Chicken Stir-Fry with Soba Noodles

We don't tend to cook very complicated stuff during the week, as it usually requires more prep time and a few more components. There's nothing like an easy knockout - and this was surely one of them.

As always, I modified the original recipe. Vanessa and I like our Asian food with a little kick to it, except we tend to leave Japanese food recipes more or less intact. Here we put some red pepper flakes, Sichuan peppercorns and red chili paste in at the beginning with the garlic and ginger.

Embarrassingly, I used a stock cube, having run out of real stock. I have to confess though, it DID bring a level of umami savory-ness to the overall taste of the dish. It packed a real "I'm-going-to-keep-eating-this-no-matter-how-full-I-am-feeling" sort of quality, which is nice.

We also added some extra veggies we had laying around (a pack of frozen peas and half a pack of leftover bean sprouts) which helped us use up our veg, and it did not compromise the Asian flavor profile. Nice, simple and delicious.

15 g arrowroot or cornflour
220 milliliters chicken stock
75 milliliters beef stock
1 teaspoon sesame oil
25 g garlic, minced
25 g ginger, minced
1 tablespoon whole Sichuan peppercorns
1 tablespoon red chili paste
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 kg chicken breast, cut into strips
150 g snow peas
200 g frozen peas, thawed
200 g shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 red pepper, julienne
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 Chinese cabbage, leaves only, chiffonade
1 handful bean sprouts
70 milliliters soy sauce
450 g soba noodles, cooked

To make the stir-fry sauce, combine the arrowroot with enough of the stock to make a smooth paste and reserve. Combine the remaining stocks in a small sauce pot and bring to a simmer. Add the arrowroot paste and simmer until the stock has thickened, about 2 minutes, Keep warm.

Heat the oil in a wok or large saute pan. Add the garlic, ginger, peppercorns, chili paste and pepper flakes and stir-fry until aromatic. Add the chicken and stir-fry until the meat is firm and light in color, about 2 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with 6 T of the stir-fry sauce. Add the peas, mushrooms, peppers, and scallions. Stir-fry until very hot and almost tender, about 2 minutes. Add the cabbage, bean sprouts, soy sauce, and enough of the thickened stock to wilt the cabbage, if necessary.

Toss the soba noodles with the remaining thickened stock separately over high heat until the noodles are very hot.

This makes 5-6 servings.