Spaghetti with Chinese Black Bean Soy Sauce and Tien Mien Jon

I was buying some ingredients for my spaghetti dinner the other day,

As I strolled down aisles through aisles of groceries,

I Grabbed 2 Italian squash, 1 lb of chicken cutlet, and a small bag of shrimps,

Hurried and Left the grocery store with a big smile on my face,

I can't wait for a wonderful dinner.

Oh wait....oh nooOOOO!

I forgot to buy spaghetti sauce!

*Ok ok, I do get lazy once in a while and just simply let those red jars in the supermarket do their jobs for my relaxing dinner, you caught me!)

Quickly,

I searched all the cabinets in the kitchen,

Looked through every possible space in the fridge,

Trying to find anything that I can use for spaghetti sauce,

Then I saw this bottle hiding next to my Thai chili sauce,

It was Chinese black bean soy sauce 正蔭醬油,

What a life saver (saying that with tears circling in my eyes),

Let me twist my original pasta with marinara sauce into something Asian!

Spaghetti with Chinese black bean soy sauce-

Ingredients (makes 2 large plates)?

3/4 box of spaghetti

20 shrimps (deveined, shelled)

2 Italian squash

1 box of pre-washed/sliced button mushrooms

1 lb of chicken cutlet (cubed)

1 small onion (chopped)

2 stalks of scallion (chop into few stems)

3 garlic cloves (peeled, minced)

Extra virgin olive oil

Dried red pepper flakes

Salt

Chinese black bean soy sauce 正蔭醬油

Tien Mien Jon/sweet fermented flour paste 甜麵醬

Chinese chili sauce (the ones with whole chili peppers, not the paste)

How?

Cook the spaghetti according to the instruction on the package,

But remember to reduce the cooking time by 1 to 2 minutes,

We gonna mix the cooked pasta with sauce later on,

So we're basically finishing the pasta-cooking process in the skillet.

Meanwhile,

Drizzle some olive oil in the skillet,

Toss in the onion, sprinkle some sea salt and red pepper flakes,

Let it cook for couple minutes.

Add the scallion and minced garlic,

Toss in the cubed chicken before the garlic get burned.

Now it's time for the Chinese black bean soy sauce,

Unlike regular soy sauce,

This black bean soy sauce has a texture similar to honey in a steamy hot weather,

Pour like 3 tablespoons full into the skillet,

Don't forget to add 1 tablespoon of Tien Mien Jon/sweet fermented flour paste,

Sprinkle more salt if needed.

Give it a quick stir,

Toss in chopped squash, sliced button mushrooms,

When all the ingredients are cooked,

Pour the drained spaghetti into the skillet,

Add some pasta water if the mixture gets too dry,

Cook for 1 or 2 more minutes and dinner's ready!

Sprinkle more red pepper flakes before serving,

I've never tried using Italian squash in an Asian style sauce,

Surprisingly,

squash and black bean soy sauce goes pretty well together!

Cindy's Rating: 7