This dish is handy as it can use a variety of needing-to-be-eaten veggies plus leftover coconut milk (e.g. from Lemongrass Beef & Buk Choi). And it\’s pretty fast, depending on whether or not the veggies will be raw and what protein you choose. If you add (cooked) green beans, shallots, bacon and omelette, then it\’s quite similar to the noodle version of Fried Rice. The main difference is the addition of a little coconut milk or mayonnaise/aioli. I\’ve recently read recipes by Hetty McKinnon and note that she sometimes uses tahini with her noodles, and this makes perfect sense since she, like me, also uses sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds. I\’ll have to try tahini (instead of coconut milk or aioli) in this one day. If speed is a priority, then I use raw, shaved carrot and cucumber (using the food processor), sometimes with a tin of sustainably-certified fish. I also recommend rice vermicelli. Fill a large bowl with your hottest tap water and let them soak while you prepare the other ingredients, occasionally breaking them up with your hands. If you use boiled water, there\’s a good chance the noodles will break up into tiny bits. Of course, other noodles will also do and aren\’t that much longer to cook – like soba or udon. I usually don\’t bother with the lime juice, mainly because I don\’t always have some to hand.
- rice vermicelli noodles
- garlic and optional grated ginger
- shallots
- protein such as tofu, fish, chicken, egg and/or bacon
- raw veggies like 1 carrot, grated and 1 cucumber, finely sliced – or
- cooked veggies like green beans chopped up, asparagus and/or broccoli
- sesame seeds, toasted on the frying pan (without oil and requiring constant stirring with wooden spoon)
Dressing:
- third of a cup of coconut milk or 2 tbs mayonnaise/aioli (or you could try 1 tbs tahini)
- third of a cup of light soy sauce (tamari)
- optional: juice from half of a lime (adjust to preference)
- 2 tsp sesame oil
Method:
- Prepare the noodles as per packet instructions.
- Toast the sesame seeds.
- Prepare the veggies (slicing the raw ones or frying the other ones in garlic and ginger)
- Fry the tofu, bacon, chicken or fish, if using.
- Fry the omelette if using.
- Make the dressing. Adjust to suit to taste.
- Mix the dressing through the noodles.
- Mix through the veggies and protein.