The Daily Grind, Chop and Fry

Noodles with peanut sauce is something we served at a Chinese restaurant in Pittsburgh. The owners were ethnic Chinese who were from Burma, so the food was an exciting mix of cuisines at a time when fusion was a word that came after “nuclear”.

I posted this before I’d made it – it looked about right, and my husband has a mild peanut allergy. I finally made it for lunch for my son and myself, and I can see that it is a solid beginning but needs tweaks, and I’m not sure where. It’s still really good. If you improve it, please let me know how. I served it with Carrot Ginger Soup on the side, but it would be really good with stir-fried snow peas, cabbage, shredded carrots, or other vegetables, too.

It has two of the three required features for this to be a smashing success; the noodles are sticky (part of why it is such a great comfort food) and it is terrific the next day, cold. But it is not peanut buttery enough, and my version needed, of all things, salt. I always buy low-sodium tamari and hippie peanut butter that I fresh grind at PCC, and in this one instance I think that going the less fresh, healthy route would actually make the dish taste better. Creamy peanut butter with some sugar in it would have blended better and made a smoother sauce, plus it would have had salt in it. Regular soy sauce or tamari would have been better.

But that’s only the beginning. It needs less sesame oil and more ….something. Cayenne pepper is good, but it is the kind of heat that sneaks up on you, and I think less stealth would be good here. I had to use ginger paste instead of ginger powder, and that might have made a difference. Garnishing with shredded carrots and very thinly sliced red pepper along with the green onion would really be good.

And last, serve with Carrot Ginger Soup.

From vegetarian.about.com
Serves 4
15 minutes

2/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, sliced
1/4 cup shredded carrot
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
juice from one lime
1/2 pound pasta or noodles, cooked
2 tbsp sesame seeds

Over low heat, combine all ingredients except pasta, green onions and sesame seeds. Whisk carefully to combine all ingredients until smooth.

Using a little bit of the hot pasta water, thin sauce slightly. Pour sauce over pasta or noodles, tossing gently to combine. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, shredded carrot and green onion, and serve hot or cold.

Shopping List

1 lime
1 carrot
peanut butter
soy sauce
garlic
2 green onions
sesame oil
ginger powder
cayenne pepper
1/2 pound linguini
sesame seeds