Caramelized Tofu with Rice Noodles

We had quite the bizarre weather here in Tel Aviv today. Despite it being January, warm and dusty air filled the city and we decided to stay home in bed. Around mid-afternoon we started to get hungry and cooked up this light summery (and weather appropriate) dish of tofu and rice noodles. This delicate sweet-sour-spicy dish also makes a great "take it to the office" lunch.

Ingredients (makes 2-3 portions):

For the caramelized tofu:

300 gr tofu

4 tbs soy sauce

1 tbs sugar

For the noodles:

250 gr cooked rice noodles

2 tbs vegetable oil

1 tbs finely chopped garlic

1/2 tsp finely chopped red chili

2 tbs soy sauce

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp sesame oil

1/4 cup chopped coriander

The Recipe:

Prepare the tofu. In a large bowl, mix the soy sauce with the sugar. Slice the tofu into 1cm slices and add to the bowl. Mix well, making sure the tofu slices are completely covered in thee soy sauce mixture.

Place a grill plate over very high heat and wait until it is very hot. Place the tofu slices on the hot grill plate and grill for a 5 minutes on each side. Lower the heat and let grill until the tofu browns. Set aside and let cool. When the tofu cools, slice into 1cm slices.

For the sauce, fry the garlic and chili in the vegetable oil for a couple of minutes in a small pan. Add soy sauce, lemon juice and sesame oil and let cook for another 2 minutes.

Throw the chopped coriander, tofu and cooked noodles into a large bowl. Add the sauce and mix well.

Serve in personal bowls with a slice of lemon.

Soba noodles with Soy Nuggets in Tahini

At the supermarket, Rena was brave enough to buy a green bag containing something looking like dog food, with the title "Soy Goulash - Textured Soy Protein". Well, it might sound horrific but to our surprise, with the right recipe it can come out absolutely delicious! (and nutritious). Alarmed by the idea of actually making Goulash with the dog food-like nuggets, we came up with something yummy of our own.

Ingredients (enough for 3):

200 gr textured soy protein
250 soba noodles (you can also try with rice noodles or spaghetti)
1 medium onion, cubed
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp chopped ginger
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup tahini paste or other sesame paste
1 tbsp sugar
pepper
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1/2 cup chopped coriander

The recipe:
Prepare the soba noodles and soy nuggets in advance. It takes 10 minutes, just follow the instructions on the back.

Saute the onion, garlic and ginger with oil in a deep pan until the onion is golden. Add the soy nuggets and mix.
Add pepper, sugar and soy sauce, stir and let cook for 2 minutes.
Pour in the tahini paste and mix well. you can add some more sugar or soy sauce to taste, a bit of lemon juice is also a good option. Continue to cook the mixture for 5 more minutes to get the flavors absorbed into the nuggets.
Finally toss in the soba noodles and herbs, mix and remove from heat.

Enjoy.

Noum Bai Chok by the Waterfront, Sihanoukville

Noum Bai Chok (not sure about the spelling), yet another yummy Cambodian dish that came straight our way as we were slurping our mango smoothies, is rice noodles and herbs in a fish curry soup. It's made on the spot by the trusted smiling vendor who wanders around the beach carrying all the products on her shoulders. First she piles a bowl with assorted fresh herbs: mint, banana blossom, green beans and others we could not identify.

Then, she adds a handful of fresh hand-made rice noodles and covers the lot with a hearty fish curry broth.

All that was left for us was to add the condiments of dried/fresh chili, salt and sugar to our liking. God bless.

A word of advice: the best food on Cambodian beaches is sold by these mobile vendors.

Northern Eats, Chiang Mai

In Chiang Mai you are never too far from a hearty and incredibly delicious bowl of Khao Soi. This egg noodle curry soup, made from red curry, coconut milk and pieces of chicken, is topped with pickled mustard greens, sliced shallots, fried noodles and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. The place to get it is on Faham Road where many local restaurants serve the dish.

Xian Street Snacks... Savory

Xian is snack heaven. The Muslim quarter is crammed with eateries and stalls selling different surprises in every corner. We gathered our strength and managed to try almost everything. Here are the two best dishes of our savory culinary adventure, sweets come next.

Cold noodles two ways:
The thick rice noodles with sesame paste, vinegar and chili (to the left) were creamy but a little too vinegary for our taste. The thin buckwheat noodles with vinegar, mustard, salt, garlic sauce and hot chili (to the right) were excellent and had the exact amount of spice.



Filled pancakes are made by sandwiching two round and thin sheets of dough filled with a choice of spread. Options include ground meat and bean sprouts or egg and scallions to name a few. The pancake is then fried on both sides, cut into four and eaten with chopsticks. Don't know why we were surprised to find it too oily...

Noodle Soup

As we said before, we couldn't get enough and kept on coming back to the same stall at the Chinese Market in Kashgar. This noodle soup straight from the wok took our beloved vendor two minutes to cook up. Watch and learn:

First cook thin rice noodles and bok choy in boiling water.

When the noodles are cooked remove from the flame and strain. Transfer into a bowl and add a ladle of meat broth made with pieces of meat, ginger, garlic and green onions.

Don't forget a spoonful of pickled greens (any cabbage will do), to add that Chinese Market flavor.

Voila!


The same dish comes pre-packaged in styrofoam with lots of additives and MSG. It is a common dinner for the locals on the night train, as they pour boiling water, supplied by the somewhat irritated train staff, and slurp noisily, munching on raw pork sausage on the side. The Royals tried this and were appalled.

Noodles, Kashgar

Noodles are always made by hand. The Central Asian way (as opposed to Chinese pulled noodles etc.) is to flatten the dough into sheets and then to cut it into the desired width. These wheat noodles can be used for lachman.


On the other side of town (the Han part) Chowmein is served for lunch, freshly stir fried in a wok. One day, starving for something new we scurried to the Chinese Food Market and searched the many stalls for a cheap hearty meal. We found this noodle stall at the furthermost northeast corner and kept coming back for more.

The recipe is easy: oil, thinly sliced shitake, ground pork, white cabbage, beansprouts, green onions, egg (already scrambled and fried), sugar, soy and thin rice noodles, all added in this order. Stir fry in a wok and serve hot.

Locals eating noodles on the street.

Ashlyanfu Noodles at the Al-Tilek Bazaar, Karakol

Karakol has a large population of Dungan, an ethnic group of Muslim Chinese found in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and the Xinjiang province in China. Their cuisine combines Central Asian cooking with Far Eastern spices. 

Ashlyanfu Noodles are a light and delicious Dungan treat. Two types of noodles are mixed together in a bowl; cold wheat noodles and gelatinous bean noodles. The bean noodles are hand scraped from a mold.

A number of cold liquids are then added to the noodles. First, a vegetable mixture of tomatoes, green/red peppers, garlic and some fresh herbs. Then they are topped with a bit of very spicy red chili paste (beware!). Finally, a vinegary broth is poured over the dish, mixing everything together. 

The result is a tasty and fresh cold drowned noodle delicacy. Eat it with the locals on a bench at the market, and soak in the oriental atmosphere.