Mung bean jelly noodles with garlic chili dressing

Soak 400 g of mung beans in clean water overnight; they should double in size.

Rinse them and discard the soaking liquid, then blend with enough water to get them as fine as possible.

Set a colander lined with cheesecloth over a big bowl and pour in the mung bean puree.

Lift the cheesecloth and squeeze out as much liquid as you can, then stir the liquid to loosen the starch at the bottom and pour it into a separate vessel.

Open the cheesecloth and pour in about a litre of water aimed at the centre while stirring, so the water rinses the puree rather than running straight through the fabric.

Squeeze the water out again and collect it. Repeat four to five times, about a litre each time, until the water runs clear.

Let the collected liquid stand at room temperature at least three hours, or overnight, so the starch sinks to the bottom.

Pour off most of the cloudy top liquid slowly, leaving the white starch at the bottom, then stir the starch mixture and weigh it: 989 grams.

Measure 511 grams of the poured-off top liquid into a pot; the starch mixture plus the extra top liquid should weigh about one and a half kilogram in total.

Add half a teaspoon of salt and a third of a teaspoon of alkaline powder to the pot.

Turn the heat to high and bring to a slight simmer, not a full boil, then turn the heat off before adding the starch mixture, or the starch will clump immediately.

Add 8 to 10 drops of food colouring and stir until well combined.

Turn the heat back to medium low and stir continuously for 10 to 12 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot every stir so it does not burn.

Keep stirring through the point where the starch turns transparent and resistant; if your arm needs a rest, turn the heat off for it.

When all the starch has thickened, pour it into a glass or ceramic container, flatten it, tap it a few times and cover.

Let it sit at room temperature at least five hours until completely cool. Do not refrigerate: the cold causes retrogradation and changes the texture.

Press ten cloves of garlic, add 1.5 teaspoons of salt and a teaspoon of sugar, and tap and press with the spoon until it becomes a sticky paste.

Add diced red chilies, scallions, cilantro stems, five spice powder, a tablespoon of chili flake and two and a half teaspoons of paprika.

Heat four tablespoons of vegetable oil until slightly smoking and pour it over the spices.

Add 2.5 tablespoons of Chinese black vinegar and 1.5 tablespoons of soy sauce, stir, taste, and dilute with about six tablespoons of water, then add a drizzle of sesame oil.

Flip the set jelly onto a cutting board and sprinkle water over it to reduce friction.

Slice a big slab off the edge, cut it into thick strips and dice the strips into cubes, or dip the special shredder in water and shred the slab into noodles.

Spoon the dressing over the noodles, top with cilantro and optionally sprinkle crushed nuts.