New Year's Noodles

New Year's Noodles

So many of you shared that you enjoyed last week's recipe that we asked our friends Damien & Melissa for another one.

This New Year's Noodles dish speaks to my heart, or should I say, tummy. I love peanut buttery Pad Thai noodle dishes. I can't wait to make this one tonight! 

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 package instant rice noodles (approx. 8 oz package) 
• 1 lb of ground chicken, or any ground protein of your choice
• 1 red bell pepper, finely diced
• 2 to 3 cups of sugar snap peas, diced
• 6 green onions, sliced
• 5 tbsp sesame oil
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 tbsp creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 tsp Chinese Five Spice (omit if you cannot find)
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• Black pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp cayenne (optional)
• Lime (optional)
• Cilantro (optional)

Instructions

1. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil.
2. Add rice noodles to a large bowl and pour the boiling water over the noodles. Let sit for 2 minutes until soft. Then, drain the water and rinse the noodles with cold water. Let the noodles sit while you go onto the next steps.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of the sesame oil to a skillet and add the ground meat. Cook and break up into a fine crumble as it cooks.
4. In a bowl, add your soy sauce, vinegar, 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, peanut butter, pepper, ginger, Chinese Five Spice, garlic powder, sesame seeds and optional cayenne, whisk until well combined and the peanut butter is whisked in smooth.
5. When the ground meat is almost fully cooked, add your green onions and sauté for a couple minutes, then remove this from the skillet.
6. Add the last tablespoon of sesame oil, and the peppers and sugar snap peas, sauté for about 7 minutes, or until the veggies are soft but still have some crunch.
7. Add back the ground meat and the sauce and bring to a simmer for about 2 minutes.
8. Add your cooked rice noodles to the skillet, they will be kind of sticky, but the heat and sauce with help separate them. Sauté for about 5 minutes, tossing well to coat in the sauce and to combine with the meat and veggies.
9. Serve with more sesame seeds on top and more green onions. Finish with a squeeze of lime juice and cilantro.

Recipe Source