Chewy noodles coated in a luscious, creamy sauce that is nutty and savory.

Peanut Noodles

Serves 2

Peanut noodles are another of those dishes that took me quite a few tries to get right. From my understanding, in the most traditional form, these noodles are made with a toasted sesame paste, however, that paste can sometimes be difficult to obtain outside of China. Because of this, sesame noodles are typically made with peanut butter. Because of this and my nontraditional deviations, I’m calling these noodles peanut rather than sesame.

For me, I’ve struggled to find the balance of nuttiness to sweet and savory that my favorite human would like as he has been very opposed to this dish for quite a while. But, I’ve finally hit on a sweet spot that is not only delicious but moreish. Stirring the sauce vigoriously to add air and the heat of the chili are part of the secret. I make two major changes with how I serve these noodles. First, I use chrysanthemum leaves instead of bok choy as the blanched vegetable. Second I serve them with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers to dip in the leftover sauce after the noodles are all gone.

Ingredients

Sauce per person

2 – 2.5 T crunchy peanut butter

1 – 2 garlic cloves, grated

1 t doenjang

0.25 t sugar

1/8 – 0.25 t ground Sichuan pepper - optional

1.5 t maesil

0.25 – 0.50 t rice vinegar

1 T sesame oil

1.5 T soy sauce

Finishing

550g fresh wheat noodles

*250g (a little over 0.50 lb) ssukkat, chrysanthemum leaves, cut in half

1 T toasted sesame seeds, ground

1 scallion, sliced

1 cheongyang chili or serrano, sliced

Serve

2 tomatoes, sliced

1 cucumber, sliced

Recipe Know-how

1.      Bring a pot of water to a boil.

Continue on to Step 2 while the water comes to a boil.

2.      Add the listed amount of peanut butter, garlic, doenjang, sugar, maesil, Sichuan pepper and vinegar to each of two large soup bowls.

• Using the back of a spoon, mash the ingredients together in each bowl until smooth and homogeneous.

• Add the sesame oil and mix until smooth.

• Add the soy sauce and mix until smooth.

• Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.

3.      Add the noodles to the boiling water, and cook as per package directions.

• Add the ssukkat on top of the noodles and cook for 2 minutes.

Avoid mixing the vegetables in among the noodles as they will overcook.

• Remove the vegetable from the water and keep warm.

• 2 minutes before the noodles are cooked, add 70ml – 100 ml (1/3 – 0.50 c) of the noodle water to each bowl and mix well to form a sauce.

For drier noodles use the lesser amount of liquid for saucier noodles add the larger amount of water.

I used the larger amount of water.

• Drain the noodles well.

4.      Divide the noodles between the bowls and top with the reserved cooked vegetable, sesame seeds, scallion and chili.

5.      Serve immediately with tomatoes and cucumbers. Toss the noodles with the sauce before eating.