Name: Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Taiwanese
Ingredients: 1.2 kg beef shin, in large chunks; 400 g beef tendon, optional but traditional; 3 tbsp neutral oil; 4 spring onions, cut into lengths; 6 slices ginger; 6 garlic cloves, smashed; 3 tbsp doubanjiang (spicy broad bean paste); 2 tbsp tomato purée; 150 ml light soy sauce; 2 tbsp dark soy sauce; 100 ml Shaoxing wine; 2 tbsp rock sugar; 2 star anise; 1 cinnamon stick; 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns; 3 dried chillies; 2 bay leaves; 1 tomato, quartered; 2 litres beef stock or water; 600 g fresh wheat noodles; 200 g pickled mustard greens (suan cai); Blanched pak choi; Spring onions and coriander

Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup

Taiwanese braised beef noodle soup: shin and tendon cooked for hours in a broth built on soy, doubanjiang and spices, over wheat noodles.

3 hr total Serves 6 servings Medium

The broth is made in two parts: a clean beef stock and a separate braising liquid heavy with doubanjiang and aromatics, combined only at the end. Doing it that way keeps the soup from turning muddy and salty, which is what happens when the fermented bean paste cooks in the whole pot for three hours.

Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup, in preparation
Photograph credit: TW 台湾 Taiwan 台北 Taipei shop 林东芳牛肉麵 Lin Dong Fang Beef Noodles March 2024 R12S 11 by Ounfs Robmmy 238 · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

The Method for Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup

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Cover the beef and tendon with cold water, bring to a boil and blanch 5 minutes. Drain and rinse each piece. This is what makes the final broth clear.
Heat the oil in a heavy pot and fry the spring onions, ginger and garlic for 2 minutes.
Add the doubanjiang and tomato purée and fry 3 minutes over medium heat until the oil turns red and the paste smells cooked rather than raw.
Add the Shaoxing wine and let it bubble, then the soy sauces, rock sugar, star anise, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, chillies, bay and tomato.
Return the beef and tendon, pour in the stock, and bring to a simmer.
Cover and cook very gently for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the shin gives way completely and the tendon is translucent and soft.
Lift out the meat. Strain the broth through a sieve and skim the fat, keeping a little for flavour. Taste and adjust with soy or sugar.
Cook the noodles in a separate pot of water — never in the broth — and drain.
Divide the noodles between bowls, add the beef and tendon, and ladle the hot broth over.
Top with pickled mustard greens, pak choi, spring onions and coriander.

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Tips That Matter

Blanch and rinse the beef first. It is the difference between clear and cloudy.
Fry the doubanjiang until the oil turns red. Raw bean paste tastes flat.
Cook the noodles separately or the broth goes starchy.

Common Substitutions & Variations

Out of spring onions? A small regular onion, finely sliced, or a few chives stirred in at the end both cover the job.
If you only have ground ginger, a quarter-teaspoon for each tablespoon of fresh is the ratio usually given; it tastes warmer and less bright than the fresh root.
An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

Pairs Well With

Pickled mustard greens · A cold Taiwan beer · Smashed cucumber salad

Leftovers and Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days, freeze 3 months. Cook fresh noodles each time.

The Numbers per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (some ingredient lines cannot be read). Why some recipes have none.

Dairy-Free