There are days when all I want is a big plate of noodles – and because I haven’t yet found the takeout joint with the tangle of irresistibly creamy-spicy-peanutty noodles, I make them myself. I made this particular batch a couple weekends ago, and have answered a few DM requests for the recipe since – sorry it has taken so long to share. I’m going to leave it here to keep you well fed while the three of us hop on a plane for London – just to go exploring and eat some fish and chips. (Mike has never been overseas, and so I got a crazy deal last fall and surprised him and W. I’m writing this as we pack. SO EXCITED. I love London.)

A pound of fresh Asian noodles is impossibly cheap, and ground pork is about the most affordable of the ground meats – I love it when it’s cooked until crispy, all salty with soy and spiked with ginger and garlic. This isn’t a springy noodle dish, light and bouncy with crisp veggies – it’s dense and chewy, rich from the peanut butter, but the rice vinegar, green onions and cilantro keep it from being too heavy. It’s the sort of thing I want to eat with chopsticks straight from a paper takeout container, but I’ll settle for a shallow bowl and my couch.

Sesame Noodles with Pork

AuthorJulie

Yields1 Serving

canola or other vegetable oil, for cooking

sesame oil, for cooking

1 lb ground pork

a few green onions, chopped

1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I use the stems), plus some extra leaves for garnish

2-3 garlic cloves, crushed (divided)

2 tsp grated fresh ginger (divided)

1/3 cup soy sauce (or to taste - divided)

1/4 cup rice vinegar (divided)

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1-2 Tbsp peanut butter (optional)

1 tsp chili-garlic paste or Sriracha (optional)

1 lb fresh Shanghai or other Asian noodles

Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil - I use some canola and some sesame - and cook the pork, breaking it up with a spoon, until it's no longer pink and starting to brown. Add the green onions, cilantro, a clove or two of garlic and a good grating of ginger somewhere along the way, along with half the soy sauce and vinegar. As you add half of each ingredient, put the other half into a small bowl or measuring cup, along with the peanut butter, chili paste and a tablespoon or two of sesame oil. Continue to cook the pork until it's nice and crispy, with any excess moisture cooked off.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles for a few minutes, or until tender. Drain well.

Spoon the meat out of the skillet to a bowl, add a little more oil to the skillet and add the noodles (half at a time, if all of them makes it too full to handle), and pour over the soy-vinegar-sugar-peanut butter mixture. Toss with tongs to coat well, leaving it over the heat for a minute or two, until any excess moisture has cooked off. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the pork mixture and some extra cilantro, if you like.

Serves 4-6.

Categorypasta

Ingredients