10-minute chilli peanut and sesame noodles

This is an extract from Everything is Indian by Justin Narayan (Murdoch books, $39.99)

10-Minute Chilli Peanut/Sesame Noodles

This is super easy to make. I’ve made it a game to see how quickly I can do it. My record is 7 minutes.

Serves 2 × Active/total time 10 minutes

1 teaspoon grapeseed oil

250 g (9 oz) minced (ground) pork (see tip)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Pinch of ground white pepper

400 g (14 oz) whatever fresh noodles you like (I go for udon)

SAUCE

2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter or tahini

1 tablespoon chilli oil

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

2 teaspoons black vinegar (rice wine vinegar can work too)

3 garlic cloves, crushed, or 1½ teaspoons garlic paste (page 59)

¼ teaspoon caster (superfine) sugar

¼ teaspoon MSG or chicken stock (bouillon) powder (see tip)

¼ teaspoon ground white pepper

TO SERVE

2 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced (optional)

Chilli oil or sliced fresh red chilli

Get a saucepan of water boiling. Heat the grapeseed oil in a frying pan over high heat, then spread the pork over the base of the pan as evenly as you can. Let that one side cook until browned and crispy, about 3–5 minutes. Add the soy sauce and white pepper and give it a stir. Cook for another 3–5 minutes. You want to cook it further than you might think. (You’re not going for a juicy or tender pork, you want a dry, crispy texture.) If you’re confident, while the pork is cooking, mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, then place the noodles in the saucepan of boiling water. Cook according to packet instructions. When they’re done, reserve ¼ cup (60 ml) of the noodle water, then drain the noodles and add them to the sauce bowl. Add 2–3 tablespoons of reserved noodle water to the bowl and mix, adding more noodle water if necessary. Plate up by dividing the noodles between serving bowls and topping each with the pork, spring onion, if using, and chilli oil or fresh chilli.

TIPS
You can use frozen pork mince for this. I get mince, put it in a ziplock bag, then flatten it out. If you get it really thin, you don’t need to thaw it. Just whack it straight in the pan. To go meat free, sub out the pork for sliced mushrooms, cabbage, broccoli or firm tofu. If you’re using Laoganma Hot Chilli Oil or another chilli oil with MSG in it, you don’t need to add much (if any) MSG to the sauce.

GINGER AND GARLIC PASTES
Because I’m making so many recipes that require garlic and ginger, I keep jars of garlic and ginger paste in my fridge. I make my own in bulk. Get a whole heap of garlic and ginger, peel, roughly chop and blend each separately with a pinch of salt and a little oil (to help extend the shelf life), then place each in a clean jar and store in the fridge. For 1 cup (about 150 g) chopped garlic or ginger, go with a pinch of salt (2–4 g/1/8 oz) and 1–2 tablespoons oil. If you can’t be bothered, buy some, but I find the flavour of store-bought to be more subdued, so you may need to add more to the recipe to get the same impact as fresh garlic/ginger or a homemade paste.