When I heard that Porco aka Jez was taking a little divergence into the world of noodles with his version of the iconic Sichuanese comfort dish -DAN DAN NOODLES my ears lit up and my heart skipped a little beat.

My belly told me that I had to make a trip over to the Bottle Top in Lady Bay (where he had set up shop for the evening) to get my hands on a bowlful

This was to be an excellent decision and one that I just have to share with you all

He had described the dish earlier on his Instagram as “Fresh Wheat Noodles placed on a pool of sesame rich, spicy, numbing DAN DAN sauce made with my own Sichuan chili oil and some of my own Crispy chili oil, The springy noodles topped with fermented mustard greens for a Kimchi-like funk, blanched mini pak-choi for freshness, crunchy salted peanuts and of course freshly minced pork collar from Packington, stir fried hard in Porchetta lard with Shaoxing Wine, Sweet bean sauce, ginger, soy and house five spice.”

I couldn’t describe it any better myself so I transpose it here once more for your perusal and encourage you to take a trip over to his Instagram profile to learn more about the great food he has been cooking up

MIX IT ALL TOGETHER

When my name was called and it was my turn to collect my bowlful Jez encouraged me to mix it all together so that the noodles get fully coated just like he had claimed on insta “When you mix the bowl, blending all the ingredients with the sauce, the dish comes to life – first with aroma, then with flavour and texture and by the end you are addicted.” and he was right it certainly did.

I really enjoyed his take on the dish, the noodles were cooked briefly so that they were still nice and chewy and the sauce clung onto each strand coating them with a with sweet nutty and spicy flavour

The stir fried park mince was amazing, it had also held all of those flavours from the sesame and the ginger and I was happy spooning mouthfuls of that on its own

I hadn’t been certain that the crunchy chopped up bean was a good idea but it added some light cooling freshness to the bowl and countered nicely with that ‘funky’ mix of fermented mustard greens.

This was all spot on and a perfectly balanced and harmonious bowl of noodles.

ALL THE GOOD STUFF AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BOWL

Once I had eaten most of the noodles I was left with a most joyous pile of sauce and meaty detritus at the bottom of the bowl. Fortunately we had planned ahead bring our own spoons so that we could scopp it up ore easiliy that we would have been able to do with just the chopsticks.

The noodles had been sitting on top of the sauce that sits at the base of the bowl where there was more of the chili oil. (In Jez’s own words) “Packed with blitzed chilis, 10 spices and crunchy garlic and shallots, it will be working alongside the main Sichuan Chili Oil to add texture, flavour and heat to the dish.”

I liked the extra kick and for my palate it wasn’t too spicy, even after Jez had added an extra spoonful onto the top of each of our bowls. My dining companion was less convinced and would have liked it a little tamer.

We all have our own levels of tolerance for enjoyment purposes, some like it hot just for the joy of the chilli burn, some like I like a bit of heat to warm up the senses and tickle the taste buds, some just don’t want to know. Each to their own I say let everyone have what they want and how the want

I really hope that Porco serve up these noodles again at another one of their pop-ups. I really like their burgers and meat sandwiches but there was really something quite special about these DAN DAN Noodles that will make me get up out of my armchair come rain or shine to seek out and grab another bowlful

Sometime I feel that people put bowls together almost in a ‘paint by numbers’ fashion just adding stuff to the bowl without any real thought. Porco is totally different, every ingredient was added with consideration, thought and with the intention of creating a memorable experience and with an obvious nod and respect to the original recipe

Porco can often be found trading locally around the Lady Bay area, tonight it was at the Bottle Top but sometimes it is form outside his own front door. You will more often find them at spots such as Bustler in Nottingham and the Garage in Chilwell as well as many other local street food events

Check out their Instagram profile and Facebook page to see where and when they are cooking!