Lamian
Lamian (Chinese: 拉面) is a type of Chinese noodle. It is made by stretching and folding the dough into strands.[1] The twisting and later stretching of the strips of dough happens because of the weight of the dough.[1] The strands can be made in many lengths and thicknesses depending on how many times it is stretched and folded.[1] The Songshi yangsheng bu (宋氏養生部), which was written by Song Xu around 1504, has the earliest description of how to make lamian.[1]
Literally, lamian means "pulled noodles" (the Chinese word la (拉) means to pull, which is how the dough is made into long thin noodles, mian (面)).[2] Lamian dishes are usually served in beef or mutton soup. Sometimes the noodles can be stir-fried (chaomian (炒面)) and served with a tomato-like sauce.[3]