Singapore Noodles
| April 28, 2011 | Filled under Asian, Main Dishes, Pasta, Rice, & Grains, Poultry |
Singapore noodles are spicy rice noodles stir fried with curry powder and veggies. But I heard they don’t actually have Singapore noodles in Singapore? I guess it’s like how in China, they don’t call it ‘Chinese food’, just ‘food’? Have you been to Singapore and had these noodles?
It’s a spicy, simple, easy to make weeknight supper and considering my family is Hakka Chinese from India, these flavours definitely suit my taste buds. You can find it on the menu at most Chinese restaurants, but with this recipe you can make them at home instead – that way you can control the spiciness.
Chopping the veggies and chicken is the most time consuming part of making this whole dish – the cooking time is actally pretty fast. If you plan to make this on a weeknight, prep the veg and chicken the night before and put everything in the fridge. That way when you get home, you can just toss everything in the wok and eat in no time. Oh, and you can add bean sprouts too – they just need a rinse. No chopping = saving time. They didn’t look so fresh when I was shopping so I passed on them.
The noodles don’t take too long to soften (use hot or boiling water to speed up the process).
Coating the raw chicken in some GF tamari soy sauce and cornstarch is a Chinese technique to give the meat a more velvety texture and more flavour. It’s called velveting the meat and you can read more about it here. As for the vermicelli noodles, you can find them in the Asian aisle of your grocery store. In the Asian supermarkets, there are whole aisles dedicated to the different varieties noodles, which can be overwhelming. Don’t stress out – anything that says ‘rice stick’ or ‘vermicelli’ will work.
Recipe (serves 3-4)
Singapore Noodles (Gluten Free)
- 12 oz dried vermicelli rice sticks
- 4 Tbsp canola oil
- 2 organic chicken breasts, thinly sliced across the grain and cut into thin slices
- 1 tsp plus 2 Tbsp GF tamari soy sauce
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 onion thinly sliced
- 2-3 carrots, cut into 3″ matchsticks
- 2 celery stalks, cut into 3″ matchsticks
- 1 red pepper
- 3 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce
- 3 stalks green onion, thinly sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
Soak vermicelli in warm water for 10 minutes in hot water, until softened but not mushy. In a medium bowl, mix the chicken with 1 teaspoon soy sauce and cornstarch and mix until chicken is evenly coated. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large wok on medium-high heat and add half the chicken. Stirfry the chicken until just cooked, about 3-4 minutes. Remove chicken from wok and repeat with remaining chicken.
Add remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to wok and add onions; cook for 2 – 3 minutes until softened. Add carrots, celery and peppers and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add drained vermicelli noodles, curry powder, chili powder, turmeric, remaining 2 tablepoons soy sauce, and fish sauce. Toss until well combined – the noodles should be evenly yellow coloured and a bit powdery. Add back the chicken, green onions and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and serve.
Ness, I made this recipe. It turned out great! Thanks for your postings ..keep them coming
awesome!!!! thx