Dai business noodles

Garlic oil: fry half a cup of oil with an eighth of an onion and a couple of cilantro roots over a medium flame until the onion is golden, about ten minutes, then shut off the heat and remove both.

To the same oil add four cloves of minced garlic, one inch of smashed ginger, one Cao Guo and one star anise, and fry over medium low until the garlic is just barely golden, about four to five minutes.

Shut off the heat, let the garlic carry on frying in the residual heat for another minute, remove and reserve the spices, and transfer the garlic oil to a bowl.

Strain four tablespoons, half the garlic oil, back into the wok and fry 250 g of minced pork over a medium high flame for about five minutes, until it is almost starting to brown and has released a touch of oil.

Off the heat, push the pork up the side of the wok to drain, then add one tablespoon each of tomato paste, Pixian Doubanjiang and Hunan Doujiao and fry over a low flame until the oil stains red, about two minutes.

Mix back together, add 450 g of blanched, peeled and roughly minced tomato and the reserved spices, and fry over a medium flame for ten to fifteen minutes until the tomatoes break down and start frying in the red oil.

Mix one tablespoon of starch with a cup and a quarter of water, then stir in two tablespoons soy sauce, half a teaspoon dark soy, half a tablespoon oyster sauce, a quarter teaspoon MSG and an eighth teaspoon each of salt and chicken bouillon powder.

Add the slurry to the sauce and cook three to four minutes until thickened.

Fresh assembly: to one serving of rice noodles add an eighth teaspoon each of salt, MSG and Sichuan pepper powder and a teaspoon of chili flakes.

Smother with a third of a cup of the sauce, drizzle over a tablespoon of the garlic oil with its fried garlic, then a tablespoon of chopped peanuts, a clove of minced garlic, one minced fresh chili, 10 g chopped culantro and 10 g cilantro. Mix well.

Office prep, the night before: soak dry rice noodles in cold water until softened, about an hour, then boil them until al dente for about 30 seconds.

Rinse straight away in cold water, lifting and jiggling until completely cool, two to three minutes, then drain until the surface is no longer wet and bag them for the fridge.

Bag about a third of a cup of sauce topped with a tablespoon of garlic oil; bag the chopped garlic, fresh chili, culantro and cilantro separately; mix the chopped peanuts with the dry seasonings in a third bag.

At lunch, revive the cold noodles by maoing: submerge them in hot water from a kettle or dispenser and jiggle to loosen for 15 to 30 seconds, then drain.

Warm the sauce, toss it through the noodles with the rest of the toppings.