A Sichuan-style rice bowl of chile-garlic ground pork, chili oil and pickled greens over steamed rice.
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.
Serves 3
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.
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.
Add light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar and ground Sichuan peppercorn. Stir-fry 1 minute to combine evenly.
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.
Spoon hot rice into bowls, top with the pork mixture, scatter pickled mustard greens and scallions on top, and serve immediately.
Use Pixian doubanjiang specifically if you can find it — generic chili bean sauce is much milder and less complex.
Let the pork sit undisturbed for the first minute or two of cooking rather than stirring constantly, so it actually browns instead of steaming.
Toast whole Sichuan peppercorns in a dry pan for a minute before grinding for noticeably more aroma than pre-ground.
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.
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.
Doubanjiang-based pork dishes are central to Sichuan home cooking, and the fermented bean paste itself, most famously produced in Pixian county, has been made using traditional methods for generations and remains the defining flavor of Sichuan cuisine.
A mix of white miso and chile garlic sauce gets close, though you'll lose some of doubanjiang's distinct fermented depth.
It has a moderate, layered heat from the bean paste and chile oil rather than a sharp burn — adjust the chile oil quantity to control the level.
Yes, substitute crumbled firm tofu or finely chopped mushrooms for the pork, frying them the same way until edges crisp.
Per serving (380g / 13.4 oz) · 3 servings total
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