginger
peeled and freshly minced |
*
|
| 4 |
scallions, spring or green onions
sliced |
|
|
| 1 |
star anise
break into a few pieces |
*
|
|
| 6 | whole |
sichuan peppercorns
whole |
*
|
| 4 | whole |
black peppercorns
whole |
*
|
| 2 | medium |
potatoes
peeled and cut into 2-inch long and 1/2 inch wide strips |
|
| 1 | pound |
broad beans
stems removed, and snipped into 2-inch pieces, or regular green beans |
* |
| 3 | tablespoons |
soy sauce, tamari
or to taste |
|
| ½ | tablespoon |
rice vinegar
|
|
Ingredients
| Amount | Measure | Ingredient | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| 231.2 | ml/g |
spaghetti
reserve 2 cups cooking pasta water |
|
| 7.5 | ml |
sesame oil
|
|
| 45 | ml |
vegetable oil
|
|
| 4 | cloves |
garlic
freshly minced |
|
| 0.5 | inch |
ginger
peeled and freshly minced |
*
|
| 4 | each |
scallions, spring or green onions
sliced |
|
| 1 | each |
star anise
break into a few pieces |
*
|
| 6 | each |
sichuan peppercorns
whole |
*
|
| 4 | each |
black peppercorns
whole |
*
|
| 2 | medium |
potatoes
peeled and cut into 2-inch long and 1/2 inch wide strips |
|
| 453.6 | g |
broad beans
stems removed, and snipped into 2-inch pieces, or regular green beans |
* |
| 45 | ml |
soy sauce, tamari
or to taste |
|
| 7.5 | ml |
rice vinegar
|
|
Directions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, cook the pasta according to the direction on the package. Reserve 2 cups of cooking pasta water. Drain well and toss with ½ tablespoon of sesame oil, set aside.
Heat vegetable oil in a wok or a large sauté pan over medium high heat until hot. Add garlic, ginger, scallions, star anise pieces, sichuan and black peppercorns, stirring constantly, and very fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add potatoes and broad beans, stirring often, and cook for about 8 minutes until the potatoes and broad beans start to become tender. Add ½ cup cooking pasta water into vegetables, and lower the heat to medium.
Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and creamy, beans are tender too, stirring often.
Add another ¼ cup to ½ cup of cooking pasta water during the cooking to prevent the potatoes and beans from being burning, also use the steam to cook them. Stir in soy sauce and rice vinegar until well combined.
Add the cooked spaghetti on top, add ¼ cup to ½ cup pasta cooking water, and toss until evenly distributed. Cook for another 1 to 2 minutes until heated through and the mixture looks starchy.
You may need to adjust the seasoning by adding more soy sauce and vinegar. Serve warm.
Note:
If you want to add some meat, cut some beef or pork into ½-inch chunks.
After the garlic, ginger, and scallions are cooked, stir in the meat chunks, and add some soy sauce. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until all the chunks are browned up. Then add potatoes and beans, following the rest of the recipe.
