chicken noodle style pappardelle.

i’m getting ready to say bye-bye, ta-ta, toodle loo mf-er to winter. the sun has been shining in seattle the last few days, and i am so excited for the first signs of spring. but sure is cold here still…..brrrrrrrrr.

this chicken noodle style pappardelle dish is so cozy and delish with all kinds of herbs & spices. those big fat pappardelle noodles are too. good. to. be. true.

plus, i love anything that serves as a canvas for all the black pepper. more black pepper for me, the better.

the tiny bit of turmeric in here makes the noodles bright yellow and adds some earthy depth to the whole dish. be careful with that stuff and rinse your kitchen tools & bowls right away - it kinda stains!

you could make this into a true chicken noodle soup by using extra broth and fewer noodles. don’t forget to add some extra salt to taste.

this version is more of a pappardelle dish in the style of chicken noodle soup :) you may know that i don’t give much of a hoot about liquid brothy soups and i’m just here for all the textures.

pappardelle is such a treat and i always feel fancy when i get to buy some specialty pasta from the nice part of the store, lol. can’t wait to use the rest in something different, like stroganoff.

enjoy these scrumptious late winter noods!

Chicken Noodle Style Pappardelle

Serves 4-6

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, diced

• 1-2 celery stalks, sliced into bits

• 4 large carrots, sliced

• 2 TB. unsalted butter

• 1 chicken breast, cooked & shredded

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

• 1/4 tsp. paprika

• 1/2 tsp. turmeric

• juice of 1 lemon, divided in half

• 32 - 40 ounces low-sodium chicken broth

• 4-8 ounces uncooked pappardelle noodles

• fresh thyme sprigs & sage leaves

• green onions, sliced

Instructions-

Cook and season the chicken breast as desired and shred on a cutting board. Toss the shredded chicken breast in juice of 1/2 a lemon & black pepper. Chop and dice all the vegetables.

Heat a large stock pot or dutch oven to medium heat and melt the butter. Add the diced onion and cook 3-5 minutes until translucent and browned, stirring frequently. Add the chopped celery and carrots and toss everything to cook a few more minutes until slightly tender. Add the salt, black pepper, paprika, and turmeric and stir. Add some fresh thyme sprigs and sage leaves to the pot.

Add the shredded chicken and chicken broth to the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir everything well and lower to a light rolling simmer. Add the uncooked pappardelle and toss with tongs, cooking for about 10 minutes until the noodles are tender. Squeeze the other half of lemon all over and toss to combine.

If you’d prefer a true chicken noodle soup, use more chicken broth and fewer noodles. Add extra salt & pepper to taste.

For noodles like I made in these photos, use 32 ounces of chicken broth and 8 ounces of uncooked pappardelle noodles.

Serve in bowls with extra thyme sprigs, sliced green onion, and plenty of black pepper. Store in covered dutch oven or airtight container in the fridge and reheat as needed. Enjoy within 3 days.

qp

cabbage chicken pad thai.

it’s technically like a no-noodle chicken cabbage pad thai curry, but i didn’t wanna throw you off with a weird long title.

also - super almost vegan (just remove chicken & use alt fish sauce) and super customizable in the veggie or protein department!

AND… best news ever:

i finally figured out the missing flavor in homemade thai dishes that i’ve been searching for FOR-EV-ER.

i have made thai curries at home over and over and over, adding one new ingredient at a time that i always think will be THE ONE missing link, but it’s never been quite right…

until now.

i have found it. this is the one.

LIME LEAVES, PEOPLE.

lime leaves.

i should have freakin known. there’s a whole thing in that movie no reservations with catherine zeta jones where she’s a chef and she hauls her chef boyfriend all over town looking for her signature secret ingredient - which ended up being kaffir lime leaves.

i knew it somewhere deep in my head.

i was actually buying thai basil at the store and admiring these edible flowers. i noticed the box of “lime leaves,” took one sniff and i knew that was the flavor i’ve been searching for.

i pretty much ran home and made this right away. i was so excited to discover how much flavor lime leaves give off when you steep them in coconut milk. it’s such a specific taste and it really makes your homemade thai dishes extra legit.

this is kind of a “curry” recipe because it has the base of a thai curry - then you add a TON of freshly shredded cabbage which soaks up all the coconut milk and all the salty curry flavors to become noodley! and then voila, it is a cabbage pad thai with ALL the right flavors.

at thai restaurants, pete & i usually order panang curry & chicken pad thai - and i always end up mixing them together a bit, so this recipe is kinda like that idea!

the tenderized cabbage actually does a pretty good impression of noodles in this form. i was so pleasantly surprised! just don’t over cook them so they keep a little bit of that al dente crunch & chewy factor.

plz don’t be intimidated by the ingredients list - you can do itttttt. and once you buy all the thai flavors/spices/jars of various things (fish sauce & red curry paste are just staples around here now!), you’ll be making thai food for daaaays.

think of them as a homemade thai food investment.

No-Noodle Cabbage Chicken Pad Thai

Serves 2-4

Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 large chicken breast, thawed & filleted

• red chili flakes, salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil.

• 2 cloves or 1 TB garlic, minced

• 2 TB fresh ginger, minced (or Gourmet Garden Ginger paste)

• 1 TB Gourmet Garden Lemongrass paste, optional

• 2 tsp. tamarind concentrate

• 1 TB fish sauce

• 1 1/2 TB. Thai red curry paste

• 6-8 lime leaves, whole or ripped in half

• 1 can (14 oz) coconut milk

• 2 heaping cups green cabbage, thinly shredded with mandoline

• 2 heaping cups purple cabbage, thinly shredded with mandoline

• 1/2 a red bell pepper, seeded & sliced

• 1/2 a green bell pepper, seeded & sliced

• 1/2 cup broccoli florets, optional

• mung bean sprouts

• fresh Thai basil, lots!

• 1/4 cup peanuts, chopped

• 1 lime

• fresh mint or cilantro, optional

Instructions -

Using a mandoline, shred the green & purple cabbage until you have at least 2 heaping cups of each. It should be about half a head of each cabbage. Shred or cut it to about the thickness of noodles (not too thin or the cabbage might get soggy).

In a large pan, cook the chicken breast in 1 TB olive oil and garlic on medium heat, seasoning with salt, pepper, and red chili flakes for spice. Cook 2-3 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and allow it to rest on a cutting board before slicing.

In the same pan with the chicken & garlic remnants, add the sliced chicken back into the pan with fresh ginger, lemongrass paste (optional), tamarind concentrate, and red curry paste. Toss well to coat. (***Note: If you’re making this recipe using real noodles instead, cut down the salts by half [salt & fish sauce]. There’s extra sodium here to compensate for the large quantity of raw cabbage.)

Add 1 whole can of coconut milk to the pan and stir. Drop in all the lime leaves and some Thai basil to steep as it simmers on medium/low.

Prepare & slice the remaining veggies, herbs, and toppings.

Toss half of the green & purple cabbage in the coconut milk to coat. The liquid should thicken and become almost gravy-like. Add the remaining cabbage, bell peppers, and broccoli, if using. Toss everything to coat using tongs until the cabbage has tenderized and resembles the consistency of noodles. The liquid from the pan should mostly be soaked up into the cabbage “noodles” when it is ready to eat. You may remove the lime leaves before eating if desired - they are pretty tough to chew.

Divide into servings and top with lots of fresh Thai basil, mung bean sprouts, lime wedges & chopped peanuts. Optional: fresh mint, cilantro, or edible flowers for garnish.

Serve immediately and enjoy leftovers within 1-2 days.

qp