PEANUT-NOODLES(V)        USENET Cookbook        PEANUT-NOODLES(V)

PEANUT NOODLES

     PEANUT-NOODLES - Chinese-style noodles with a spicy peanut
     sauce

     This recipe is not authentic Chinese; it was created by com-
     bining readily available ingredients and double-checking
     against a Satay recipe.  It's close to a Satay sauce but not
     quite the same thing.  It's also similar to a recipe in the
     Enchanted Broccoli Forest, by Mollie Katzen.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 4)
     1 pound   fresh chinese-style noodles
     1/2 Tbsp  garlic chili paste
     2 Tbsp    good peanut butter (without added sugar).
     1 Tbsp    nam pla (fermented fish sauce)
     1/2 cup   water
     2 stalks  chopped scallions

PROCEDURE
          (1)  Boil a lot of water for the noodles; this is the
               most time-consuming step.

          (2)  Rinse and trim scallions, then slice thinly.

          (3)  In a small mixing bowl, combine peanut butter and
               chili paste with a fork.  Mix thoroughly.

          (4)  Add water to the peanut mixture.  This is tricky,
               since peanut butter and water do not want to mix.
               Start with a tiny bit of water, mix thoroughly
               until it is homogeneous, and then add some more
               water.  You can begin to add larger quantities of
               water as the sauce gets thinner.  The water and
               peanut butter really will mix, if you are patient.

          (5)  Continue adding water until the sauce has the con-
               sistency you want; I make it about the consistency
               of ketchup.

          (6)  Stir in the nam pla.

          (7)  Once the pot of water is boiling, cook the noodles
               until they are just done, and not mushy.

          (8)  Drain noodles and immediately mix in the sauce.
               Toss until the noodles are evenly coated.

          (9)  Garnish with scallions, and serve.

NOTES
     The ingredients are readily available at oriental grocery
     stores. Substitute soy sauce if you can't find nam pla. For
     fresh noodles, you can substitute several packages of ramen
     noodles, discarding sauce powders.

     This basic recipe may be varied by modifying quantities.
     Vary the chili paste to control hotness, and the nam pla to
     control saltiness (but the sauce will taste saltier before
     mixing with the noodles).

     This will keep for at least a week in the refrigerator.

     Serve with a good beer; it's too spicy for most wines.

     If you use this as the main dish of a meal, it serves only
     two.

RATING
     Difficulty: easy.  Time: 5 minutes plus waiting for the
     water to boil.  Precision: No need to measure.

CONTRIBUTOR
     Jeffrey Mogul
     Digital Equipment Corp., Western Research Lab, Palo Alto, California, USA
     mogul@decwrl.dec.com     decwrl!mogul
     Path: decwrl!recipes
     From: faigin@sdcrdcf (Daniel P. Faigin)
     Newsgroups: mod.recipes
     Subject: RECIPE: Peanut sauce
     Message-ID: 
     Date: 7 Nov 86 05:34:56 GMT
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