Spicy Peanut Noodles

This is a combination of recipes I have tried over the years including ones from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, Joanne Chang, and Saveur magazine. In the end, though, it is different from each of them because it reflects our family’s tastes.  You can make it with or without meat added (this recipe uses ground pork, but ground turkey or shredded chicken would work equally well and vegetarian is also fine) and you can adjust the heat to your own taste.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. ground pork (optional)

2 large cloves of garlic, finely minced

3/4″ piece of ginger, very finely minced or grated

1/4 c. smooth peanut butter

1/8 c. miso, preferably white

1/8 c. rice wine vinegar

3 T. soy sauce

1 t. toasted sesame oil or more to taste (you can also substitute regular sesame oil if that is what you have)

1 T. honey or brown sugar

1/2 to 1 t. chili paste with garlic or more(Lan Chi brand is good)

chopped peanuts (you can use either salted or unsalted depending on what you like)

2 scallions

1/2 lime, cut into four wedges

10 oz. package of Chinese noodles (in a pinch you can substitute pasta, such as thin spaghetti, but the curliness of Chinese noodles make for a better dish)

Preparation:

1. In a large fry pan, brown the ground pork, if using.  Drain on paper towels and set aside.
2. Place a large pot of water, salted, on to boil for the noodles.
3. In a large bowl (you will be adding the noodles to this so it needs to be large), mix the garlic, ginger, peanut butter, miso, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil,  and honey/brown sugar.
4. Add the chili paste with garlic 1/4 t. at a time until the sauce is just a little hotter than you want the dish (the noodles will dilute the heat a bit).
5. Mix the drained pork (if using) into the sauce.  If it seems too thick you can add a little hot water to thin it out a bit, although the moisture sticking to the noodles will also do this.
6. If the peanuts are not already chopped, chop them and place in a small bowl and set aside.
7. Slice the white and about 1/2 of the green of the scallions and set aside.
8. Place the noodles in the boiling water and use tongs or two forks to pull them apart so they cook evenly.
9. When noodles are just cooked, drain them thoroughly and add them to the bowl with the sauce and toss well.
10. Serve noodles topped with a sprinkling of peanuts and scallions and a wedge of lime on the side.