Tianmian sauce (), also known as sweet bean sauce, sweet flour sauce or sweet wheat paste, is a thick, smooth, dark brown or black paste with either a mild, savory or sweet flavor. It is commonly used in Northern Chinese cuisine,

Northeastern Chinese cuisine Northeastern Chinese cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine in Northeast China. While many dishes originated from Shandong cuisine and Manchu cuisine, it is also influenced by the cuisines of Russia, Beijing, Mongolia, and North Korea. It partial ...

, as well as Korean-Chinese cuisine.

Peking duck Peking duck is a dish from Beijing (Peking) that has been prepared since the Imperial era. The meat is characterized by its thin, crispy skin, with authentic versions of the dish serving mostly the skin and little meat, sliced in front of the d ...

and ''

jajangmyeon ''Jajangmyeon'' () or ''jjajangmyeon'' () is a Korean noodle dish topped with a thick sauce made of '' chunjang'', diced pork, and vegetables. Variants of the dish use seafood, or other meats. History ''Jajangmyeon'' was introduced in the la ...

'' are two popular dishes that feature the

sauce In cooking, a sauce is a liquid, cream, or semi-solid food, served on or used in preparing other foods. Most sauces are not normally consumed by themselves; they add flavor, moisture, and visual appeal to a dish. ''Sauce'' is a French word t ...

Etymology

The Chinese word ''tiánmiànjiàng'' () consists of characters meaning "sweet" (), "flour" (), and "sauce" (). It is also called ''tiánjiàng'' (), which means "sweet sauce". The origin of the Korean word ''chunjang'' () is unknown. One theory is that it derived from the word ''cheomjang'' (), which is the Korean reading of the Chinese characters .

Preparation

Although terms such as "sweet bean sauce" and "sweet bean paste" are used to describe the sauce, it is primarily made from fermented

wheat flour Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. Wheat varieties are called "soft" or "weak" if gluten content is low, and are called "hard" or "strong" if they have high gluten content. Hard flour, or ''bread ...

. A mixture of approximately 19 portions of

to one portion of

soybean The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu an ...

is used. The

fermentation starter A fermentation starter (called simply starter within the corresponding context, sometimes called a mother) is a preparation to assist the beginning of the fermentation process in preparation of various foods and alcoholic drinks. Food groups wh ...

is made from dried or stale ''

mantou ''Mantou'' (), often referred to as Chinese steamed bun, is a white and soft type of steamed bread or bun popular in northern China. Folk etymology connects the name ''mantou'' to a tale about Zhuge Liang. Description ''Mantou'' are t ...

'' (a steamed bread), wrapped in a variety of

muskmelon ''Cucumis melo'', also known as melon, is a species of '' Cucumis'' that has been developed into many cultivated varieties. The fruit is a pepo. The flesh is either sweet or bland, with or without a musky aroma, and the rind can be smooth (such a ...

known as '' miangua'' and then bound and hung in a cool, dark place until completely dried. During the fermentation process, the glucose and maltose give the paste its distinctive sweet taste.

Variations and uses

Chinese varieties

Similar to

hoisin sauce Hoisin sauce is a thick, fragrant sauce commonly used in Cantonese cuisine as a glaze for meat, an addition to stir fry, or as dipping sauce. It is dark-coloured in appearance and sweet and salty in taste. Although regional variants exist, ho ...

, sweet bean sauce may be used in dishes such as

Peking Duck Peking duck is a dish from Beijing (Peking) that has been prepared since the Imperial era. The meat is characterized by its thin, crispy skin, with authentic versions of the dish serving mostly the skin and little meat, sliced in front of the d ...

. It is also used as a sweeter substitute for saltier

yellow soybean paste Yellow soybean paste is a fermented paste made from yellow soybeans, salt, and water. Yellow soybean paste is produced in China and is used primarily in Beijing cuisine and other cuisines of northern China. Etymology In Chinese, the full na ...

