Follow along as we eat Dan Dan Noodles in Chinatown at Chinese Traditional Bun in Toronto.
At the edge of Chinatown is a spot called Chinese Traditional Bun. It’s downstairs in a split retail building, with steps leading upstairs or downstairs.
I visit with a Toronto food tour of Chinatown and Kensington, by Local Food Tours.
Our guide, Mike, tells us, “We’re not going to get buns, we’re going to get noodles.”
“We’re going to do something called the Dan Dan Yen, and those are Szechuan style noodles, handmade, with a little bit of pork, chili oil, different types of accompaniments.” I’m looking forward to trying Dan Dan Noodles in Chinatown, as I don’t remember ever having them before.
Two smiling women greet us warmly as we walk in the door. We say our “hello”s and walk past a simple kitchen with glass walls that allow you to see what they’re cooking.
I note that they have already set up the Dan Dan noodles on tables for us.
It’s the Tingly Red Pepper
We find small bowls (often used as rice bowls) at each place setting. They have filled the bowls past the brim with white noodles, topped with bean sprouts, minced pork, bamboo roots, and black fungus (Chinese mushrooms) mixed in with a pile of spices.
Mike mentions sauce on the bottom, warns us it should be stirred in to the noodles – and it may be spicy. The more intrepid spice lovers have more chili sauce they can pile on.
“This is a stereotypical Chengdu dish,” Mike says. The dish is spicy, as chili is believed to expunge the dampness.
The sauce is house-made. It’s composed of garlic, ginger, green onion, star anise, and two kinds of peppercorns, red and green, for fragrance, Red peppercorns actually make your mouth tingly (and were banned in New York state). Green peppercorns add a piney, citrusy taste.
They allow the flavours to marinate together. Combined, they become something way beyond the flavours of the single ingredients. They then strain out the spices and add the chili.
I mix it up as best I can without spilling too much over the side. I taste it.
The Dan Dan noodles are spicy and full of delicious flavour so I waver between loving this dish and dying from the spices.
My mouth is tingling from the red peppercorns, and dancing from the ginger, garlic and star anise. I have to come back to have these Dan Dan noodles in Chinatown at Chinese Traditional Bun once again, and taste other parts of their menu, too.
The decor here is humble, the prices are reasonable for downtown Toronto, and the cuisine feels authentic, which is wonderful in my books. You can also order for delivery from Skip the Dishes.
Enjoyed July, 2019.
Chinese Traditional Bun
536 Dundas West, Toronto, ON
+1 (416) 299-9011
