This recipe was brought to us by our friend Jasmine. It's Jasmine's grandma's recipe and a big favorite in their family.
Grandma
lives in China Town and these fresh rice noodles were bought right at
the store that makes them. But similar noodles are available in Asian
groceries or in the Asian aisle of the grocery store.
Jasmine
used a prepared chili sauce that has lots of red pepper in it. We
changed the recipe so you could have the option of spicy or not .
Jasime's
mom Lily says that this style of cooking is very popular in Chinese
restaurants. Once you've mastered this style you can substitute
chicken, pork, tofu or seitan and make a number of different dishes.
We're using an electric wok for this recipe but you can use a wok on the stove or even a regular frying pan.
{Makes 4-6 servings}
You'll need:
1 head of fresh broccoli - cut into flowerettes
1/2 package of wide Chinese rice noodles
3/4 pound of lean beef - cut in 1 inch strips
1/2 pound of mung bean sprouts
1/2 sweet red pepper - cut in cubes
1/2 green pepper - cut in cubes
2 green onions
- cut into thin strips
1 - 2 tablespoons of black bean sauce
1 tablespoon of corn starch
2 tablespoons of water
1 inch of ginger - finely grated
1 clove of garlic - finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon of hot red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons of cooking oil
Some adult help
Equipment:
A wok or frying pan
A colander
2 wooden spoons
A plate
An oven mitt
Pour about 1 1/2 cups of water into the wok.
Add the broccoli and steam it until it is tender but still has a bit of
a crunch to it. Ask for help draining the broccoli. Set it aside for
the moment.
Our rice noodles came in big sheets. So we cut them into 1 inch strips.
Heat the wok on medium-high heat for about 3 minutes, then add the oil.
Heat the oil until it gets a haze on the surface.
Ask your adult helper to add the noodles because the hot oil can "spit" and, boy, that oil is hot, hot, hot!
Let
the noodles cook for about 5 minutes or until they are slightly
browned. Turn them over and brown the other side. Cooked this way, wide
rice noodles will have a little crunch around the edges yet be soft in
the middle when you eat them.
Here's another place you may need adult
help. Use the wooden spoons to take the noodles out of the wok. Try to
let the oil drip off them before you transfer them to the plate.
Mix the corn starch in 2 tablespoons of water until it is smooth.
Put the meat in the bowl and add the soy sauce and corn starch mixture.
If
the wok is too dry, you might need to add a little oil here because you
don't want the next ingredients to stick.
Put the beef strips into the wok and brown them.
Now add the broccoli, peppers and onion and briskly stir fry.
Don't let the veggies get too soft. You want them to have a little crispness.
Add the bean sauce, the garlic and the ginger and stir fry.
