Lamian

Lamian () is a type of Chinese noodle. It is made by stretching and folding the dough into strands. The twisting and later stretching of the strips of dough happens because of the weight of the dough. The strands can be made in many lengths and thicknesses depending on how many times it is stretched and folded. 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.
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)). 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.