Yum Woon Sen -Thai Glass Noodle Salad

 

Ready in: 20 minutes

Ingredients for two meal size:

100g of glass noodles or vermicelli, soak and cook in boiled water for 5-10 minutes

100g of minced pork, boiled in very little water

8 shrimp, boiled

A hand full of bean sprouts

1/4 Spanish onions, julienne and soak in cold water more than 10 minutes

1/4 tomato, cut into wedges

Cilantro leaves, as much as you like

Roasted peanuts to serve

*Cucumber, celery, carrots are also perfect for this salad. 

[Dressing-Prepare in a bowl]

2 cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon of sugar

2 tablespoons of fish sauce

Cilantro steams, chopped

Chili powder, optional

 1/4 green lime, squeeze in

Required Equipment:

Mortar and Pestle would be useful

Step 1: Prepare your vegetables and protein.

Step 2: Prepare dressing 

Step 3: Drain water from noodles, and place them in a large mixing bowl 

Step 4: Add vegetables and protein, expect tomatos. Mix well and add the sauce. Mix all well.

Top with crushed peanuts, tomatos and cilantro leaves

Pad Thai

Ready in: 20 minutes

Ingredients for two:

100g of flat rice noodles

A hand full of green onions, cut into 1" long

A hand full of bean sprouts

A hand full of bell peppers

1/4 tomato, cut into wedges

A hand full of tofu, cut into small cubes

Shrimp, cooked, as many as you like

Cilantro, as much as you like

1/4 green lime

2 cloves of garlic, minced

[Prepare in a cup]

2 tablespoons of fish sauce 

2 tablespoons of oyster sauce

2 tablespoons of sugar

1 tablespoon of rice vinegar

Step 1:  Soak your noodles in water until it softens. Cut them so they are not so long to eat.

Step 2: Prepare vegetables.  

Step 3: In a pan, heat up some oil and garlic, and cook vegetables and tofu except bean sprouts.

Step 4: Add noodles and bean sprouts, mix all well.

Step 5: Add the sauce and coat it well in the pan. Add cooked shrimp and serve.

Tukpa

I traveled in India and Nepal long time ago for 6 months. During very cold months, Tukpa really warmed me up. This dish reminded me of Japanese food for some reason. It wasn't spicy, but full of taste. There were Tukpas with sliced omelets, chicken, mutton or veggies-only.

Ready in: 20 minutes

Ingredients for two:

1 tomato, chopped

1/4 spanish onion, chopped 

1/4 potato, julienne

1/4 carrot, julienne

A handful green beans

2 leaves of cabbage

A handful mushrooms

1/4 teaspoons of ground cumin powder

1/4 teaspoons of turmeric powder

1 tablespoon of soy sauce

1/2 tablespoon of whishire sauce

2 cups of water

1 clove of garlic, chopped

Frying oil

Asian egg noodles or spaghettis for two people

Step 1: In a pot, put oil and garlic, start cooking onions.

Step 2: Add other vegetables, and add water.

Step 3: Add spices and sauces.

Step 4: Add chicken and mushrooms.

Step 5: Continue boiling.

Step 6: Cook noodles and add them in the soup.  Continue boiling for 5-10 minutes.

Nabeyaki Udon- Udon Noodle Soup

In a cold day, Udon noodle soup really warms you up.

Ready in: 10 minutes

Ingredients for two:
2 bunches of Udon noodles
Any vegetables such as mushrooms, nappa, green onions, carrots and daikon radish
2 eggs
Some grazed Yamaimo yum potatoes, optional
[Prepare in a pan]

3 cups of Dashi stock

1 tablespoon of Sake

2 teaspoons of Mirin

2 tablespoon of soy sauce

How to make homemade noodles: Homemade Udon Noodles

Step 1: Cook vegetables and eggs in a soup

Step 2: Cook noodles in a half way 

Step 3: Add noodles in soup and cook in full

Step 4: Serve 

Themed Food- Halloween Ghost

I love making themed bentos and dishes. It's fun to make and keeps me smiling when I eat it.

This year, I made steamed ghost dumplings with a noodle salad. They are mixed with steamed dumplings and gyoza (baked dumplings). You can click the links to see the full instructions.

