Since You Asked About Dinner…

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Thanks again so much for the comments and discussion yesterday.  Just another example of what a great group of women (sorry to the men who read, and I know who you are, but ya’ll never say anything!) I so fortuitously stumbled into when I started blogging.

Anyway.  I did have a “What’s for Dinner” post in mind for the week, photos and all, so please allow me to introduce the Nameless Asian Noodle Dish, sometimes known on the web as Spicy Sichuan Noodles.  I can’t attribute this to anyone in particular, because I have seen versions of it in various places.

If you don’t want to fiddle with Asian noodles, use spaghetti or linguini.

8 ounces ground pork or ground turkey breast
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry sherry (or a little white wine, or skip it if you don’t have either)
2 tablespoons oyster-flavored sauce or fish sauce
4 tablespoons peanut butter (any kind will do)

1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon oil (if you need it)
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
3 medium garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil (if you have/like it - I skip this)

1 pound-ish noodles (I have used Soba noodles for this – not quite a pound because they come in smaller packets and are more filling), or regular pasta 

3 medium scallions, sliced thin (about 1/3 cup)
1 cup bean sprouts

Combine pork or turkey, 1 tablespoon soy sauce and sherry in small bowl; stir well with fork and set aside while preparing other ingredients. Whisk together oyster-flavored sauce, remaining soy sauce, peanut butter and vinegar in medium bowl. Whisk in chicken stock and set aside. 

Start boiling your pasta water.  Meanwhile, heat 12-inch skillet over high heat until hot, about 2 minutes. Add peanut oil and swirl to coat pan bottom. Add pork or turkey and cook, scraping along pan bottom and breaking up pork into small pieces with wide metal or wooden spatula, until pork or turkey is in small well-browned bits, about 5 minutes. Stir in ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes; cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add peanut butter/chicken broth mixture; bring to boil, whisking to combine, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer to blend flavors, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Stir in sesame oil, if using.  It will look something like this:

 

While sauce simmers, cook and drain the noodles. Put them back in the pot, then combine the noodles with the sauce.  Sprinkle individual servings with scallions and bean sprouts (I sneak in a little fresh cilantro when I have it, too). 

 

 

 

  

Et Voila!

This is a tasty dish, and yes, my kids will eat it.  We make a lot of Asian food, so we have the basic ingredients on hand most of the time (soy and fish sauce, rice vinegar, fresh ginger – which, by the way, keeps well in the freezer, or you can buy it already sliced in handy chunks and jarred for use as needed).  I have seen pickier/more precious versions of this dish, but this is how I do it and it works well for a fairly quick meal.  The kids like the leftovers for breakfast.

Enjoy!

 

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Tags: What's for dinner Wednesday?