A spicy, saucy take on noodles
Tangled up in noodles? Not a bad way to spend the summer.
Chilled, room temperature or warm, one-bowl pasta meals can play a big part in warm-weather fare. Here, a cool Asian-inspired dish of sesame-spiked noodles is dressed in a quickly cooked sauce of roasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, peanut butter, soy, dried red chile flakes and brown sugar.
The rich sauce clings to a jumble of Japanese udon noodles, flat wheat-based pasta shaped like linguine. Sliced green onions and blanched sugar snap peas come to the party, along with a garnish of toasted sesame seeds.
Cold Sesame Noodles Makes 4 to 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes, or to taste 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar or granulated sugar, or to taste
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon roasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 pound udon (flat Japanese wheat noodles) Garnishes: 4 green onions including dark green stalks, thinly sliced; thin cucumber slices; 8 to 10 sugar snap peas, blanched briefly in boiling water until tender-crisp; 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
DIRECTIONS
In a saucepan, combine soy sauce, vinegar, red pepper flakes, brown sugar, peanut butter, oil, ginger and broth; simmer mixture, stirring with whisk, until thickened and smooth, 3 to 4 minutes; cool slightly.
Bring a large pot, filled 2/3-full with water, to a boil on high heat. Cook noodles until they are al dente, following package directions. Drain in a colander; refresh with cold water. Shake colander to remove excess water; transfer noodles to a bowl, and toss with the sauce and green onions. Taste and add salt if needed.
Serve noodles at room temperature, garnished with cucumber slices, sugar snap peas and toasted sesame seeds.