Sweet, nutty, and a bit fiery, designed, to cool you off and make you sweat all in one bite.
Course
Main Course
Cuisine
Asian
Prep Time30minutes
Cook Time20minutes
Total Time50minutes
Servings10
Ingredients
1lbChinese egg noodle, linguine, or spaghetti
¼cupcreamy peanut butter
3tablespoondark soy sauce
2tablespoonrice vinegar
2tablespoonfirmly packed brown sugar
1teaspoonchili paste with garlic
½teaspooncayenne pepper
3tablespoonsesame oildivided
1teaspoongrated fresh ginger root
2teaspoonsesame seedsblack or white or a mix
½cupthinly sliced cucumber
½cupthinly sliced red bell pepper
¼cupcarrotjulienned
½cupfresh peas
2tablespoons fresh cilantrochopped
chopped scallionfor garnish
Method
Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil in a stock pot. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, approximately 7 minutes (taste to be sure). Reserve half a cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the noodles, rinse under cold water, and drain again.
In a small saucepan, combine the peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, chili paste, cayenne powder, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, and ginger. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring frequently with a whisk until the sauce is smooth, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the pasta in a large mixing bowl with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sesame oil. Toss well to coat the pasta. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
While the pasta is cooling, toast the sesame seeds in a dry non-stick skillet until the seeds just begin to brown and give off a nutty aroma (shake the pan frequently to avoid burning the seeds). Remove the seeds from the pan and set aside.
When the pasta is cold toss in the cucumber, pepper, carrot, peas, cilantro and sesame seeds. Add the sauce to the noodles (If needed thin the sauce with the reserved pasta water). Toss well to combine. Garnish with scallions.
Cooks Notes
This dish is inspired by Shorty Tang's recipe. The original does not call for any vegetables other than chopped scallion.