Noodles with black bean sauce and pork (Jjajangmyeon)

1. Cut the pork, onion, courgette and peeled potato into even cubes of about 1 cm.

2. In a wok, fry the black bean paste in 3 tablespoons of oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly so it loses its raw, bitter taste, then transfer to a bowl.

3. In the remaining oil in the wok, brown the pork for 3-4 minutes, add the potato, then after 3 minutes the onion and courgette, and stir-fry for another 3-4 minutes.

4. Return the fried bean paste, add the sugar, pour in the water and cook for 8-10 minutes until the potato is tender.

5. Mix the starch with 3 tablespoons of cold water, stir it into the sauce and cook for 1 minute until glossy and thick; meanwhile cook the udon according to the packet and drain.

6. Divide the noodles between deep plates, spoon over plenty of sauce and garnish with thin strips of cucumber; mix well before eating.

Tip: Jjajangmyeon is the most popular dish of Korean-Chinese cooking and a favourite takeaway. The Korean black bean paste called chunjang is sold in Asian shops; if you can't find it, Chinese black bean sauce works too, but it's saltier, so use less.