April 24, 2021
We have reached the end of April. This week, we experienced some snowfall, just a couple inches, but still, for April in Ohio, this is somewhat odd. Earlier this month, we had a few days with warmer weather and sunshine. While there were some colder days here and there, most signs pointed to the start of spring. Here in my cozy kitchen, I’ve been experimenting with testing out new dishes and putting spins on classic favorites. I’ve recently been craving noodles and got to work in the kitchen to make some homemade wheat noodles. Homemade wheat noodles are one of the easiest noodles to pull together in the kitchen. It requires just three ingredients – flour, salt, and water. It’s also easy to scale up if needed to feed more people. I start with some flour in a bowl, a heavy pinch of kosher salt, and a slow stream of water. I add just enough water until a relaxed dough is formed. Resting the dough is key to allow the glutens within the dough to develop and the kosher salt to work its magic in providing elasticity to the dough. I usually let the dough rest for at least an hour while I prepare the rest of the ingredients to add into the noodles. My latest version features Thai basil, Thai chilis, as much vegetables as Kevin can tolerate in a dish, and some crushed peanuts at the very end. Whenever I make noodles, I like to mix in a variety of crunchy vegetables to add texture to the dish. Noodles were something both Kevin and I ate a ton of growing up. Kevin got his fix of endless options of noodles growing up in a food mecca on the opposite side of the world, Hong Kong. I got my fix of endless options of noodles in another food metropolis here in the U.S., New York City. Plus, noodles were something my family made all the time as an easy and cheap way to feed a whole family. I started making a version featuring Thai flavors as a way to use up the fresh Thai basil I’ve been growing in my AeroGarden since November. For the vegetable component of the dish, I piled on tons of aromatics (the Asian trifecta of ginger, garlic, scallions), Thai basil, Thai chilis, red onion, baby bok choy, and crunchy carrots. I love the vibrant colors of these veggies when combined in a dish. Most people will probably agree the more colorful a dish is, the more palatable the dish becomes. Topping the noodles with some crushed peanuts at the very end adds another crunchy textural element to the dish and further enhances the pleasantness of the dish. Whenever I prepare dough for noodles, I like to reserve part of the dough for savory pancakes. Most of the time, the savory pancakes take the form of scallion pancakes. This time though, I folded in some fresh dill and parsley as a way to use up the dill and parsley growing wildly in my AeroGarden. Fresh homemade hand cut noodles with a side of herby pancakes and some dipping sauce made for the perfect chill weekend lunch for two. To round out the rest of our meal, we had to have some fruity bubble tea complete with freshly brewed tea and some mango juice. Now, we finally feel complete.
For the homemade noodles (and optional savory pancakes):
· 2½ cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling out the dough
· 1 teaspoon kosher salt
· 1 cup lukewarm water
· ½ inch knob of ginger, minced
· 2 garlic cloves, minced
· 2 scallions, thinly sliced, divided
· 6-8 stems of Thai basil, thick part of stems removed, divided
· 2 Thai chilis, partially deseeded and thinly sliced
· ½ large or 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
· 2 carrots, thinly sliced into sticks
· 6 baby bok choy, quartered
· 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
· ¼ cup hot water
· 2 tablespoons soy sauce
· 2 tablespoons fish sauce
· 8-10 cups of water, for boiling the noodles
· 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, for boiling the noodles
· 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
· crushed peanuts, for serving
*Note: You can use all of the dough for a larger batch of noodles or divide part of the dough to make some savory pancakes like I did. Check out my recipe for savory pancakes for steps on how to make them.
Directions:
1) Prepare the dough for the homemade noodles by combining the all-purpose flour, teaspoon of kosher salt, and lukewarm water in a large bowl. Use your hands to begin kneading the mixture until a relaxed dough is formed, about 5-7 minutes. Cover the bowl with a large plate or a sheet of plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for at least an hour.
2) While the dough is resting, prepare the aromatics, vegetables, and sauce for the dish. Arrange the minced ginger, minced garlic, sliced scallions, Thai basil, and sliced chilis on a plate. Arrange the sliced red onion, sliced carrots, and quartered baby bok choy on another plate. Prepare the sauce for coating the noodles by dissolving the sugar in the hot water and stirring in the soy sauce and fish sauce. Preparing the ingredients for the noodles ahead of time makes for a much smoother and easier cooking process. Set the aromatics, vegetables, and sauce aside.
3) After an hour has passed, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. If making savory pancakes, divide the dough in half and reserve the other half for the savory pancakes. Otherwise, use the other half of the dough for even more noodles. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a rectangular shape onto the lightly floured surface. Use a sharp knife to slice the dough into about ¼ inch strips. Transfer the hand cut noodles to a well-floured plate. Repeat the process with the other divided dough or follow the instructions to make my savory pancakes here.
4) Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Fill with 8-10 cups of water. Let the pot of water come to a boil. Add in the tablespoon of kosher salt. Transfer the hand cut noodles a handful at a time into the boiling water and let the noodles cook for 1-2 minutes. Transfer the boiled noodles to a plate. Repeat with the rest of the hand cut noodles.
5) Heat a large skillet on medium high heat. Add in two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Transfer the minced ginger, garlic, half of the scallions, half of the Thai basil, and the sliced chilis to the skillet. Stir quickly to cook the aromatics for about 30 seconds. Add in the vegetables and quickly stir to cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes. Transfer the boiled noodles to the skillet. Pour in the sauce and stir quickly to cook for another 1-2 minutes. Transfer the cooked noodles and vegetables to a serving bowl. Top with the remaining scallions, Thai basil, and crushed peanuts right before serving.
Takeaways: I found resting the dough for at least an hour really helped the dough develop the elasticity needed for the bouncy noodle texture. The dough did get sticky as I cut into it, so I found using a heavy sprinkle of flour helped prevent the strands of hand cut noodles from sticking to one another. Since the noodles are fresh noodles, they take almost no time to cook. Boiling the noodles prior to tossing the noodles into the rest of the vegetables helped the noodles achieve the perfect bouncy, succulent texture. My next experiment will be to recreate the perfect rice noodles, so stay tuned!
