cold & crunchy hot sesame noodles.

with a soft boiled egg!

it's the first day of summmerrrrrrrrrrrrr. yayyyyeeeeeeeeeee!

even though it's mostly still cloudsville in seattle washington, it is officially summer and a cold & flavorful noodle salad always sounds SO refreshing in the summertime. 

i must say that i've never felt deeper regret for forgetting an ingredient............OF COURSE this recipe NEEDS SESAME SEEDS. ugh what a dummy i am.

the amount of guilt i feel over the lack of those dinky little seeds is just ridic. so please just imagine some happy little sesame seeds dancing throughout these noods.

there's SO much flavor here though...

i marinated or kinda quick-pickled & chilled the cucumber ribbons in vinegar, salt & pepp for a little bit. then tossed the noodles in various flavors and chilled those, too. and then made an additional spicy oil dressing to top it off. aaand probably the best soft boiled eggs i've ever made. those take some practice. i finally GET IT now. 

and the cold leftovers! probably even better tasting than when its freshly made. flavor jive time, ya know.

lots of versatility here, too. use whatever veggies you like. add shredded chicken or some beef! i definitely think the cold marinated cucumbers and snap peas are staples in here, though.

perfect for picnics, too, i'll say! 

Cold & Crunchy Hot Sesame Noodles with Soft Boiled Egg

Makes about 4 servings

Total Time: About 30-40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 large cucumber:  thinly sliced into ribbons (I recommend using a mandoline)
• 1/3 cup white vinegar, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper - marinate cucumber ribbons in a bowl & chill for about 15 minutes
•  
• 2 eggs:  soft-boiled for about 7 minutes and plunged into an ice bath
•  
• About 6 oz. of noodles (I used 2 servings of Lo Mein Egg Noodles): reserve a little noodle water before straining
• 2 TB reserved noodle water, 1 TB. soy sauce, 1 tsp. rice vinegar, 1 tsp. fish sauce - toss & chill.
•  
• Oil Dressing:  1 TB. minced red chile, 1 TB minced green onion, 1 TB. olive oil, 1 TB hot sesame oil, 2 tsp. brown sugar, 2 tsp. rice vinegar, a few dashes of fish sauce - stir in small bowl. 
•  
• Other Veggies: broccoli florets, snap peas, cilantro, etc!
• SESAME SEEDS.

Instructions-

Thinly slice the cucumber into ribbons using a mandoline. Marinate in a bowl with 1/3 cup white vinegar, 1/2 tsp. salt, & 1/4 tsp. black pepper; chill for 15 minutes. Drain the excess vinegars.

While the cucumbers are chilling, soft boil 2 eggs at a gentle rolling boil (like level 8/10) for about 7 - 7 1/2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove from the boiling water and immediately plunge into a bowl of ice water for about 10 minutes. Gently crack & peel the eggshells off and set eggs aside. 

Also, while the eggs are in the boil, you can boil the noodles in another pot. I boiled the lo mein egg noodles for about 3 1/2 - 4 minutes. Reserve about 1/4 cup of the noodle water. Strain the noodles and run under cold water. 

Transfer the noodles to a large bowl. Toss with 2 TB of reserved noodle water, 1 TB. soy sauce, 1 tsp. rice vinegar, and 1 tsp. fish sauce. Chill in the fridge while you prep your veggies and dressing.

Cut your broccoli crown into small florets. Snap the snap peas in half.  Slice a few green onions at a 45 degree angle, saving the green ends for the garnish, and further mincing the bottom end for the oil dressing. Mince a red chile til you have 1 tablespoon. 

Add the minced red chile, minced portion of green onion, 1 TB. olive oil, 1 TB hot sesame oil, 2 tsp. brown sugar, 2 tsp. rice vinegar, & a few dashes of fish sauce in a small bowl and stir. 

Remove the noodles and cucumbers from the fridge. Add cucumbers and all veggies to the bowl of noodles. Pour the oil dressing over the top and toss with tongs or forks. Slice the soft boiled eggs in half and nestle into the noodles. Garnish with the remaining green onion, cilantro, and SESAME SEEDS. Sesame seeds optional I guess...but come on, this needs sesame seeds.

ENJOY! happy cold noodle summertimes.

qp

hot sesame zucchini noodles with sautéed rainbow veggies.

here be a heap of color for you to enjoy!

my sweet little neighbor girl came over a while back to sling me some gift wrap and other goods for her school fundraiser. naturally, i had to buy a few things. i remember the days of marching door-to-door in my neighborhood selling $1 beef sticks and chocolate bars to raise money for our soccer team. also gift wrap sales which were so hilarious to watch people half-heartedly whiz through the catalog and reluctantly purchase from me every year. you kind old souls, thank you for buying things you didn't need just so i could get closer to winning a lava lamp or tiny gorilla keychain.

