Korean Black Bean Noodles

• 3 to 4 servings fresh jajangmyeon/thick wheat noodles
• 200g pork shoulder cut into small/medium chunks
• 1/2 onion, cubed
• 1/2 courgette, cubed
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 thumb sized piece of ginger - finely chopped
• 1 tbsp sugar and a pinch of salt
• Thinly sliced cucumber to garnish, optional
• 5 tablespoons Korean black bean paste
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 100ml water + some for cornflour paste
• 1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)

Slice the pork belly into chunks and season with a pinch of salt and sugar and set aside. Prepare the vegetables, dice the onion, courgette and cabbage, finely chop the ginger and garlic. 

Julienne some cucumber for garnish. 

In a wok over a medium heat, fry the pork belly for a few minutes until the fat has rendered out. Remove the pork from the wok and set aside. With the same rendered fat in the wok, fry the Korean black bean paste for a few minutes, this will give it a smoky aroma and taste, then remove from the wok and place into a bowl.

Clean the wok and place back on to the heat, add a few teaspoons of vegetable oil and add the chopped onions. Once the onions have started to colour, add the cabbage and courgette. Stir fry for 3-5 minutes until the vegetables have softened. Push the ingredients to the back of the wok and add the ginger and garlic, stir then add the pork. Now add the black bean paste along with about 100ml of water to create a sauce. Add a generous pinch of sugar to balance the salty flavour of the black beans and cover with a lid to cook through for 5-10 minutes. 

While the pork is cooking, cook the noodles in a saucepan according to the package instructions. 

Back to the pork: 

Make a paste with cornflour and water and add a few teaspoons of this to the sauce to create a consistency of your liking. 

Turn the heat off and serve the black bean pork over the cooked noodles. Garnish with slices of cucumber. 

Fry the black bean paste in oil and set aside.

With a wok on high heat, fry cubed pork in 1 tbsp of cooking oil. Cook until light brown and some of the fat has rendered. Add the onions, ginger and garlic and cook until the onions have softened slightly, add the courgette and carry on cooking until the courgettes are soft. Add the black bean paste and top it up with water. Cover with a lid and simmer on low heat for another 5-10 minutes. Mix together a cornstarch slurry then add to sauce to thicken and reduce until you get the desired consistency . 

Cook your noodles in boiling water. Serve in a bowl and top with the black bean sauce. Garnish with julienned cucumber.