Crispy Noodles

When I invite my friends over for dinner, I love to host them with Indo-chinese food. There is so much delicious and creative variety to make, and is not very easily available at the restaurant. One of our favorites is tossing fresh crisp noodles with veggies and sweet and sour sauce. These crispy noodles are perfect as an appetizer as well as main coarse with fried rice.

Although fried noodles are readily available in the market, I like to make them fresh at home. They are thin and crispier compared to the one in the restaurant. You should give this recipe a try for your next event. It is easy to prepare the veggies in sauce before guests arrive and toss the crisp noodles just before serving. Potstickers, or steamed dumpling, or wonton soup pairs really well with crispy noodles for the soup and appetizer coarse. 

Ingredients (Serves 4)

1 packet Ching's hakka noodles (or any noddles of your choice)

Oil for frying noodles

2 tbsp oil

1 cup sliced onions

1/2 cup sliced onion greens

1 tbsp. minced ginger

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 cup sliced bell pepper

1/2 cup julienne carrots

1/2 cup sliced green beans

1 cup shredded cabbage

1/2 cup bean sprouts

1/2 tsp. salt (if needed)

1 tbsp soy sauce 

1 tbsp chili garlic salt

1/4 cup tomato ketchup

• Using instructions on noodle packet, boil noodles. Drain water and pour cold water over cooked noodles to stop the cooking process.Let water drain out well.
• Heat oil and fry noodles in hot oil (be careful)in 3-4 batches. Do not put all the noodles in together as oil might overflow. Fry noodles till golden brown. Remove on a paper towel. Cool and store in an airtight container. Use whenever needed.

• Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a wok.
• Add ginger, garlic and onions and saute for 2 minutes.
• Add bell pepper, carrots and beans. Saute for 3-4 minutes till slightly cooked. 
• Add all sauces to sauteing veggies and mix well.
• Turn of the heat. Add shredded cabbage and mix well.
• Toss in crisp noodles. Mix well.
• Serve immediately garnished with onion greens and bean sprouts.

Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Using instructions on noodle packet, boil noodles. Drain water and pour cold water over cooked noodles to stop the cooking process.Let water drain out well.

Heat oil and fry noodles in hot oil in 3-4 batches. Do not put all the noodles in together as oil might overflow. Fry noodles till golden brown. Remove on a paper towel. Cool and store in an airtight container. Use whenever needed.

Heat oil in a wok.

Add ginger, garlic and onions and saute for 2 minutes.

Add bell pepper, carrots and beans. Saute for 3-4 minutes till slightly cooked. 

Add all sauces to sauteing veggies and mix well.

Turn of the heat. Add shredded cabbage and mix well.

Toss in crisp noodles. Mix well.

Serve immediately garnished with onion greens and bean sprouts.

 Enjoy Deliciously Crisp Noodles!!!

Banana Chakri

Summers in California are not harsh, but few days of strong heat are enough to make some some dehydrated veggies and snacks to store for the entire year. While most of the snacks we make are with potatoes and sabudana or sago pearls, I was thinking of my Jain friends and felt a need to make something for them. Check out my other recipes of dehydrated snacks.

People who follow Jainism as religion refrain from underground veggies and certain leafy vegetables most of the year and specially during monsoon months. They follow a strict pattern of diet in the life. Most of them are based on scientific reasoning, and they are worth adapting in our lives.

Raw banana is a substitute to recipes that use potatoes. Raw bananas are not sweet and have texture of boiled potatoes, so boiling and mashing them to make various recipes is very simple and easy for Jain friends. Lately, I tasted Jain pav bhaji which had raw bananas boiled and mashed instead of potatoes. It tasted yum and we could not even notice any difference.

This recipe was a successful experiment to making dehydrated snack for my Jain friends, and with one of their upcoming festival, I hope my friends like it.

Ingredients:
3 large raw bananas
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp salt

• Pressure cook raw bananas till you hear 4-5 whistles or around 30 minutes.
• Peel and grate them well to avoid pieces.
• Add salt and red chili powder and mix well
• If the mixture feel dry, add a tbsp or so of water and make a dough.
• Use a chakri press, Fill it with mashed banana dough and press to form round chakris. 
• Dry it in hot solar heat.
• Next day flip and dry on the other side too.
• Store in an air tight container when it is completely dehydrated.

To serve:
Deep fry in medium hot oil and enjoy crisp snack.

Pressure cook raw bananas till you hear 4-5 whistles or around 30 minutes.

Peel and grate them well to avoid pieces.

Add salt and red chili powder and mix well

If the mixture feel dry, add a tbsp or so of water and make a dough.

Use a chakri press, Fill it with mashed banana dough and press to form round chakris. 

Dry it in hot solar heat.

Dry it in hot solar heat.

Next day flip and dry on the other side too.

Store in an air tight container when it is completely dehydrated.

Dried chakris.

Deep fry in medium hot oil and serve.

Enjoy!!!