Best 5 Ants Climbing A Tree Sichuan Spicy Vermicelli Stir Fry Recipes

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"Ants climbing a tree" is a classic Sichuan spicy dish that combines the bold flavors of Sichuan peppercorns, chili oil, and minced pork with the delicate texture of vermicelli noodles. The dish gets its name from the way the noodles resemble ants crawling up a tree when they are tossed with the sauce. This article will provide you with a comprehensive guide to creating an authentic and delicious version of this dish. We will cover everything from selecting the right ingredients to mastering the cooking techniques, ensuring that you can recreate this iconic Sichuan dish in your own kitchen.

Here are our top 5 tried and tested recipes!

ANTS CLIMBING A TREE (MA YI SHANG SHU)



Ants Climbing A Tree (Ma Yi Shang Shu) image

Ants Climbing a Tree (ma yi shang shu - 蚂蚁上树) is a classic Sichuan dish of glass noodles in a delicious sauce with ground pork. Our recipe is beyond easy.

Provided by Judy

Categories     Noodles and Pasta

Time 20m

Number Of Ingredients 10

4 oz. dry vermicelli/glass noodles ((110g))
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon ginger ((finely minced))
1 tablespoon spicy fermented bean sauce/paste
4 oz. ground pork ((110g; can substitute ground chicken))
2 cups chicken stock ((475 ml))
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
¼ cup scallion ((chopped))

Steps:

  • Soak the dry noodles in cold water for 10 minutes. Rinse, drain and set aside. In a wok over medium heat, add the oil and minced ginger. Cook the ginger for about a minute, and add the spicy bean sauce. Let that cook for another minute, and then add the ground pork (or chicken). Stir-fry until the meat is cooked through.
  • Add the chicken stock, sugar, dark soy sauce, and light soy sauce. Bring everything to boil. Once boiling, add the glass noodles and scallions. Quickly stir everything together for 1-2 minutes. Serve alone, or with steamed rice!
  • Seriously. How easy was that?

Nutrition Facts : Calories 479 kcal, Carbohydrate 58 g, Protein 16 g, Fat 21 g, SaturatedFat 5 g, Cholesterol 41 mg, Sodium 806 mg, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 3 g, ServingSize 1 serving

ANTS CLIMBING A TREE (SICHUAN SPICY VERMICELLI STIR-FRY)



Ants Climbing a Tree (Sichuan Spicy Vermicelli Stir-Fry) image

"Ants on a tree" is one of most well known Sichuan dishes. It is a combination of ground pork and mung bean vermicelli. In addition to that, we use Sichuan peppercorn powder, topped with fresh green onion, it is a very good main course for your dining table.

Provided by Tao,RN

Categories     World Cuisine Recipes     Asian     Chinese

Time 35m

Yield 4

Number Of Ingredients 7

2 cups mung bean vermicelli
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ pound ground pork
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce, or more to taste
2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorn powder
½ cup water
2 stalks green onions, thinly sliced

Steps:

  • Place vermicelli in a bowl and cover with water; soak for at least 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
  • Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until you can feel the heat above the pan. Put in ground pork; cook and stir until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Stir in peppercorn powder until evenly distributed. Add water and bring to a boil.
  • Add drained vermicelli and mix evenly with the pork. Cook until all water has evaporated, about 5 more minutes. Taste and add more soy sauce if not salty enough for you.
  • Transfer to a serving plate and top with green onions.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 454.3 calories, Carbohydrate 60.8 g, Cholesterol 36.7 mg, Fat 18.4 g, Fiber 0.5 g, Protein 10.3 g, SaturatedFat 4.6 g, Sodium 488 mg, Sugar 0.2 g

ANTS CLIMBING A TREE



Ants Climbing a Tree image

This recipe is from the January/February 1991 issue of Chile Pepper magazine. The intro to the recipe says, "In this dish, the bits of pork are supposed to resemble ants. It is made with transparent bean threads. Make sure you don't use rice noodles, which have a similar appearance." Serves 2 by itself or more with other dishes. Heat scale: medium. My ex-husband made this dish regularly, as it was one of his favorites; at the time, my tastes hadn't quite developed enough to appreciate it fully. Now I have come to really treasure this dish.

Provided by mersaydees

Categories     Pork

Time 35m

Yield 2 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 12

1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon dry vermouth, sherry or 1 tablespoon white wine
1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
1 green onion, minced
3 jalapenos or 3 serrano chilies, stems removed, minced
1/4 lb pork, ground (do not use sausage) or 1/4 lb pork, diced (do not use sausage)
1/4 cup finely diced carrot
1/4 cup shiitake mushroom, soaked and minced (or other dried mushrooms)
2 tablespoons szechuan hot bean sauce
2 (2 ounce) packages bean threads, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, drained and cut into pieces about 2 inches length

Steps:

  • Mix together all the sauce ingredients.
  • In a pre-heated wok over high heat, add the peanut oil. When the oil just begins to smoke, add the ginger, green onion, chiles, pork, carrot, and the mushroom, and stir-fry until the pork is well-browned.
  • Add the bean sauce and stir-fry for about 15 seconds or until combined thoroughly with the other ingredients.
  • Add the bean threads and sauce. Cook over medium high heat until the sauce is thickened and the bean threads just begin to stick to the wok.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 258.2, Fat 16.3, SaturatedFat 3.8, Cholesterol 47.6, Sodium 921.2, Carbohydrate 6.5, Fiber 1.7, Sugar 2.5, Protein 19.7

ANTS CLIMBING TREES



Ants Climbing Trees image

From "Food of the World" cookbook. The unusual name of this spicy Szechuan dish is supposed to come from the fact that it bears a resemblance to ants climbing trees, with little pieces of minced pork coating lustrous bean thread noodles.

