Vegetarian Fried Rice Noodles

Noodles, such as these, are a favorite of mine. In today’s grocery stores, thanks to international travel, there’s a lot more than spices on the shelves. This meatless version of fried noodles can be easily made at home even if you don’t live in tropical Asia. Most grocery stores now carry a wide assortment of Asian food and condiments. This recipe is adapted from a cookbook called, ‘Tropical Asian Cooking‘ which highlights recipes by Four Seasons Hotels (my favorite Canadian hotel). Shiitake mushrooms have natural antiviral and immunity boosting properties and are used nutritionally to fight viruses, lower cholesterol and regulate blood pressure. Researchers S. Suzuki and Oshima found that a raw shiitake eaten daily for one week lowered serum cholesterol by 12%. Click here for more health benefits of the Shiitake.

Serves 4
300g dried stick noodles (rice noodles)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
6-8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
4 eggs, lightly beaten
125g loosely packed bean sprouts, washed and drained
1 small onion, halved lengthways and thinly sliced
1/2 carrot, finely julienned
4 large shiitake or button mushrooms, stems discarded and caps thinly sliced
2-3 long beans, cut into 3/4 inch lengths (can use string beans)
2-3 red chilies, finely julienned
1 tablespoon paprika
2 tablespoons sugar
85ml (1/3 cup) fish sauce
85ml (1/3 cup) lime juice
sprigs of fresh coriander leaves to garnish
1 lime, quartered

Cook the noodles in boiling water until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold running water and drain again. Heat oil in a wok and add the garlic. Stir fry over medium heat for a few seconds then add eggs and stir until they begin to set. Push eggs to the side and add bean sprouts, onion, carrot, mushrooms, long beans, chilies. Stir fry until the vegetables are almost cooked (about 2 minutes).

Add noodles, paprika, sugar, fish sauce and lime juice. Stir fry to mix the noodles thoroughly with the other ingredients and heat through. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve immediately.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: You may have to run cold water again over the noodles to keep them from sticking to one another before adding to the wok. I removed the semi cooked eggs and added them back to the vegetable mixture along with the noodles. After plating up, take the lime and squeeze over the noodles. Enjoy!