Recipe: Spicy Asian Green Beans and Pan-Fried Noodles for Brenda

Spicy Asian Green Beans and Pan-Fried Noodles

If you have Asian sesame oil -- the dark kind that smells richly of toasted sesame seeds -- sprinkle a teaspoon or 2 over the final dish.

2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 teaspoons salt
12 ounces linguine or other long noodles
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces
1 pound firm tofu or boneless chicken, cut in small cubes
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon sugar

Toast sesame seeds in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat, or on the tray of a toaster oven set to 350 degrees, or in the oven at 350 degrees. If cooking on the stove, stir constantly until they begin to turn golden; if cooking in the oven, stir occasionally until they are golden.

The process goes faster on top of the stove, but the sesame seeds burn easily, so watch them carefully.

Bring a large pot of water to boil with 2 teaspoons salt. Add linguine and cook according to package directions until barely tender.

Heat vegetable oil in a wide skillet or wok set over high heat. Add green beans and cook on high heat for about 3 minutes. They will brown in some places and become somewhat wrinkled.

Reduce heat to low, add tofu or chicken, garlic and red pepper and cook another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Combine soy sauce, vinegar, cornstarch and sugar and stir to distribute cornstarch and dissolve sugar.

When noodles are done, drain them, put them on a platter and top with green beans. Drizzle sauce over all and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Serves 4.

Pan-fried noodles:
Crisping the noodles in a skillet adds a lot of interest and flavor to the dish. Add a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil to a skillet and heat over medium-high flame.

Add the cooked noodles and let them brown. They'll brown unevenly -- that's OK. The range in the textures from a well-browned crispy noodle to those that don't brown is what makes the dish interesting.

Once the noodles have browned, flip them to brown on the other side -- this side won't brown as well because most of the oil is gone from the skillet. The process takes about 5 minutes.