Halloween Jack O'Lantern
Halloween Spiders

Ready in: 20 minutes

Ingredients for two:
2 bunches of noodles
Salad
4 sheets of dumpling wraps
[Dumpling filling: Prepare in a bowl]
10g of minced pork
1 dried mushroom
1 teaspoon of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of Sake
1 teaspoon of sugar

[Dressing: Prepare in a cup]
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
3 tablespoons of sesame oil
2 tablespoons of white vinegar
1 tablespoons of sugar

Required Equipment:
Steamer
Mixing bowl
Strainer
Rolling pin

Step 1: Hand-mix the filing and make 2 small balls

Step 2: Using a rolling pin, roll and thin out 2 wraps. They go on the top of the ghosts

Step 3: Place a meat ball on a regular wrap, and cover the ball with the thin wrap. Place it on a steamer for 15 minutes

Step 4: Cook noodles and rinse them 

Step 5: Put salad and noodles on a plate, and place a ghost on top.

Kawara Soba- Teppanyaki Green Tea Soba Noodles with 3 Colour-Toppings

During Japanese civil war, there was a story that soldiers cooked food on a heated roofing tiles. Someone tried it now days, and got popular. It's called roofing tile noodles.

When I visited my friend's house, she made it for dinner. It was quite tasty and got me surprised that it can be homemade.

What can you make with seasoned meat: Bibimbap (Korean Beef Bowl)
What can you make with a thin omelet: Vegetable Sushi Wrapped

Ready in: 20 minutes

Ingredients for two:
2 bunches of green tea soba noodles
Some frying oil
One green onions
Shredded Nori paper
Grated daikon radish, optional
Minced meat, pork/beef/chicken
[Seasons for Meat: Prepare in a bowl]
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of Miso
1 tablespoon of Sake
[Omlet: Prepare in a bowl]
1 egg
1 teaspoons of starch
2 tablespoons of water
[Dipping Sauce: Prepare in a pot]
500ml water
2 teaspoons of Daishi powder
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of Mirin
2 tablespoons of Sake


Step 1: Cook meat with seasons, chop green onions, make paper thin omelet

Step 2: Heat up the dipping sauce

Step 3: Cook noodles in boiling water, rinse it under running water, and drain water

 Step 4: In a pan, fry noodles until you see crispy burn

Step 5: Place crispy noodles on a plate, and put toppings on them

 Step 6: Serve with a dipping sauce

Udon- Homemade Udon Noodles

As I mentioned in the article chan pon stair fry on noodle soup ramen, my father is a noodle lover. When I was small, we used  to make different kinds of homemade noodles together on weekends. The key to make good noodles was how much you beat the dough up. We stepped on the  dough or bang it on thle table. It was really fun.  

Three Christmas' ago, I won a bread maker from a raffle at work. Since then, I've been making different types of noodles. It's not as good as my father's (less beat-ups), but it's quick and taste good.

My favorite way of eating it is with soy sauce and freshly squeezed lime juice.

Ready in: 2 hours and 15 minutes

Ingredients for four:

130cc of water

300g of flour

12g of salt

15-20g oil 

[Prepare in a bowl]

Your favorite soup, sauce or dressing, plus vegetables

Required Equipment:

Bread maker or stand mixer + a dough hook, or your muscle!

Pasta maker or rolling pin + knife

Step 1: Dilute salt in water.

Step 2:  Add flour. Start your bread maker at the dough setting. (Start mixing in your mixer or by hand for about 7 minutes.) 

Step 3: When your bread maker beeps to add "dry ingredients", add 15g of oil. For a mixer and muscular person, once the dough crumbles, add oil and continue mixing or folding. Add oil accordingly.

 

Step 4: When the bread maker becomes quiet, turn it off and take out the dough and put it in a ziplock to rest for 1 hour. (Do not start the raising mood.)

Step 5:  Divid the bough into 3 balls and put some flours around.

Step 6: Using your pasta maker or pin, flatten the dough. 

Step 7: When your sheet becomes your liking in thickness, change the cutter to Fettucine. Or fold the sheet into 3 or 4, and cut it into noodles. Hang the fresh noodles on a dishwasher or oven to dry for 30 minutes.

Step 8: Measure noodles 100-110g each. Put them in a ziplock to freeze if needed.

Step 9: Boil water and cook noodles 45-50 second. Choose a large pan to boil water.

Step 10: Rinse cooked noodles in cold water.

Step 11: Serve it!