THE PLEASURE OF EATING
A HEARTY BOWL OF NOODLES
Down-to-earth dishes
- Published: 5/07/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Brunch
The Disney channel is my window to youth culture. That young people like singing and dancing is nothing new. That they work hard at it and elevate it into a mega business is evident in the runaway success of the likeS of the High School Musical series of movies. But what I was watching the other evening filled me with wonder and open-mouthed admiration. It's a Disney movie called Jump In, which centred on a double Dutch jump rope competition. We've all done some rope skipping in our youth, both the individual kind and the long-rope kind with two turning the rope and one jumping. But I've left my experience of it so far behind in the mist of time I don't think I have ever thought about it again.
Roast duck noodle soup.
Double Dutch jump rope is not new. It was introduced by the Dutch to New Amsterdam, present day New York, in the 1600s, hence the name. In case you are not familiar with it, it's a sport in which two long jump ropes are turned in opposite directions, and are jumped by one player or by several players jumping simultaneously. In competition, these multiple players don't just jump up and down, they do gymnastic turns, they breakdance, they break speed records in footwork, they perform miracles of synchronised movements. Think of the creative daring that goes into the dreaming up of seemingly impossible moves, think of the hundreds of hours of practise to make those moves possible. The teamwork is awesome.
What impresses me most is the sheer singled-mindedness of the purpose. This is a sport for young people - to have fun, to keep fit. The glory of winning competitions is as high as the sports will take them. It ends when they cross the threshold into adulthood. Unlike football, basketball, baseball, ice-skating, tennis, or singing and dancing, they cannot take it into a professional realm. As far as I know, they cannot parlay it into a career. And yet the level of dedication and the tide of popularity worldwide for double dutch is quite astounding. Jump In premiered to 8.2 million viewers in the US before going international on the Disney channel. As a final accolade, beginning in the spring of 2009, double Dutch will become a varsity sport in New York public high schools.
I wish that Thai youth would take up something like double Dutch. As a nation, we're very weak on teamwork and on anything requiring dedicated practice. Consequently we never have, and probably never will have, any enduring world-class champion in single sports like tennis, or in team sports like football. Team spirit and competitive spirit must be developed very early in life. To encourage young people to have fun and to be good at something like double Dutch jump rope, to give them, via competition, fame and adoring fans, may give them an addiction that could fuel similar drive in adulthood.
After all, jump rope is street sport - no expensive equipment, special location or clothing needed. It's as down-to-earth as a bowl of street noodles. The simile doesn't end there. As you can make jump rope a choreographed masterpiece, so can you upgrade noodle dishes to grace your dining table. One simple trick takes roast duck noodle soup from market to mansion is the selective use of duck breast fillet only. I love duck noodle soup but don't enjoy manipulating my teeth and tongue prying duck meat off the bone. In my recipe, the duck breast fillets are marinated overnight before being roasted to perfect pinkness, and sliced to crown a bowl of rice noodle sticks in a flavorful soup.
Singapore-style noodles.
The Singapore-style noodles is a showcase of Chinese and nonya (combining Chinese and Malay influences) cuisine coming together to make a most delicious dish of turmeric-hued rice noodles tossed with mushrooms, prawns, bacon, chicken and spiced with ginger, chillies, soya and oyster sauces. The peanut chicken noodle salad is also Chinese-Malay in influence with a peanut sauce reminiscence of satay. I take the most liberty with the chilli crab noodles. I don't mind tucking into a plate of steamed crab with both hands, breaking the shells and coaxing the meat out, but I don't like doing that when trying to eat a bowl of noodles. Like the duck noodle soup, I like easy-to-eat meat. So instead of whole crab as in the original recipe, I use only crabmeat gently tossed in at the last minute so as not to break down the nice big chunks, and this, on the day of the photoshoot, was the first to disappear into our collective stomachs.
ROAST DUCK NOODLE SOUP
To serve two
INGREDIENTS:
2!duck breast fillets, skin on!
- For the marinade
1 tsp! five-spice powder!
1 tbsp! sesame oil!
3 tbsp! hoisin sauce!
3 tbsp! brown sugar!
3 tbsp! water!
1 tbsp! dark soya sauce!
- For the soup base
1!litre chicken stock!
2!dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and drained!
100g! shredded Chinese cabbage!
1 tbsp! light soya sauce!
1 tbsp! Chinese rice wine!
1 tbsp! rice vinegar!
200g! pad thai noodles, cooked until al dente!
1!spring onion, chopped on the diagonal!
40g! green beans, sliced!
1!large handful coriander leaves and stalks, roughly chopped!
Peanut chicken noodle salad.
