I’ve been cooking what I like to call “slop” lately. Starch, protein, vegetable, sauce. Usually in a bowl. Usually very delicious and comforting, but not very pretty, and definitely not blog worthy! We’re still so busy with house projects, and my energy levels are all over the place in the second trimester. Cooking elaborate meals hasn’t been high on my priority list!
But I did take some time the past week to cook some stellar new recipes! I made Karl kale and spicy sausage lasagna and a chocolate cheesecake for his birthday last weekend. And I made authentic Thai drunken noodles a few days ago. I probably won’t cook anything elaborate again until Thanksgiving :p
Karl’s sister cooked drunken noodles for her and Karl’s birthday dinner last weekend (they were born a day apart). The whole family gobbled it up. She gave us the rest of the wide, sticky rice noodles that she hunted down in an Asian grocery store. They were fresh, so I felt pressured to make this dish myself a week later!
It’s based off a Martha Stewart recipe. I love how simple the sauce is and how customizable the ingredients are. My sister-in-law used Chinese broccoli and grape tomatoes; I used baby bok choy, cherry tomatoes, and these lovely orange gypsy peppers:
Gypsy peppers are smaller and have thinner walls than bell peppers, so you can stuff and roast or grill them quickly. They’re also sweeter! They fit in perfectly with this month Recipe Redux theme: orange vegetables. Like all orange vegetables, they’re a great source of Vitamin A. This was my first time hearing about them, and I am certainly going to grow them in my garden next year!
I didn’t have any dark soy sauce and I heard it’s a difficult ingredient to find gluten-free. It’s basically a darker, sweeter soy sauce, so I improvised. I used half maple syrup and half soy sauce. It was perfect – it added the sweetness and depth the dish needs.
This could easily be made on a weeknight with the exception of working with the rice noodles! They were a pain to cut and peel apart. They come in a huge block like this:
Maybe next time I’ll try this with the skinny dried rice noodles!
Ingredients:
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb protein (steak, chicken, shrimp, pork, tofu)
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- Sriracha to taste
- 14-16 oz rice noodles (the broader flat noodles are traditional, but any will work fine)
- Basil (Thai basil would be great here)
- Lots of vegetables!
In a very large pan, heat oil, and sauté garlic until fragrant. Add cubed or ground protein as well as soy sauce, maple syrup, and fish sauce; saute until meat/tofu is cooked through. Add vegetables and continue to saute until they reach your desired level of doneness. Meanwhile, cook rice noodles according to the package directions. Add the cooked noodles to the pan, then add some basil and mix until the noodles are coated.
Eat two bowls and go to bed at 9pm on a Friday night :p
Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Recipe Redux posts this month!
Do you have a gf soy sauce? If not, try Braggs liquid aminos!
Janel recently posted..Crockpot Veggie Curry Stew
Yep, I’ve been buying GF tamari lately. I’ve been wondering about Braggs and if there were any advantages over soy sauce.
Great post and I love the Asian touch…! Your birthday celebrations revolve around food (like ours do)! Such a great way to keep memories alive.
Mary at BrightonYourHealth recently posted..Carrots Vichy Style
Thanks for the comment Mary! I love cooking special dinners for birthdays. It’s usually better than eating out!
My fave Thai recipe always called them “Drunk Man Noodle”… not really sure why as every other recipe I’ve ever seen calls ‘em Drunken Noodles… regardless, I love them & definitely want to try this recipe. I’ve not looked for the fat noodles before, though… guessing from this that I’ll need to try our local Asian market?
Regan @ The Professional Palate recently posted..{the recipe redux} orange you glad it’s fall?
Haha! I’ve never seen them called Drunk Man noodles but that’s what I’m calling them from now on :p
Drunken noodles are one of my favorite take-out orders, but I’ve never tried at home. I’ll have to hit H Mart out here in the ‘burbs to see if I can find the right noodles. Looks tasty!
Kat @ Eating The Week recently posted..Recipe ReDux: Orange you glad it’s fall?
I LOVE H Mart. You can find all sorts of interesting products, and the best miso! There isn’t one near me now unfortunately.
I’ve totaly been craving good Thai food lately as my baby is only 3 wks old and going out for Thai is not quite possible yet (cuz I can’t get it together to arrange a babysitter for 4 kids yet!) So this will satisfy my craving perfectly! Congrats on your “new little farmer”!
Thanks! I heard you recently had a baby – congrats to you too! I’ve always said I’d love to have four kids, but we’ll see how one goes first :p
i’m obsessed with drunken noodles. why don’t i make my own?? i have no excuses!
Elizabeth recently posted..Elizabeth Cooks: Vegan Pumpkin Bread
Us too! And I’ve never even thought to make them. This will be standard recipe for us now!
Creative thinking with the orange food! This is a great idea for a weeknight meal!
I admit I am not that familiar with Thai food, but I like the sounds of the gypsy pepper. I love making finger food and they look like they would be a good adition to my bad of tricks
Enjoying your drunken noodle recipe again tonight! Thanks, it’s always super tasty!
Nate recently posted..Sully’s Bed