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It's tough having Ray out late every Wednesday night for his graduate studio critiques, but that being said, I cherish that extra time in the kitchen. When left to my own devices for a while I wind up spending extra time experimenting with & tweaking favorite recipes & dishes.
After going out with friends for Thai over the weekend this dish has been stuck in the back of my mind all week -- wide flat rice noodles stir fried in red pepper and mint. It was an astonishingly simple dish but the flavors were quite complex. With all of this Wednesday time on my hands I decided to get cooking and attempt to cultivate my own version.
Chili Mint Noodles
with Eggplant, Pork, & Edamame
1 medium Chinese Eggplant, cut into spears
3 small pork chops (no bone), cut into 1" strips
1/2 c. edamame beans, frozen
1/2 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 piece candied ginger, finely minced
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. syracha chili sauce
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 tbsp. peanut butter (organic), room temp.
1/4 c. basil, minced
1/4 c. cilantro, minced
1 tsp. dried mint
Marinate the sliced pork momentarily in 1 tbsp. soy sauce while bringing a pan 1/2 tsp. rice wine vinegar & 1 tbsp. olive oil up to medium heat. Once the pan is hot, toss in the pork and brown evenly on all sides (about 5 minutes). You may need to do this in two rounds to keep the pan up to heat. Over crowing it will bring the overall cooking temperature down. Once cooked, remove from the pan & set aside.
While the pan is still warm, add the eggplant, remainder of the olive oil, soy sauce, 1 tsp. sesame oil, 1 tsp. red pepper flakes & 1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar. Cook until the eggplant is limp then add the herbs, onion, ginger & garlic. Cook for 5 minutes longer.
Finally, add the pork, edamame, peanut butter & dried mint. Let simmer for 10 minutes longer.
Serve tossed in rice stick noodles & season to taste.
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