PREPARATION:
1. Place all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl and stir to combine. Pour over duck breast in a bowl, toss to coat. Cover the bowl and let marinate in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 200C/fan 180C. Heat a pan over high heat. Remove the duck from the marinade and pat it dry. Place in the pan, skin side down, and cook until well-browned, then turn and cook the other side until golden brown. Transfer to a baking tray, skin side up, and cook in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or to your liking.
3. Soup base: Heat a pan, add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer, then add the Chinese mushrooms and cabbage and bring to the boil. Stir in the soya sauce, rice wine, vinegar, green beans and coriander; bring to the boil. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Divide noodles between two serving bowls. Ladle over some soup. Slice the duck breast fillets and place on top, garnish with a few coriander sprigs, if you like, and serve.
SINGAPORE-STYLE NOODLES
To serve two
INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp! vegetable oil!
1 tbsp! grated ginger!
1!red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped!
5!shiitake mushrooms, sliced!
1-2 tbsp! turmeric!
175g! tiger prawns, shelled and deveined!
100g! bacon, chopped!
1!red pepper, deseeded and sliced!
1!handful julienne carrot strips!
1!handful green beans, sliced!
100g! cooked chicken breast, shredded!250g! dried vermicelli rice noodles, softened in boiling water and drained!
1 tsp! dried chilli powder!
2 tbsp! light soya sauce!
2 tbsp! oyster sauce!
1 tbsp! rice vinegar!
1!egg, beaten!
dash sesame oil
2!spring onions, sliced lengthways
Chilli crab noodles.
PREPARATION:
1. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok and stir-fry the ginger, chilli, mushrooms and turmeric for a few seconds. Add the prawns and stir-fry until they start to turn pink, then add the bacon and cook for less than a minute. Add the rest of the vegetables and cook for one minute, then add the chicken and stir well to combine.
2. Add the noodles and stir-fry for two minutes, then season with the chilli powder, soya sauce, oyster sauce and vinegar and stir to combine. Add the beaten egg, stir gently until the egg is cooked through, and then season with sesame oil. Sprinkle with the spring onions and serve immediately.
PEANUT CHICKEN NOODLE SALAD
To serve two
INGREDIENTS:
250g! dried unpolished-rice vermicelli noodles, softened in boiling water and drained!
a little sesame oil
1 tbsp! light soya sauce!
2!skinless chicken breast, cooked and shredded!
1!large handful unsalted cashew nuts, to garnish!
- For the peanut sauce
1 tbsp! vegetable oil!
2!shallots, finely chopped!
3 tbsp! crunchy peanut butter!
1!red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped!
6 tbsp! vegetable stock!
3 tbsp! water!
- To serve
1!red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped!
1/2!cucumber, halved lengthways, deseeded and finely sliced!
1!small handful raw bean sprouts!
1!small handful chopped coriander!
1!spring onion, sliced lengthways!
PREPARATION:
1. Toss the noodles in the sesame oil and soya sauce. Cover and chill until needed. Dry-fry the cashews in a hot pan for a few minutes until browned. Crush in a pestle and mortar.
2. Peanut sauce: Heat a wok over a high heat and add the oil. Add the shallots and fry until translucent, then add the peanut butter and red chilli and stir-fry together for less than a minute. Add the stock and water and mix well. As the sauce starts to bubble, turn heat off and transfer to a bowl.
3. Layer noodles with the serving ingredients on each plate, then top with the shredded chicken. Drizzle over the sauce, sprinkle over the cashew nuts and serve immediately.
CHILLI CRAB NOODLES
To serve two
INGREDIENTS:
4 tbsp! vegetable oil!
6!garlic cloves, finely chopped!
2 tbsp! grated ginger!
3!red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped!
200g! cooked crabmeat, in chunks!
150ml! water!
1 tbsp! lime juice!
300g! fine egg noodles, cooked just to soften, drained!
1!spring onion, sliced lengthways!
1!handful coriander leaves and stalks, roughly chopped!
- For the chilli crab sauce
250ml! water!
5 tbsp! tomato ketchup!
2 tbsp! light soya sauce!
1 tbsp! sugar!
2 tsp! cornflour!
PREPARATION:
1. Put all the ingredients for chilli crab sauce in a bowl and mix well. Put to one side.
2. Heat a wok over a high heat and add the oil. Add the garlic, ginger and chillies and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Stir in the chilli crab sauce and cook for a minute, then add the water and lime juice. Add the noodles and toss well, then top with crabmeat, spring onion and coriander. Serve immediately.
Relate Search: NOODLES, High School Musical, duck noodle
About the author
- Writer: PRISNA BOONSINSUKH
