Serious Eats: New York
Off the Beaten Path: Sister Zhu's Cold Sesame Noodles
Some rely on ice cream, but in the lingering dog days of summer I often regulate my core temperature with spicy food. So the other day a friend and I headed over to Flushing’s Zhu Da Zi Chengdu Xiao Chi, or “Big Sister Zhu’s Chengdu Snacks,” for a bowl of one of Chengdu’s most popular snacks—dan dan mian, or spicy noodles with chili and minced pork. Big Sister Zhu’s version of this Sichuan street food classic is the spiciest I’ve ever tried. Sadly, they were out of it that day, and suggested ma la liang mian, or spicy sesame cold noodles. I ordered them begrudgingly. To tell the truth, I can’t remember the last time I ate spicy sesame cold noodles.
But I’m glad I ate Big Sister Zhu’s.
The tangle of noodles is topped with bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, chili paste, minced garlic, and green onions. A small lake of chili oil and sesame sauce sits at the bottom. Like dan dan mian, ma la liang mian requires some mixing before eating. Rather than use chopsticks, my friend popped the cover on and shook the container vigorously.
Once again Big Sister Zhu didn’t pull any punches with the peppers; the al dente noodles were slicked with chili oil and tiny bits of garlic. The peanuts, scallions, and sprouts made for a cool, crunchy counterpoint to the chewy noodles. Within minutes my mouth was ablaze. As I wiped the sweat from my brow, I noticed a gigantic half-full jar of chili paste on the counter, and wondered how much of it wound up in the noodles.
Big Sister Zhu’s ma la liang mian is so good and so cheap, a mere $3.50, I returned the very next day for more. (In truth, I wanted a whole order to myself to really feel the burn.) There was a brand new jar of chili paste on the counter. I guess they go through a jar of the stuff a day.
Tomorrow I'll share another surefire way to stay cool: naeng myun, or spicy cold Korean noodle soup, as made by the folks over at Han Song Ting. In case you’re wondering, it’s not a Korean restaurant, but a tiny Chinese-run stall that was once in the now defunct Roosevelt Food Court.
Big Sister Zhu's Sichuan Food
42-47 Main Street, Flushing NY (map)
646-496-6577