Out of all the different types of milk that suddenly got popularized, I’m still a whole milk kind of person, but for this recipe, my roommate had some soy milk left in the fridge that inspired me to make this bowl of noodles. When I make a soup noodle, it tends to be the instant kind that is either a shoyu or shio ramen, but I haven’t run into an instant dan dan noodle option, so why not try and make it in a way that is really popular at home using soy milk?

For me, the key to making the soup comes to the balance of chicken broth, soy milk, sesame, and garlic. I would always taste and adjust as I make the soup, so I never have a fixed recipe that I follow. After I’m satisfied with the soup, I add my favorite Lao Gan Ma chili oil.

After boiling my Chinese wheat noodles and submerging them in the soup, the perfect toppings for me include stir-fried ground pork, a soft-boiled egg, green onions, and some kind of warmed vegetable. I would’ve wanted some bok choy, but all I had were some mushrooms to sear off in a pan, and I think the earthiness went quite well with the light creaminess of the soup.