i think i made my neighbor katy come with me at the time. even though she was homeschooled, she still sold the candy & beef sticks for sports fundraisers (and i needed her because her perkyness helped my sales pitches tremendously). i was just so shy to adults and she was absolutely not; she was always the best sales lady for sure. i also remember us going to our rooms and paying our own dollars so we could eat the chocolate bars and beef sticks. haha!

anyhoo! so i bought some gift wrap and a vegetable spiralizer from my neighbor girl last fall. its not the most advanced piece of kitchen technology, but it gets the job done! i am loving it. 

i like how the legit veggie spiralizers you can buy make the noodles so plump and smooth, but this little gadget that i bought is really compact and works just fine. even if my noodles are a bit jagged and thin. 

i think letting the noodles dry a bit on a towel is a super important step. there's so much water content in vegetables that you want it to be as crunchy as you can. you're not going to boil the "noodles" or even cook them very long in the sauce; you just want a good crisp texture for the finished product.

as i write this, i am recovering from a gum graft surgery that i had yesterday morning. i feel like a total granny about it, but i think its actually pretty common. i will only be able to eat soft foods on one side of my mouth for about 6 weeks. 

i definitely made these zuke noods a while back, and will not be enjoying this meal again at least for a couple weeks or so. i suppose i could cook the noodles and veggies way more to make them softer, but i am not a fan of soggy things with gross textures, so no. i'll just wait til i'm recuperated. i have to be super careful and eat teeny bites on my right side only, so this whole eating thing is a little bit of a nuisance right now. even if it is my favorite life activity.

the point of me talking about my granny gum surgery here is that i realized today that i still have the urge to want to cook or bake things in the kitchen, even though i can't really eat anything! i'm glad to learn that i truly do enjoy the process of cooking and baking, even if i can't enjoy the outcome (the best part! what am i, cuhrazy?). oh well, peter has been a top notch nurse to me the last two days and he deserves to enjoy all the eats & treats i might make. he is seriously the best!!!

i am strange in that way, i guess. i had jaw surgery when i was 15 and had my jaw wired completely shut for 6 weeks (kanye style), i would watch the food network allllllll the time. i don't know. it sounds like torture, but there was some sort of comfort in it. i could only consume liquids and was constantly hungry, but it didn't mean that i didn't want to see and learn about all the glorious eats that are out there! i just love food, man.

hot sesame oil. so yummy! and so sneaky on the hotness! you'll taste it and be like, "oh dat's not hot." 10 seconds later...aye!! but the flavor is fab. 

this whole meal is just delicious. made up of mostly vegetables and some sauces and spices, its so simple but soo tasty. and crisp and fresh! and sweet, savory, & spicy! and quick, too!

now i just feel like a hot sesame vegetable pusher.

[don't be scared by the apparent amount of ingredients in the recipe, its really super easy if you already have the items in your kitchen.]

i had originally planned to cook this with thin slices of beef. and it would be really good with chicken. but the veggies are just so pretty and flavorful on their own!

also, i'm just lazy in the meat cooking department.

its goooood guyyys. tryyy itttttt.

Hot Sesame Zucchini Noodles with Sautéed Rainbow Veggies

Total Time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 a red onion, chopped into chunks
• 1/2 a red bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 an orange bell pepper, sliced (i had an additional bit of yellow pepper that i used, too.)
• 2 medium sized zucchinis - spiralized
• 1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 2 tsp. hot sesame oil
• 2 TB olive oil
• 2 TB sesame seeds (toast them in a pan or in the oven if desired)
• 2 green onion stalks, sliced
• handful of cilantro leaves, chopped coarsely
• 1-2 tsp. red chili flakes (optional)
• black pepper & salt, to taste

Instructions-

Wash all produce thoroughly. Using a vegetable spiralizer, form spiraled noodles from 2 zucchinis. Spread the zucchini noodles out on a kitchen towel or paper towel to remove excess water. Chop the ends of the zucchinis into chunks if you have any remaining after spiralizing.

Start cooking your desired amount of white rice on the stove top or rice cooker. I usually make a cup of rice so that there are leftovers.

Heat a large pan to medium and add olive oil. Cook garlic until golden and fragrant. Add the red onion and toss in the hot olive oil until slightly translucent and tender, about 3 minutes. Add the sliced bell peppers and any zucchini chunks to the pan to cook. Allow the veggies to tenderize in the olive oil for a few minutes, stirring frequently. 

Add the sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, and regular sesame oil to the pan. Stir every couple of minutes and let the sauces heat up and begin to thicken and simmer with the veggies.

After about 10 minutes, remove pan from heat and add the zucchini noodles on top. Sprinkle the sesame seeds, black pepper and salt. Slowly drizzle a small amount of hot sesame oil over the zucchini (that stuff is surprisingly hot!). Using tongs or two forks, gently combine the zucchini noodles with the rest of the veggies.  

Garnish with green onion, cilantro, and extra sesame seeds! Serve immediately on a bed of white rice.

Soooo good. Soooo much flavor. Soooo simple. All vegetables!!!!!!!!!!

qp