Sichuan Chile Garlic Rice Bowl with Ground Pork

About This Recipe

This bowl borrows its flavor backbone from dan dan noodles and Sichuan mapo-style cooking: ground pork fried until crisp with garlic and doubanjiang (fermented chile bean paste), finished with a spoonful of chile oil and a numbing hit of Sichuan peppercorn. Instead of noodles, it's served over steamed rice, turning the classic street-stall flavors into a fast, simple rice bowl. The technique that matters most is rendering the pork properly: it should fry in its own fat until the edges crisp and turn a deep brown, which is what gives the dish its savory depth rather than a boiled, flat taste. Doubanjiang is non-negotiable here — it's a fermented broad bean and chile paste that provides both salt and a deep umami heat that soy sauce alone can't replicate. Pickled mustard greens (suan cai or zha cai) scattered on top add a tangy crunch that cuts through the richness, a common contrast in Sichuan cooking between fatty, spicy elements and something sour or crisp.

Ingredients

Serves 3

• 300 gground pork
• 2 tbspvegetable oil
• 4 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1 tbspdoubanjiang(Pixian fermented chile bean paste)
• 1 tbsplight soy sauce
• 1 tspdark soy sauce
• 1 tspsugar
• 0.5 tspground Sichuan peppercorn
• 2 tbspchile oil(with sediment, plus more to taste)
• 0.33 cupzha cai or suan cai(chopped, pickled mustard greens)
• 3 cupssteamed jasmine rice(for serving)
• 2scallions(sliced, for garnish)

Instructions

1. 1

   Render the pork

   Heat oil in a wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground pork and cook, breaking it up, for 5-6 minutes until the edges turn crisp and deeply browned.

2. 2

   Add aromatics

   Push the pork to one side, add garlic and doubanjiang to the cleared space, and fry 30 seconds until the paste turns fragrant and the oil takes on a red tint, then stir into the pork.

3. 3

   Season

   Add light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar and ground Sichuan peppercorn. Stir-fry 1 minute to combine evenly.

4. 4

   Finish with chile oil

   Remove from heat and stir in chile oil to taste.

   Add the chile oil off the heat so it keeps its bright color and doesn't scorch.

5. 5

   Assemble the bowl

   Spoon hot rice into bowls, top with the pork mixture, scatter pickled mustard greens and scallions on top, and serve immediately.

Variations

• •

  Substitute ground chicken or turkey for a lighter version, though the dish will have less natural richness.

• •

  Add blanched bok choy or Chinese broccoli on top for a vegetable-forward version.

• •

  Swap the rice for wheat noodles to turn this into a closer approximation of dan dan noodles.

Storage

Refrigerate the pork mixture separately from rice for up to 3 days. Reheat in a skillet over medium heat with a splash of water; the pork keeps its texture better than in a microwave.

Frequently Asked Questions