Monday Recipe - Sesame Noodles

Today's recipe was found here at Budget Savvy Diva.

Sesame Noodles

2 carrots, julienned (matchstick style)
1/2 cup of frozen sweet peas
1/2 cup of leeks, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon of sesame seeds
2 garlic cloves, minced
12 ozs. noodles, cooked to package directions
 (if I can't get to our local Asian supermarket I will use Angel Hair Pasta, which I normally have in  my pantry)
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 cup of sweet chili sauce, or if you like it really hot use a 1/2 cup
1 tablespoon of chili paste
1 Lime
Salt to taste

Toast the sesame seeds by heating them in a small fry pan until they just start to brown.  Watch carefully to prevent burning.  Take off heat and set aside.  

In a small bowl, or in a 4 cup measuring jug, mix the sesame oil, chili sauce, chili garlic paste and soy sauce together.  Put to the side.  


On medium, heat the vegetable oil in a wok or frying pan.  When hot enough add the minced garlic.  Cook until garlic becomes fragrant, but watch carefully as the garlic easily burns.  

Add the veggies.  Stir fry until crisp-tender.  

Add the cooked noodles and mix well.  
Add the sesame seeds (but keep a tablespoon for 
sprinkling on noodles before serving).  

Pour sesame oil/soy sauce/chili mixture over the noodles and fold in.  

Put a portion on each serving plate.  Add lime wedges for squeezing juice over the noodles.    
Add the leftover tablespoon of sesame seeds over the noodles on each plate, as well as the sliced green onions.

 What did we think of this recipe?  It was excellent, totally suiting our tastes.  Gregg told me I could serve this up any time I wanted to as he loved it, and it is a fast meal to put together and to cook.  A good recipe for using up any leftover veggies you might have in the fridge.

The original recipe called for snap peas but I didn't have any so I used 1/2 cup of frozen sweet peas. It was one of those days when I had not gone shopping and was using what I had in stock. I also didn't have the full 1/2 cup of chili sauce as I didn't have a lot left in the jar, but there was a 1/4 cup.  We both found it hot enough and will stick to that amount from now on.

There were leftovers for another two meals, which we had the next day.  It tasted even better as happens after the flavors have had a chance to blend.