Oodles of Noodles

Stir Fried noodles with hot fresh chillies in soy sauce and some  Szechwan chilli sauce as condiments




Have been off my blogging for ages and ages, but a strong drive pushed me to come and say Hello to Zanis Corner- hence this post about a comfort food for me and my son on a cold Saturday winter night while he was engrossed in Australian Poll analysis- a sudden new deep interest in my 10yr old. Hubby away on business trip- something quick but tasty was on the taste bud for us after a tired long day. Thought of using some leftover vegetables and had defrosted a lonely piece of a chicken thigh fillet. So here goes a very very simple stir fried noodles with chicken- and indeed a very simple without any fancy trims- just some carrot and capsicum stick to add to the colour.

What I used-

1. 3 cakes of egg noodles
2. a carrot julienned
3. a red capsicum julienned
4. 2 small onions sliced
5. Sliced 3 garlic cloves and a small piece of ginger julienned
6. 2-3 fresh green chillies chopped
7. 2 eggs 
8. 1 chicken thigh fillet chopped into small cubes
9. Sauces- Oyster sauce, soy sauce, Sweet chilli sauce, Vinegar, chilli Sauce
10. Oil for cooking
11. some drops of chilli Oil 

How I did it-

1. Started the boiling of the noodles first while I did my prep with the veggies- chopped as explained above. Sometimes the chopping can actually take some time but once you master the chopping, it actually becomes a fun element of the cook- just like using colours while painting. Might sound weird but indeed you draw a picture of your final dish and trace the shapes of the veggies to be cut.
2. Mise -en -place ( french word used in Culinary meaning having all your ingredients measured, cut, sliced etc before cooking) - have all on a plate along with beaten eggs.
3. On a Wok heat a teaspoon of oil- smoking hot- and throw some of the ginger and garlic and the chicken pieces- moist with some soy and oyster sauce and fry for couple of minutes. Gets cooked really quick with high heat and stirring. Keep the cooked chicken aside.
4. Make sure the noodles are not overboiled- strain the noodles and shower with cold water instantly to wash off the starch.
5. Next heat the wok with some more oil - add the rest of the ginger, garlic and onion with the chilles- then goes the carrots and capsicum- stir fry on high heat- add a teaspoon of all the sauces mentioned above. Finish this before the veggies loose their crunch and keep aside in a plate
6. Now the finale- heat a teaspoon of oil and pour the beaten eggs . Just as the egg is cooking, strain the noodles again with some cold water and use your fingers to separate them a bit on the colander. Add the noodles to the eggs and stir in a brisk motion- sprinkle salt and pepper seasoning to the noodles -add the veggies and the chicken and stir quick with the noodles. 
7. Squeeze some lemon - trust me adds some flavourable twist to the dish and sprinkle some more pepper and some chilli oil.
8. Serve simple with a szcechuan sauce and chillies in soy sauce to give that extra chinese takeaway flavour and enjoy.

That was my simple noodles- any vegetables like beans, mushroom, spring onions etc could be added.