Shanghai Scallion Oil Noodles (Cong You Ban Mian)

⏱ 30 min · Serves 2

Two humble bunches of spring onions, slowly fried until sweet and shatteringly crisp, perfume a slick of oil that coats springy noodles in glossy, savoury-sweet soy. It's the kind of ten-ingredient supper that tastes like it took hours — and smells even better than it tastes.

Per serving: 690 kcal · 17.0g protein · 95.0g carbs · 26.0g fat

Ingredients

• 2 large bunches spring onions (about 200g), trimmed
• 120ml neutral oil (rapeseed or groundnut)
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce (or vegetarian mushroom sauce)
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 1 tbsp water
• 250g dried thin wheat noodles (Shanghai-style or fine egg noodles)
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• Optional: 4 dried shrimp, soaked, or chilli oil to serve

Method

1. Cut the spring onions into 6cm lengths, keeping the white and green parts separate. Pat everything thoroughly dry — wet onions will spit.
2. Put the oil and the white parts into a cold wok or deep frying pan. Set over a low-medium heat and fry gently for 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until softened and beginning to colour.
3. Add the green parts and continue frying on low for 8–10 minutes, until everything is deep golden brown, shrunken and crisp. Be patient: browning is the whole point, burning is not.
4. Lift the onions out with a slotted spoon onto kitchen paper. Keep the fragrant oil in the pan.
5. Stir the light soy, dark soy, oyster sauce, sugar and water into the warm oil. Simmer for 30 seconds until the sugar dissolves and the sauce glosses, then take off the heat.
6. Meanwhile, cook the noodles in plenty of boiling water until just tender. Drain, reserving 3 tbsp of the noodle water, and shake dry.
7. Tip the hot noodles straight into the pan with the scallion oil sauce, add the reserved noodle water and sesame oil, and toss hard for a minute until every strand is mahogany and glossy.
8. Divide between two bowls and pile the crisp scallions on top. Eat immediately, with chilli oil if you like heat.