My name is attached to this not because I think I invented anything about this dish. Truthfully speaking, I figured once I reveal the ingredients behind this meal, that sound absolutely bonkers, no other group/person would want to lay claim to it. But it’s SO GOOD! Or my family is lying to me. But I choose to reject that narrative and present you with a quick and easy weeknight dinner option that is quite possibly the most customizable recipe out there. The speed in this recipe comes from two things: rice noodles and a “anything goes” attitude.
Ever since I was a kid I have loved all sorts of Asian cuisines. It wasn’t until I got older that I realized the labor and specialized ingredients it can take to recreate certain international dishes at home. Yes, there’s always take-out; but it’s not financially feasible for most of us to eat out every night. This recipe was really accidental (that might not be a surprise once you read a little further). I had an abundance of Thai basil growing in my garden this summer, and then the overwhelming desire to have Pad Basil one night. This is not that dish.
What this ended up being was really my first time cooking “off-book.” I simply went into the night with the knowledge I had to eat something, and the confidence that I could rely on my taste buds to take me in the direction I wanted to go. I am also proud of the accidental zero-waste direction this dish went in. There’s nothing like a hurricane outside to convince you to use what you have. Not following someone else’s directions meant I didn’t have to scrap any plans if I didn’t have a full cup of chopped mushrooms on hand, or fret if my bell pepper’s weren’t perfectly julienned. If you can take that chance on yourself, too, then you can do this!
At this point, I fear I have a confession to make. Soooo “recipe” might be stretching this a bit. There’s no set ingredients. No measurements. No cooking time.
No wait, don’t leave! I’m giving you something great, I promise. Let’s call it an outline. This recipe/outline derives its magic from whatever you have on hand in the fridge and pantry. You can certainly go out and grab other ingredients, but it’s not required. Enough confusion and secrecy, let me walk you through the process:
A Noodle Base
Theoretically, you could use any sort of noodle (or heck, even rice!) as the base to this stir-fry. However, your quickest option is going to be a package of rice noodles. I was absolutely ELATED the first time I picked up a package of rice noodles and saw that they could be prepared without boiling water. I know, boiling water is like, the easiest cooking skill out there. But as a relatively-novice cook, I have a hard time lining up cooking steps to present a cohesive meal that’s all done at the same time, so not having to worry about spending valuable time literally watching water boil is great news to me. You’ll see on the back of a rice noodle package that there is a hot water option for preparing the noodles for stir-fry. Set up the hot water bath and set aside.
Zhoosh It Up
Zhoosh, jeugje, zhuzh, however you say it, that’s what we’re doing here. If you have no idea what I’m trying to spell, I hope you’ll figure out from context clues. Like I said, this meal is the perfect opportunity to use any veggies in your fridge that are…less than perfect. Don’t throw that limp/bruised/squishy/discolored/half-used/almost bad produce away! We’re going to chop it all up into bite-sized pieces and sauté in a large skillet over medium heat. A lot of flavor will come from the sauce, but don’t forget to splash some salt, pepper, garlic powder, and anything else you’d like at this step. Here’s a list of just some of the veggies I’ve added in the past:
- bell peppers
- onion
- minced garlic
- green beans
- kale
- tomatoes
- mushrooms
- scallion
- spinach
- broccolini
You are also welcome to add various pre-cooked sources of extra protein such as chicken, shrimp, beef, etc. Just make sure they’re already cooked by this step to add them in amongst the produce. Or, throw a couple eggs to fry up in the pan as well.
Get (Secret) Saucy
I fear that if I haven’t lost you yet, this might be where you close out this browser window. But please here me out!
Once your veggies are soft and tender, add your drained noodles to the same pan. Stir to lightly combine. One thing about me is I hate doing dishes, so I prefer to build a sauce directly into the pan, but you could certainly make it in a separate container. However, I also feel that adding the sauce ingredients directly into the pan promotes the spirit of ingenuity this is based on. Are you ready for the sauce ingredients?
The stir-fry sauce is made from: anything you want.
You think I’m lying? I promise I’m not. My strategy to dress this noodle dish has seriously been “grab anything brown from the fridge and raid the oil shelf.” And if you were to buy a pre-made sauce, you’d probably see it’s made of a similar array of ingredients. I’m just trying to save you the stress of getting measurements exactly right, and the cost of buying anything extra and obscure. Every time I pour a sauce from the fridge over the noodles I measure with my heart. If this stresses you out, here’s a rough estimate of what I add to the noodles. Take anything out, add anything in, modify quantities, I truly don’t care. You’re the one eating it! In approximate order of most –> least added, my sauce may include:
- soy sauce
- dumpling or chili sauce
- oyster sauce
- hoisin sauce
- Worcestershire sauce
- sesame oil
- a squirt of lime (I know that’s not brown but it’s worth including! Can be bottled)
If that wasn’t bad enough, the one ingredient I prescribe you use is bullion paste.
“You mean add chicken/beef/vegetable broth, and we can make it from the bullion paste if needed?”
No, I said what I said. Add bullion paste directly to your noodles.
Truthfully, this “hack” if you will was discovered as a result of my aversion to soiling any “unnecessary” dishes. But think about it: why would you want to dilute your dish with water? There will already be plenty of hot liquid in the pan by this point to dissolve the paste, so water, in my humble opinion, is unnecessary. If you’re a rule follower, feel free to prepare the broth as usual; you may just have to cook it longer to cook off some of the liquid. Or just live with a runnier sauce. See — it’s all totally up to you! Make sure to give the noodles and add-ins a good toss so they get evenly coated in your sauce before serving.
Top it Off
As a final touch, feel free to plate and serve topped with extras like thai basil, sesame seeds, chopped green onions, peanuts, etc. Using the full package of rice noodles, this dish can make between 4-6 servings depending on how much you add in and how hungry you are. It’s a great meal prep option!
TADA!
I really hope the brave and willing amongst you will give this recipe a try. I pinky promise it’s all going to come together. And if it doesn’t, there’s always buttered noodles and take-out.
Cheers to eating on a school night before 8pm!
Anastasia
Are you familiar with cotija cheese? If not, football season is the perfect time to try it out! Cotija cheese is a semi-hard, slightly aged cheese from Mexico that crumbles like parm but with a stronger, saltier flavor. It doesn’t melt, so it’s often used for crumbling on top of dishes. But it doesn’t have to be regaled to the sidelines! We curated some great recipes that use cotija cheese in a variety of contexts — but they’re all great for this weekend.
