Tan-tzu Noddles

 Stir Fry pork:

1/4 lb. boneless pork butt, minced 

Half bowl of fried onion

1/2 clove garlic, peeled and minced

One bowl of water
                                                                                          Oil

 Condiments:

A little bit of black pepper, one bowl of Chinese dark soy sauce and a pinch of white sugar.

Preparation:

Heat lard in a wok over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Stir-fry pork until no longer pink. Add onions and garlic and stir-fry until pork is well browned, 5–7 minutes. Stir in soy sauce and 1 cup of water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.

Noodles:

Ingredients:

2 lbs. medium shrimp
2 tsp. lard
4 small shallots, peeled and finely minced
10 oz. you-mian (oily noodles) or 6 oz. spaghetti
2 cups mung bean sprouts, heads and tails trimmed
1 scallion, trimmed and finely minced
6 small sprigs cilantro

Salt

Preparation:
First, peel shrimp, chop shells, and put shells into a medium pot. Halve 3 of the shrimp lengthwise and set aside. (Save remaining shrimp for another use.) Add 8 cups water to pot and boil over medium heat, partially covered, until liquid has reduced by about one-quarter, 35–45 minutes. Strain broth into a small pot and season to taste with salt. Keep warm over lowest heat.

Second, bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat. Put shrimp into a large sieve, transfer to pot, and cook until opaque, 25–30 seconds. Set shrimp aside. Put noodles into serve, transfer to pot, and cook until soft, 1 minute for the oily noodles and divide between 6 bowls. Put sprouts into serve, transfer to pot, and blanch. Drain sprouts, then divide between bowls. Divide garlic, scallions, cilantro, and shrimp broth between bowls, then add a generous tbsp. of the pork sauce to each bowl. Garnish each with a piece of shrimp.