Noodles with Thick Gravy 打卤面

How it is made

The topping is made first. Aralia shoots (乌龙头), celery, wood-ear fungus, dried day-lily buds, pressed tofu, pork, meatballs and jiabanrou (夹板肉, literally 'board-pressed meat') are cut into large chunks or slices and stir-fried without any broth, then covered with a thick, paste-like starch gravy.

The noodles are pulled by hand from wheat dough, the style Tianshui people call chemian (扯面), and must be more than two centimetres wide. They are boiled, lifted into a large bowl and covered with the topping, and chilli oil, vinegar and salt are stirred in. That makes the meat version, hun dalumian (荤大卤面); leaving the meat out of the topping gives the meatless su dalumian (素大卤面).

Where it comes from

Lu (卤) in the name means thickening with starch. The Tianshui version differs slightly from those made elsewhere because cooks pay particular attention to the gravy, which can take in jiabanrou, meatballs, garlic scapes and, in spring, aralia shoots. The result is wide noodles, big pieces of topping, a big bowl and a thick topping that sticks tightly to the noodles.

The Qinzhou District (秦州区) government, which lists the dish among Tianshui's local snacks, calls Noodles with Thick Gravy the most distinctive of Tianshui's noodle dishes. Because it needs so many ingredients and so much work, families seldom make it except at festivals or when relatives gather, and a home-cooked pot is treated as a festive ritual and a sign of reunion.

More dishes to compare

Explore related local specialties and compare their names, preparation notes and ordering guidance.