Pinot Noir pairs well with Chinese flavors

Dishes with the Chinese flavors of black bean, hoisin, garlic and ginger frequently are paired with Pinot Noir, one of the most food-friendly red wines.

Pinot Noir's combination of ripe red and black fruit with earthy notes complements earthy, gamy ingredients such as Chinese black beans, mushrooms and duck. Things on the sweet side — hoisin sauce and dark fruit such as black plums and cherries — match the wine's sweet, ripe fruit.

When I was a kid, my dad made Chinese barbecue pork — char siu in Cantonese. He used long, moderately thick slices of pork butt, a cut usually braised or oven-roasted to tenderness.

Chinese Barbecue Pork & Noodles incorporates this slightly sweet pork in a noodle dish. Regular spaghetti or my childhood version, which uses Chinese wheat or egg noodles, is cooked al dente then finishes cooking in the sauce as it rewarms. This dish comes together quickly after everything is prepped because the vegetables are thinly cut and the pork is fully cooked.

Chinese Barbecue Pork and Noodles

2 baby bok choy, about 6 to 8 ounces

8 to 10 ounces Chinese barbecue pork (see Note) or half a Chinese roast duck

8 ounces dried Chinese wheat/egg noodles or spaghetti

2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil

2 tablespoons fermented black beans, rinsed and smashed, to taste (see Note)

2 teaspoons minced garlic, about 2 large cloves

1 teaspoon minced ginger

2 tablespoons amontillado sherry

1 medium carrot, julienned, about 3/4 cup

1 cup low-salt chicken stock broth + more if needed

1/2 cup green onion, cut into 2-inch lengths and julienned, about

11/2-2 onions

3 to 4 teaspoons hoisin sauce, or to taste

Kosher salt to taste

Instructions: Cut bok choy into thin diagonal pieces about 1/4- to 3/8-inch wide, keeping leaves and stems separate; rinse and dry well. Set aside. Cut pork into pieces that are about 1/4-inch wide, 1/4- to 3/8-inch thick, and 1 to 2 inches long. Set aside.

If using Chinese roast duck, pull off the skin, use the back side of a knife to scrape off and excess fat, then julienne the skin; set aside. Pull off the meat and cut in to strips about 1/4-inch wide, 1/4- to 3/8-inch thick. Set aside. Just before finishing the dish, cook the julienned skin in a small skillet over medium-low until fat has rendered and skin is crispy. Drain on paper towels and use to garnish the finished noodles.

Cook noodles according to package directions, but just until al dente. Drain and rinse in cold water immediately to stop the cooking and rinse away any excess starch. The vegetables and meat can be prepped a day ahead, the noodles an hour or so before finishing the dish.

To finish the dish: Heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and add black bean when the oil shimmers. Cook briefly — until aromatic, about 45 seconds — before adding garlic and ginger. Cook until garlic and ginger until aromatic but before browning begins, about another 30-45 seconds. Add sherry, cook until almost dry, then add carrots, bok choy stems and broth. Add bok choy leaves when carrots are beginning to soften, about 20-30 seconds, then add noodles and half the onions; toss to finish cooking and to coat with the hoisin sauce. Add pork or duck, toss and cook just enough until rewarmed. Turn off heat and taste; adjust with hoisin and salt to taste; garnish with remainder of the onions, plus crispy duck skin, if using.

Note: Purchase Chinese barbecue pork, also called char siu at Chinese takeouts or larger Asian markets. The staff will automatically cut the pork into slices, but ask in advance for a whole piece, which will make it easier to cut later. If substituting duck, also request that it not be cut up. The pork's sweetness level will vary, depending on how it was made. You will need less hoisin for pork made with a sweeter marinade or barbecue sauce.

If you are using a jar of prepared black bean and garlic sauce instead of fermented black beans, cut back a little on the minced garlic.