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Lamb Noodle Soup
Henan-style lamb soup noodles with sesame paste, tofu skin and a warming, savoury broth. Adapted for a home kitchen from the original ClouChef R&D report — 羊肉烩面, report 149.
Original poster image from clouchef.com (poster: 羊肉烩面_149.jpeg). This is the hero poster only, not a step-by-step photo set.
Prep: 30 minutesCook: 10 minutesTotal: 40 minutesServings: 1 generous bowlDifficulty: Easy–MediumRegion: HenanFlavour: Rich, warming, sesame
Why this works
This bowl is assembled, not cooked together, and that separation is the whole technique. The noodles are boiled on their own and rinsed cold, so they stay springy instead of thickening the soup. The tofu skin and the lamb are each scalded for exactly 30 seconds in boiling stock — separately, so the timings stay exact and the two ingredients never cross-contaminate — and both are lifted out the moment they change, because lamb sliced 2 mm thin goes from tender to tough in seconds. Everything is then brought together by soup served at 95 °C or hotter, which is hot enough to bloom the sesame paste and heat the coriander through on contact. The stock itself is the make-ahead part: bones simmered for two hours and reduced to a third, so a weeknight bowl still tastes like a long cook. The bowl arrives looking simple and tastes anything but, which is precisely why this Henan classic has travelled so far beyond its home province.
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Ingredients
| Ingredient | US | Metric | Substitute / note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lamb leg or lamb belly, sliced 2 mm thin | 5.3 oz | 150 g | About 2:8 fat to lean, per the report. Partially freeze the meat for 20 minutes to slice it thin (adaptation). |
| Dried tofu skin, soaked and shredded | 1.8 oz | 50 g | Soak in cold water for about 15 minutes, then shred. |
| Wheat noodles (wide, hand-pulled style) | 7 oz | 200 g | Fresh wide noodles are ideal; dried wide wheat noodles work — cook to the packet time (adaptation). |
| Lamb stock | 1 2/3 cups | 400 ml | Make-ahead, per the report: lamb bones and water 1:5, simmered 2 hours, strained and reduced to a third, refrigerated up to 3 days. A rich meat stock is the home shortcut (adaptation). |
| Sesame paste, diluted | 2 tbsp | 30 g | Dilute 1:1.5 with warm water plus a pinch of salt, until pourable and silky. |
| Chilli oil | 1 tbsp | 15 g | Home-made or good jarred chilli oil (adaptation). |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | 3 g | — |
| Coriander, chopped | 2 tbsp | 10 g | Heated through by the hot soup on serving, per the report. |
| Cooking wine, ginger and a pinch of salt, for marinating | 1 tsp wine | 5 ml wine | Quantities are an adaptation — the report says to marinate with wine, ginger and salt but gives no amounts. |
Equipment
- Large pot for noodles
- Pot for the stock
- Slotted spoon
- Deep soup bowl
Steps
- Prepare the toppings and stock. Slice the lamb 2 mm thin and marinate for 10 minutes with cooking wine, ginger and a pinch of salt. Soak the tofu skin in cold water for about 15 minutes, drain, and shred. Dilute the sesame paste 1:1.5 with warm water and a pinch of salt until silky. If making stock, simmer lamb bones and water 1:5 for 2 hours, strain, and reduce to a third.
- Cook the noodles. Boil the noodles in plenty of water for about 2 minutes, until they float, then drain and rinse in cold water so they stay springy.
- Scald tofu skin, then lamb — separately. Bring the stock mixed 1:1 with water to a boil. Scald the tofu skin for 30 seconds, lift out and drain. In the same boiling liquid, scald the lamb slices for 30 seconds until just coloured, and lift out immediately. Keep the two steps separate, per the report.
- Assemble with very hot soup. Put the noodles in a deep bowl, lay the tofu skin and lamb on top, and pour over 400 ml of soup at 95 °C or hotter. Drizzle with the diluted sesame paste and chilli oil, scatter with coriander, and serve immediately.
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Technique: 30-second scalds and 95 °C soup
Two numbers make this bowl work. Each topping gets exactly 30 seconds in boiling stock — longer and the lamb toughens, the tofu skin turns slimy — and the serving soup must be at least 95 °C, because that heat is what blooms the sesame paste and safely warms the coriander garnish. Keep the scalding steps separate: the report is explicit that tofu skin and lamb are scalded one after the other, not together. Lamb must be fully cooked through, with no pink remaining (home food-safety guidance, added as an adaptation).
Variations
- Richer bowl.: The report's upgraded version adds extra lamb (200 g) or a braised egg; both are easy home additions (adaptation for the egg).
- No lamb stock.: Use a rich beef or meat stock at home (adaptation). The bowl will be less distinctly lamb-flavoured, but the sesame and chilli still carry it.
- Extra heat.: Add more chilli oil at the table rather than in the pot, so each eater controls the heat (adaptation).
Frequently asked questions
Why is my lamb tough?
It was scalded past 30 seconds, or sliced thicker than 2 mm. Slice thin — partially freezing the meat first helps — and lift it out the moment it colours.
Why is my soup cloudy and thick?
The noodles were probably cooked in the soup instead of separately. Boil and rinse them on their own, and keep the soup clear.
Can I use dried noodles?
Yes. Use wide dried wheat noodles and cook to the packet time, then rinse cold as directed (adaptation).
Storage
Best eaten immediately — the noodles soften quickly in hot soup. Leftover components keep separately for 1 day refrigerated (noodles, toppings and soup apart); reassemble with freshly boiled soup and do not reheat the assembled bowl more than once. The made-ahead stock keeps 3 days refrigerated (from the report).
Lamb Noodle Soup — Recipe Card
Henan lamb soup noodles with sesame paste, tofu skin and a very hot, rich broth.
Prep: 30 minutesCook: 10 minutesTotal: 40 minutesServings: 1 generous bowl
Ingredients: 150 g lamb; 50 g tofu skin; 200 g wheat noodles; 400 ml lamb stock; 30 g sesame paste; 15 g chilli oil; 3 g salt; 10 g coriander; cooking wine, ginger and salt for marinating.
Steps: 1) Marinate thin lamb 10 minutes; soak tofu skin 15 minutes; dilute sesame paste. 2) Boil noodles 2 minutes, rinse cold. 3) Scald tofu skin 30 seconds, then lamb 30 seconds, separately. 4) Assemble in a bowl, pour over soup at 95 °C or hotter, drizzle sesame and chilli oil, garnish, serve.
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Source note: ingredients, quantities and steps are adapted from the original ClouChef R&D report for 羊肉烩面 (data/reports/149.md). The report's pricing, margin and marketing sections are deliberately omitted here; no B2B cost is presented as a home-cook cost. Original poster image: clouchef.com (羊肉烩面_149.jpeg). Serving size for home use (1 generous bowl), the marinade quantities, the stock shortcut and the dried-noodle timing are adaptations and are labelled as such.