Peanut Butter Noodles (Ban Mian) Recipe

Since transferring to New York in 2023, I have been on a quest to seek out the very best ban mian—peanut butter noodles—within the metropolis. Now, you is perhaps picturing a reasonably odd dish with a dollop of this nutty condiment tossed in like an afterthought. However the easiest variations are deeply savory and slick with a mix of creamy peanut butter, soy sauce, and sesame oil. 

In Fuzhou, a metropolis in China’s Fujian province, ban mian—actually “combined noodles”—is usually served alongside different small dishes, similar to dime-sized dumplings and sparerib soup. In different components of Fujian province, cooks toss the noodles with soy sauce seasoned with sugar and white pepper. Whereas the sauce might be made with sesame paste or sesame oil, Fujian households in each China and New York Metropolis largely depend on peanut butter to coat the noodles, making them additional creamy and nutty. 

Throughout New York’s numerous Chinatowns, the place many Fujian immigrants stay, you may discover these noodles in abundance. I am an everyday at Shu Jiao Fu Zhou, a well-liked snack store in Manhattan recognized for its craggly dumplings and fish balls in soup. The restaurant additionally serves up a scrumptious rendition of ban mian—and since it is just a few blocks from my house, I usually enterprise in for a bowl. Regardless of the lengthy line that always snakes out the door, it takes nearly 5 minutes for an order of peanut butter noodles to reach on the desk. The servings are extremely hearty, typically the equal of two hefty parts, and but I all the time end a complete plate by myself. 

My love for peanut butter noodles has even led me overseas. After sampling over a dozen variations in New York, I did what any compulsive noodle eater ought to do: I traveled to Fuzhou to style the noodles that impressed the variations made and served at my favourite Chinatown establishments. Over two weeks, I sampled model after model of those creamy, nutty noodles. It did not matter when or the place I ate them—in some way, every spot managed to ship a bowl of bouncy, savory noodles superior to something I would ever had in New York. 

Again residence, Shu Jiao Fuzhou stays my favourite place for ban mian in New York. Nonetheless, my journey to China impressed me to drum up my very own model—which is how I landed on the recipe beneath.

Recreating the Excellent Bowl of Ban Mian at Residence

I turned to a number of members of Fuzhou America, a cultural group connecting the Fujian diaspora, for his or her ideas on this iconic dish. One member, Christina Chen, founding father of Chenzi, an organization that focuses on small-batch Fuzhou-style potato balls, recommends tossing the noodles with the starchy noodle water to assist the shiny sauce efficiently cling to the noodles like pasta water. In the meantime, Diane Yeung, a fellow author and noodle evangelist who accompanied me to Fuzhou, likes including a spoonful of chili crisp to her noodles, an ode to her mother’s model. 

There’s additionally a heated debate amongst residence cooks about whether or not Jif or Skippy is greatest. (I am firmly within the Skippy camp.) Among the many ban mian trustworthy, everybody has a robust opinion about what makes the very best noodles with the very best effort-to-reward ratio. Likelihood is, in the event you turn into a ban mian devotee, you may seemingly develop robust opinions in regards to the dish, too.

There are lots of takes on ultimate sauce, however I firmly consider the very best variations embody creamy peanut butter, lard, darkish soy sauce, garlic oil, and sesame oil. The peanut butter have to be melted and clean sufficient to mix with the soy sauce and sesame oil, and garlic is a should. Some recipes name for minced garlic or garlic powder, however I favor the refined, deeply fragrant notes of garlic oil. (For ease and comfort, I name for store-bought garlic oil, however you could possibly use do-it-yourself garlic confit oil in case you have any readily available.) 

Noodle alternative varies on this dish, as nicely. I’ve seen ban mian made with thick, spherical rice noodles, squiggly prompt noodles, and slick, spaghetti-like strands. My favourite noodles for ban mian are the thick, chewy, contemporary wheat noodles generally present in Northern Chinese language wonton soups.

Right here, I soften the peanut butter unfold and lard within the microwave till clean, then add the garlic oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, and a few noodle cooking water. Then it is time to “ban” or vigorously combine the substances, a necessary step that creates a clean, silky sauce that effortlessly clings to the noodles. It will not be pretty much as good because the variations I loved in Fuzhou, but it surely’s fairly darn shut.