Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles

First off, a little bit of bragging: my wife made an absolutely fantastic meal for dinner tonight, and I was the lone recipient. Being Valentine’s Day, and seeing as our household has essentially a 40 to 1 ratio of meals prepared by myself compared to her, she decided to do something special for me. The result was fantastic! Honestly, I’m feeling a little threatened here. If she starts to build up her confidence in the kitchen, she may try to take over my duties, and I’ll be the one with a glass of wine in hand, taking a load off on the couch…

…Maybe I should tell her again how delicious dinner was…

Braised short ribs; risotto; spinach, strawberry and feta salad; and carrot cake dessert – tonight’s dinner was a big one. In all, it took her about 5 hours to throw together.

These Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles are the exact opposite in almost every way (I mean, aside from also being quite delicious). The noodles are made in quick time (15 minutes if you’re Jamie Oliver-esque, 25 if you’re more like me) and are extremely simple. That being said, they hit the spot just right.

I’d love to tell you more about these noodles, but the pictures will have to speak for themselves. As she spent 5 hours making dinner, tonight’s dirty dishes are my responsibility, and they’re calling my name quite loudly right now. Although IT IS late…and the bed is calling me as well…

By the way, what do you think of my new bowl? My wife got a new I-Phone yesterday, and I…I got that bowl. So I’m really hoping you like it…

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Adapted from Life Made Simple

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. coconut oil
• 3 carrots, cut shoe-string style
• 1 can bamboo shoots, shoe-string style
• 1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly-sliced and halved
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 250 g. rice noodles
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp. (90 ml.) smooth peanut butter
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 tbsp. runny honey
• 3 tbsp. rice vinegar
• 5 tsp. Sriracha
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 – 1 cup blanched peanuts, unsalted
• 4 green onions, diced
• small handful chopped cilantro leaves

Directions:

• To start, fill a medium-sized pot with water and bring to a boil. Toss in the noodles and cook according to the instructions on the package, usually about 4-6 minutes depending on thickness. Be sure to rinse the noodles under cold water and drain completely before setting aside for later.
• While the noodles are cooking, quickly put the sauce together. In a bowl, combine together the peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar and Sriracha. Whisk well to combine.
• Add the coconut oil to a wok placed over medium heat and allow the oil to warm up. Toss in the carrots, bamboo shoots and ginger, and stir-fry for about 5 minutes.
• Add in the garlic and the bell pepper to the wok and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Add the sauce to the wok, give everything a good stir, and allow the sauce to heat up for about 2 minutes.
• Add in the noodles, peanuts, green onions, pepper flakes and cilantro, then give everything a good toss to combine. (Alternately, any combination of the peanuts, green onions, pepper flakes and cilantro can all be added as garnish if preferred).
• Cook for anywhere from 1-5 minutes, until the noodles are heated throughout.
• Enjoy!

Serves 3-4 as a main