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Ants Climbing a Tree (Ma Yi Shang Shu)

A preparation of glass noodles ( context — mung bean vermicelli) cooked in a sauce of ground pork, doubanjiang, and stock until the noodles have absorbed the sauce completely — the tiny pieces of ground pork clinging to the translucent noodles resembling (with imagination) ants on a tree. The preparation is named for this visual impression and is one of the most satisfying of Sichuan's humble preparations: the glass noodles' complete absorption of the pork-doubanjiang sauce produces a deeply flavoured, slightly sticky, intensely savoury noodle of great depth from modest ingredients.

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ServesFour portions
Total35 minutes
Sourced2of 10 in BC
Cook
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I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

100 g
mung bean vermicelli (glass noodles)
soaked in cold water 10–15 minutes until pliable, drained
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
250 g
ground pork
Your own market
2 tbsp
doubanjiang
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
3 cloves
garlic
minced
Your own market
1 tsp
fresh ginger
minced
Origin · New ZealandPurely Artisan Foods · San Diego →
2 tbsp
Shaoxing wine
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tbsp
300 ml
stock
pork or chicken
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2 tbsp
neutral oil
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 tsp
sesame oil
added off the heat at the finish
Your own market

Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.

II

The Method

1
Soak the glass noodles in cold water for 10–15 minutes. They should be fully pliable and bend without snapping. Drain and set aside. They are not cooked through at this stage; they will complete their cooking in the sauce.
2
Set a wok over medium heat and add the neutral oil. Add the doubanjiang and fry, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. The oil will turn a deep red-orange — this is the visual confirmation that the paste has released its colour and its heat into the fat.
From the canon — Doubanjiang — the 'soul of Sichuan cuisine' — is a fermented paste of broad beans (fava beans) and chillies that is to Sichuan cooking what soy sauce is to J… Doubanjiang (Sichuan Fermented Bean Paste — Aged vs Fresh) →
3
Add the minced garlic and ginger to the wok and stir for a further 30 seconds, until fragrant.
From the canon — The carbon-steel wok is the fundamental tool of Chinese cooking — not merely a frying pan but a cooking instrument whose specific properties (extreme thermal… The Wok: Seasoning, Maintenance, and Heat Management →
4
Add the ground pork. Break the meat apart continuously with a spatula, cooking until no trace of pink remains and the pieces are small and evenly distributed through the sauce.
5
Add the Shaoxing wine and light soy sauce, stirring to combine. Add the 300 ml of stock and bring to a simmer.
6
Add the drained glass noodles. Stir to submerge them in the stock. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 8–10 minutes. As the stock reduces, the noodles will begin to cling to the wok; keep them moving. This is where the dish lives or dies: watch for the moment when the last of the stock is absorbed — the pan transitions from slightly liquid to glossy and beginning to catch. At that precise instant, drizzle in the sesame oil, toss once to coat every strand, and remove the wok from the heat. A few seconds beyond this point and the noodles will stick and scorch at the base.
III

Quality Hierarchy

01
Reserve — Handmade or artisan-ground pork with visible fat distribution; aged, complex Pixian doubanjiang (郫县豆瓣) fermented two years or more; homemade pork stock reduced to light body; premium mung bean vermicelli with clean, neutral flavour.
02
Estate — Good-quality butcher's ground pork; named-origin Pixian doubanjiang from a reputable Chinese grocer; good commercial chicken or pork stock; standard dried mung bean vermicelli.
03
Market — Supermarket ground pork; commercially produced doubanjiang of any reliable brand; liquid stock from a carton; any available glass noodle, mung bean preferred.
04
House — Any ground pork; a chilli-bean paste approximation; water or bouillon-cube stock. The dish will lack depth and the characteristic savoury complexity, but the structural technique remains sound.
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Touch. Soaked noodles bend fully without resistance or snapping — they are pliable but not soft through.
◇Sight. Frying doubanjiang turns the oil a deep, uniform red-orange — the paste has given its colour to the fat.
◇Sight. Ground pork shows no pink — all pieces are small, separate, and evenly distributed.
◇Sight. Finished noodles are translucent, carry no pooled liquid, and bear a light, even gloss of sauce on every strand, with small pieces of pork clinging throughout.
◇Sound. As the last stock absorbs, the gentle simmering sound sharpens briefly toward a sizzle — the signal to add sesame oil and remove from the heat immediately.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish is decided in the final seconds of simmering: the noodles must leave the heat at the exact moment the last stock is absorbed and the pan turns glossy — one moment too late and the noodles burn.
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VI

What to Pour

A cold, lightly effervescent lager or pale ale — the mild carbonation cuts the richness of the doubanjiang-pork sauce without competing with the dish's deep savouriness. Where wine is preferred, an off-dry Alsatian Riesling or Gewurztraminer provides sufficient aromatic weight and residual sweetness to balance the heat and salt. Strong, plain green or oolong tea is the classical accompaniment at table in Sichuan.

The whole pairing
Pillar VII
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Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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Sourced through Provenance

The hands behind the plate.

Purely Artisan Foods
San Diego · fresh ginger, light soy sauce
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