Provided by Baz231

Categories     One Dish Meal

Time 25m

Yield 4 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 17

125 g ground pork or 125 g beef
1/2 teaspoon light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon shaoxing rice wine
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
125 g bean thread noodles
1 tablespoon oil
2 spring onions, finely chopped (scallions)
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chili bean paste (toban jiang)
2 spring onions, extra green part only, finely chopped (for garnish)
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon shaoxing rice wine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
250 ml chicken stock

Steps:

  • Combine minced meat with soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil. Soak the bean thread noodles in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain.
  • Heat a wok over high heat, add oil and hear until very hot. Stir fry the minced meat, mashing and separating it, until it changes colour and starts to brown.
  • Push the meat to the side of the wok, add the spring onion, ginger, garlic and the chilli paste and stir fry for 5 seconds, or until fragrant. Return the meat to the centre of the pan.
  • To make the sauce, combine all the ingredients. Add the sauce to the meat mixture and toss lightly. Add the noodles and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 8 minutes, or until almost all of the liquid has evaporated.
  • Sprinkle with the extra spring onion to serve.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 275.1, Fat 12, SaturatedFat 3.3, Cholesterol 24.4, Sodium 698.4, Carbohydrate 32.4, Fiber 0.8, Sugar 2, Protein 7.9

ANTS CLIMBING A TREE



Ants Climbing a Tree image

There are no insects in this Sichuan noodle dish; rather, the name Ants Climbing a Tree refers to the way the bits of pork cling to the noodles.

Provided by Diana Kuan

Yield Serves 4

Number Of Ingredients 12

6 oz. bean thread vermicelli noodles
2 Tbsp. fermented black beans
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
3 Tbsp. Sichuan chile oil
1 tsp. sesame oil
4 Tbsp. Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
½ lb. ground pork
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts kept separate
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. minced fresh ginger
2 cups chicken stock, vegetable broth, or water

Steps:

  • In a large bowl, soak the vermicelli in enough warm water to cover for 10 minutes. Drain, shake off excess water, and set aside.
  • Rinse the black beans to remove any grit. In a small bowl, mash the black beans with the back of a spoon for about 20 seconds (it does not need to be a smooth paste).
  • In a small bowl, stir together the soy. sauce, Sichuan chile oil, and sesame oil. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl, mix 2 Tbsp. of the Chinese rice wine with the ground pork.
  • Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add the vegetable oil and swirl to coat the bottom. Add the pork and stir-fry, breaking up the pork with a spatula, until crispy and starting to brown but not yet dry, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, then add the scallion whites, garlic, ginger, and fermented black beans and stir-fry for another 30 seconds. Add the remaining 2 Tbsp. rice wine and use the spatula to scrape up any bits that might be stuck to the bottom of the pan.
  • Add the stock, the drained noodles, and the Sichuan chili oil mixture. Simmer the noodles, tossing carefully with tongs so they get evenly cooked, until the broth is half absorbed, 3 to 4 minutes. (The vermicelli noodles will still absorb a lot of liquid post-cooking.) Transfer everything to a deep serving bowl, garnish with the scallion greens, and serve.

Tips:

  • Use high-quality vermicelli: Look for vermicelli made with 100% mung bean starch. This will ensure that the noodles have a good texture and don't get too mushy when cooked.
  • Soak the vermicelli before cooking: This will help to soften the noodles and make them more pliable. You can soak the noodles in hot or cold water, but hot water will soften them more quickly.
  • Don't overcook the vermicelli: Vermicelli cooks very quickly, so be careful not to overcook it. Overcooked vermicelli will become mushy and lose its texture.
  • Use a well-seasoned wok: A well-seasoned wok will help to prevent the vermicelli from sticking. If you don't have a wok, you can use a large skillet or frying pan.
  • Add the ingredients in the correct order: The order in which you add the ingredients to the wok is important. First, add the aromatics (such as ginger, garlic, and scallions) and cook until fragrant. Then, add the meat (if using) and cook until browned. Finally, add the vermicelli and sauce and cook until the vermicelli is heated through.
  • Serve immediately: Ants Climbing a Tree is best served immediately, while the vermicelli is still hot and chewy.

Conclusion:

Ants Climbing a Tree is a delicious and easy-to-make Sichuan dish that is perfect for a quick and easy weeknight meal. With its combination of savory, spicy, and sour flavors, this dish is sure to please everyone at the table. So next time you're looking for something new to try, give Ants Climbing a Tree a try. You won't be disappointed!

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