A simple sesame noodle salad was the Desert Island dish that Rosie chose as the dish she eats the most often. And whilst it's not my place to say, I think it's a great choice. I'm a big fan of noodle salads. They are hearty, yet light and an egg noodle just doesn't leave the same slightly heavy feeling in your stomach as spaghetti does. The noodles can be dressed up in a whole host of different ways and can be packed full of flavour. They can deliver quite the punch.
A noodle salad also has the added benefit of being delicious cold. So if you want to be the envy of the office, whip this up the night before and eat these at your desk whilst trying to avoid the daggers of envy your colleagues are shooting you. If you are anything like me, knowing you have a packed lunch with you will occupy your every thought, and I always inevitable end up tucking into my lunch at around 9.33 am. I'm afraid I don't have the answer to this.
I love the sound of Rosie's Thai inspired noodles and so have created a recipe around that idea inspired by her choice. I loved Rosie's top tip about blanching the bean sprouts. I have since tried this out and it makes the world of difference so definitely worth trying if you too find raw beansprouts a bit mouldy tasting.
Rosie tends to her noodles veggie based which is delicious but I have taken the liberty of adding some left over cold roast chicken which goes perfectly with the nutty zingy sauce and the noodles. Stir fried beef would also be particularly good.
This is a sauce I have tried many times now and I am very happy with it. But it's important you keep tasting as you go and check that you too are happy with it. It's very easy to adjust to your personal preference and I do find when peanut butter is involved preferences can vary a little.
As for the veggies, well anything goes. Fresh red peppers, fried kale, blanched broccoli, raw carrots, bean sprouts...literally anything. Which, incidentally, makes this a wonderful dish to turn to when you are on a fridge forage. You know those days, where you are rootling around in the fridge, staring aimlessly at the floppy looking carrot and an old bit of cabbage. Transform those forlorn little veggies with this delicious dressing, and a handful of noodles. Creating a feast out of humble beginnings is just about my favourite thing to do.
PrintCold Noodle Salad with easy peanut dressing
- Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients
For the sauce:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 heaped tablespoon peanut butter
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
½ tsp liquid chicken stock (or a crumbled stock cube)
For the noodles:
1 tbsp sesame seeds
600g egg noodles
150g bean sprouts, blanched
125g kale, or cavolo nero
250g cold roast chicken
40g cucumber, peeled and diced
20g radishes, finely sliced
2 spring onions, chopped
Garnish:
80g salted peanuts, roughly chopped
Instructions
Simply whisk together all the dressing ingredients in a bowl. Give it a taste and adjust accordingly
Cook the egg noodles, rinse under cold water and pop into a bowl.
Put the chicken, cucumber, radishes, spring onion, bean sprouts and sesame seeds in with the noodles.
Quickly fry the cavolo nero and then add this to the bowl.
Pour over the dressing and give it a really good stir. Garnish with the chopped peanuts and enjoy!
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