Shanghai — Jiangnan culinary tradition
One of the simplest and most profound dishes in Shanghainese cuisine: plain noodles dressed with a few spoonfuls of scallion oil (spring onions fried low-and-slow in oil until caramelised and just crispy), soy sauce, and nothing else. The scallion oil is made in quantity and kept at room temperature — the slow-frying at 150°C caramelises the spring onions and creates an extraordinarily sweet-savoury oil.
Intensely sweet-savoury caramelised spring onion; the oil carries the flavour to every strand of noodle; simple, profound, deeply satisfying — the Shanghai approach to flavour distillation
{"Spring onion oil: large quantity of spring onion (green parts) in 2–3 cups neutral oil; start cold; heat slowly to 150°C; cook 20–30 minutes until golden and crispy","Remove onions when deep golden but not burnt — they continue to colour in the hot oil after removing","The oil is strained and reserved; the fried spring onions are sprinkled on top","Sauce: just soy sauce (light soy), a little dark soy for colour — minimal seasoning; the scallion oil is the flavour"}
{"The scallion oil can be stored at room temperature for 2 weeks — make a large batch","Thin, fresh egg noodles are the classic choice; any noodle works but fresh alkaline egg noodles are traditional","Add a spoonful of scallion oil to congee, fried rice, or any simple dish for extraordinary transformation"}
{"High heat — spring onions go from golden to burnt in seconds; low heat is essential","Too little oil — the oil is the sauce; use enough for generosity","Adding other flavours — the purity of scallion-oil-soy is the point; resist additions"}
Land of Fish and Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop; Every Grain of Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop