Udon Noodles with Vegetables

I found a packet of Udon noodles at Costco one day and decided to make them for dinner that day. It turned out so well that we eat it 3-4 times a month! The chewiness of the udon goes very well with the crunchiness of the vegetables.The ingredient list seems long, but apart from what you use for the sauce, the rest (mainly vegetables) can be swapped around to what you prefer. You can even add tofu or chicken if you wish to increase the amount of protein in the dish.

Makes: 6-8 servings

Calories: About 400-450 in each serving

Ingredients:

2 tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp ginger, finely chopped/minced
2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 cup scallions/green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup soy sauce (low sodium variety)
3-4 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 tbsp schezuan sauce
Vegetable broth, IF needed to thin out sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
2-3 carrots, thinly sliced/julienned
1 head broccoli, thick stem removed and florets separated
1 watermelon daikon/radish, sliced (optional)
2-3 cups bok choy, roughly sliced
2-3 cups mushrooms (preferably fresh, not canned), sliced
24 oz udon noodles (=4 Costco individual packets), loosened apart by hand
1 cup cilantro, chopped
2 tbsp sesame seeds, roasted (optional)
Any other vegetables you may want to add (e.g. sugar snap peas, water chestnuts, edamame)

Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over medium-high heat and then add the sesame oil. Heat only till the oil becomes slightly fragrant otherwise you will burn it. Add the ginger, garlic and half of the scallions and saute for a few minutes. Then add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, schezuan sauce and brown sugar. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add 1/8 cup of vegetable broth if you feel that the sauce is too thick and cook for 2 minutes.

Now, add the carrots and broccoli and stir fry for 2 minutes before adding the mushrooms and bok choy. Stir fry for 2-3 more minutes and then add the noodles. Stir for one more minute and then add the remaining scallions, cilantro and sesame seeds. Mix well so that the thick sauce completely coats all the noodles and vegetables. Serve hot.

Note: If you are buying the noodles from Costco, they are in one of the cold food aisles and are precooked. The name of the company is O'Hana House and the color of the package is pink. They are made from water, organic wheat flour, organic tapioca starch, sea salt and lactic acid. It has 6 individual packets in it (6oz each) and each packet is about 2 servings (about 120 calories in each serving, 0 from fat and 3g of protein).
If you are not buying from Costco, your local grocery store or asian store will have some brand of precooked udon noodles. If you can not find udon, you can use thick egg noodles (just boil them before hand).

Red Curry Noodles

I like using whole wheat spaghetti since it is a good source of fiber and tastes really good. This recipe is hearty and comforting and great for a relaxed night in.

Makes: 2-3 servings

150-200 grams whole wheat spaghetti

2 boneless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1 tbsp oil

4 lime leaves

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tbsp ginger, chopped

1 stem lemon grass, cut into 1-inch long pieces and then smashed

1 tbsp fish sauce (optional)

Salt, to taste (use ONLY if not using fish sauce)

1 cup low fat coconut milk

1 tbsp red curry paste (use less if you do not want it too spicy)

3 cups chicken broth (you can use plain water as well, but broth will add a lot of flavor)

2 handsful scallions/green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced (optional)

1 handful fresh cilantro

Juice from 1 large lime (more if you wish)

1/4 cup roasted, chopped peanuts (optional)

Heat the oil and saute the lime leaves, lemon grass, garlic and ginger till soft and then add the chicken. When chicken is slightly brown, add in the fish sauce and 1/2 a cup of stock/water and cook on medium low heat till chicken is almost done. Add the remaining chicken stock and the noodles and heat through. In a separate bowl, mix in the red curry paste with 1/2 of the coconut milk till no lumps remain. Then add this mix into the chicken and stir. Add the rest of the coconut milk and cook on medium heat till the noodles are almost done. Add the mushrooms, scallion and cilantro and cook for a few more minutes. Stir in the lime juice right at the end , garnish with peanuts and serve.

Note: If you feel that you want to make the noodles more soupy, add more stock or water. If you want it thicker, cook it on high heat towards the end.

Spicy Peanut Noodles

Tried this recipe yesterday and it turned out to be pretty good. The green chilies add a kick to the whole dish but you can omit it if you don't want it spicy. Sadly, I forgot to take a picture to put up for you all but it looked really pretty with the cilantro, cucumber and peanut garnish.

Calories: About 350 per serving

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

12 oz (about 350 grams) whole wheat spaghetti

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup boiling water

1 cup scallions, sliced

4 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp rice vinegar

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 tsp sugar

1/8-1/4 tsp red chili powder

2 green (or red) chilies, finely chopped

1/4 cup peanuts, roasted and coarsely chopped (divided into 2 equal portions)

1-2 tbsp sesame oil

Handful chopped cilantro plus more for garnish

Thinly sliced cucumber, for garnish

Boil the pasta as per directions till done. Rinse under cold water to avoid clumping.

In a bowl, mix together the peanut butter, hot water, scallions, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic. sugar and chili powder. Heat the oil in a pot and pour the peanut butter mixture into it. Add the noodles and then the green chilies, cilantro and one portion of the peanuts. Mix well (making sure the flame is not too high) and remove from heat. Take it out in a platter and garnish with the left over peanuts, cilantro and sliced cucumber.

Note: I put a teaspoon of sesame oil in the noodles after rinsing them with cold water for added flavor and fragrance.

To increase the protein content, you can add sliced and stir-fried chicken breast in the peanut sauce right before adding the noodles.

Chicken Piccata with Pasta & Mushrooms

This recipe is so easy to make and the ingredients are such that are almost always lying around in your refrigerator. The calorie count is quite low, considering how filling it is. If you want to cut down on the carb value, reduce the amount of pasta you put in. Yummy recipe which I am sure you will make again and again.

Calories: About 395 per serving

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

6 oz whole wheat pasta (angel hair preferable)

1/3 cup all purpose flour, divided

2 1/2 cup chicken broth, divided (home made of store bought)

1/2 tsp salt, divided

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

4 chicken breast (about 500 grams), slightly flattened

3 tsp olive oil

10 oz fresh button mushrooms, sliced

3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp lemon juice (or to taste)

1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley

2 tbsp rinsed capers (optional)

2 tsp butter

Boil water in a large pot and add pasta. When done, drain and keep aside. Separately, whisk together 5 tsp of flour with 2 cups of broth. Put the remaining flour on a plate. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with 1/4 tsp salt and pepper and then dredge in the flour. Heat 2 tsp oil in a skillet and then add the chicken. Cook for about 3 minutes on each side (or until no longer pink inside). Transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm.

Heat the remaining oil in the same skillet and then add the mushrooms. Cook on medium high till they release their juices and become slightly brown. Take out in a bowl. To the same skillet, add the garlic and the remaining broth. Cook till reduced to almost half. Stir in the flour-broth mixture, lemon juice and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook till sauce is thickened. Stir in parsley, butter, capers and mushrooms.

Reserve about 1/2 cup of the sauce and toss the pasta with the remaining sauce. Put the chicken breasts on top and pour the reserved sauce over it. Serve.

Homemade Whole Wheat Pasta

I think I could eat pasta everyday! I love it but I just wish it was good for me. I have switched to whole wheat pasta and I don't feel like I am really compromising on the taste. In fact, the flavor is very close to the regular pasta variety. Making pasta at home IS a bit of an effort but a lot of fun and definitely better to taste. I have a manual pasta machine at home, so it is a bit easier to roll it and cut it out, but a rolling pin would be just as good. Be brave and do try and make it yourself, even if it is only once! :)

Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients:

3 cups whole wheat flour (if it is your first time making pasta and you are a bit nervous of the taste and outcome, try using 1 and a half cups of whole wheat and 1 and a half cups of regular flour)

1/2 tsp salt

4 eggs

2 tsp olive oil

Mix the flour with the salt on a flat, clean surface. Make a hollow center and pour in the olive oil. Break the eggs into the hole one at a time, while quickly mixing with a fork until the dough is wet enough to bind. Knead on a slightly floured surface until dough it stiff. If your flour is a little bit old, it could possibly have dried out and may need a few tablespoons of water while kneading. Cover and let stand for about 30 minutes.

Roll out dough by hand with a rolling pin of use a pasta machine to achieve desired thickness of noodles (I used my pasta machine at the number 5 thickness setting). Cut into preferred width, shape and size. Allow pasta to dry on a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes to avoid having it to clump and stick together.

If you don't have a pasta machine, roll out the pasta dough with a rolling pin evenly on a lightly floured, flat surface to your desired thickness. Cut off the uneven edges to make a rectangle or square. Then, roll the flat dough like a cigar. Cut cross sections of the rolled up dough (like you would when making pinwheels, only thinner). Voila! Your pasta noodles are ready.

Tip: I find that a pizza cutter is a very convenient and efficient tool to cut pasta.

To cook fresh pasta: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and drop in the water. Cook for 3-4 minutes (or till the pasta floats to the top) and drain. Do try the pasta before you drain it since the cooking time would depend on the flour you used and the thickness of your pasta.

Good Luck!

Spicy Chicken and Eggplant

I had a big eggplant lying around in the fridge and wanted to use it but didn't feel like making the typical grilled variety. So, I looked up a few recipes, combined them, altered them and came up with my version of them. It's simple, yet delicious. And the best part is, it's low on calories. I served it with homemade fresh whole wheat pasta. You can serve it with store bought whole wheat fettuccine (or the regular kind, if you're splurging!).

Ingredients:

450 grams (1 lb) fettuccine (homemade or store bought), boiled

1 large eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

5 tbsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tomato, cubed

2 scallions/ green onions, sliced

1 tsp red pepper flakes

500 grams boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced

1 cup chicken stock/broth (recipe posted earlier or store bought)

1 1/2 -2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp vinegar (optional)

salt and pepper, to taste

Handful fresh basil or 1 tsp dried basil (optional)

Heat half the olive oil in a pan and add half the garlic. Saute for about 30-45 seconds, then add the eggplant and cook for 2-3 minutes, while stirring. Add the tomato and cook for about 3-4 more minutes and then add the green onions. Remove from pan after cooking for a minute.

In the same pan, add the remaining oil and garlic. Add chicken and saute for about 4-5 minutes and then add the eggplant back into the pan. Cook for a few minutes.

In a bowl, mix the tomato paste, chicken stock, vinegar and red pepper flakes. Add into the chicken and eggplant mix and add the basil, salt and pepper to taste. Cook till sauce is thickened. Remove from heat and pour over your pre-cooked/boiled fettuccine. Garnish with plenty of chopped parsley, if desired.

Suggestion: After draining the pasta, post boiling, I try and boost its flavor by adding either grated parmesan cheese or any kind of pesto I have on hand. You can season it with whatever you prefer, or nothing at all! But do remember to add salt to the boiling water before putting pasta in it.