. In Northern China, the sauce is also eaten with raw

scallion Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus ''Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, ch ...

s. There are many different types of sweet bean sauces. Recipes and methods of production vary depending on the geographical region and on manufacturer preferences. In northern China, more sugar is added to the sauce. In southern China, ''

'' flour instead of sugar is commonly used as the main ingredient. Traditionally, high-quality sweet bean sauces owe their sweet flavor to the fermentation of starches rather than to the addition of refined sugar. Sweet bean sauce can be found in standard

Asian supermarket In the West or non-Asian countries, an Asian supermarket largely describes a category of grocery stores that focuses and stocks items and products imported from countries located in the Far East (e.g. East, Southeast and South Asia). These st ...

s under various English names. In Chinese, it is written 甜面酱.

Korean ''chunjang''

In Korea, ''chunjang'' () is most commonly used to make ''jajang'' (), a black gravy served with a popular noodle dish called ''

''. Other common dishes with ''jajang'' sauce include ''jajang-

bap BAP or bap may refer to: Food * Bap (bread), a type of bread roll * Bap (rice dish), a Korean food Music * BAP (Basque band), a hardcore punk group (formed 1984) * BAP (German band), a Colognian rock group (formed 1976) * B.A.P (South Korean ban ...

'' ("rice with ''jajang'' sauce") and ''jajang-

tteok-bokki (), or simmered rice cake, is a popular Korean food made from small-sized (long, white, cylinder-shaped rice cakes) called (; "rice cake noodles") or commonly (; " rice cakes"). * Eomuk (fish cakes), boiled eggs, and scallions are some commo ...

'' (stir-fried rice cakes with ''jajang'' sauce). Although stir-frying ''chunjang'' to make ''jajang'' is the most common use for the sauce, ''chunjang'' may also be served as an accompaniment to sliced raw

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...

s. In most Korean-Chinese restaurants, raw onions, ''chunjang'', and ''

danmuji ''Takuan'' (; also spelled ''takuwan''), or ''takuan-zuke'' (; 'pickled takuan'), known as ''danmuji'' () in the context of Korean cuisine, is a pickled preparation of daikon radish. As a popular part of traditional Japanese cuisine, ''takua ...

'' (yellow pickled radish) are the basic side dishes. Korean ''chunjang'' is similar to the

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

-style ''tiánmiànjiàng'', as it was first used in

Incheon Chinatown Incheon's Chinatown is Korea's only official Chinatown. It is in Jung-gu and was formed in 1884. It claims to be the largest Chinatown in South Korea, and features an 11-meter high Chinese-style gateway, or ''paifang''. As of 2007 few ethnic ...

, where the majority of restaurants were run by Chinese immigrants from

. However, now most Korean-Chinese restaurants are run by Koreans, and ''chunjang'' has adapted to Korean tastes, as have other Korean-Chinese dishes and ingredients.

Gallery

File:Peking duck wrap 1.jpg,

File:Jajangmyeon by KFoodaddict.jpg, ''

Jajangmyeon ''Jajangmyeon'' () or ''jjajangmyeon'' () is a Korean noodle dish topped with a thick sauce made of '' chunjang'', diced pork, and vegetables. Variants of the dish use seafood, or other meats. History ''Jajangmyeon'' was introduced in the la ...

'' File:Korean Chinese fried rice.jpg, Korean-Chinese ''

bokkeum-bap ''Bokkeum-bap'' () or fried rice is a Korean dish made by stir-frying ''bap'' (cooked rice) with other ingredients in oil. * The name of the most prominent ingredient other than cooked rice often appears at the very front of the name of the dis ...

'' (fried rice) File:Onion danmuji chunjang.jpg, Onion, ''

'', and ''chunjang'' (typically served in Korean-Chinese restaurants) File:Zhajiangmian 20180501.jpg,

Zhajiangmian Zhajiangmian (; pinyin: Zhá jiàng miàn), literally "fried sauce noodles", commonly translated as "noodles served with fried bean sauce", is a Chinese dish consisting of thick wheat noodles topped with ''zhajiang'' sauce. Zhajiang sauce is no ...

File:Sliced Peking Duck.jpg, Peking duck

References

{{reflist, 2 Chinese condiments Chinese cuisine Chinese sauces Korean cuisine