Stir Fry Noodles with Eggplant

Introduction:

 

This recipe comes from the sauce that was left over when I made Dumplings with chilli - garlic Sauce. The inspiration for this comes from "Steamed Eggplant with XO chilli & Vermicelli" we had at Ruby Chinese (owned by Jackie Chan) in Canberra. I was pleasantly surprised when I had this eggplant dish and had I never thought of eggplant in a Southeast Asian dish. So with the left over sauce and eggplant at home, we decided to try it on.

 

Preparation time: 15 mins

Marination time: 0 mins

Cooking time: 10 mins

 

Serves: 4 

 

Ingredients:

1	Packet Cooked Hokkien Noodles
1/2	Eggplant
1	Teaspoon of ground black pepper
2	Teaspoon of chilli garlic sauce
1/2	Cup of shallots
1	Tbsp of peanut oil
1/2	Teaspoon of sesame oil
	Salt to taste

 

Process:

 

Roughly chop the eggplant and cook the noodles in boiling water if not already cooked. Heat some of the peanut oil in the wok and add the chopped eggplant. Toss until the eggplant is just tender and make sure you do not overcook the eggplant. Set the eggplant aside. To the same wok add the rest of the peanut oil and add the chilli garlic sauce. Add pepper and toss in the noodles. Add a dash of sesame oil and salt to the noodles. Finally add the eggplant and the shallots and toss the noodles for 2 mins.

Shrimp Laksa

For people who have been following me for some time now, I apologise for not featuring any recipes. We just moved house and were busy packing and unpacking for last few weeks. Our internet connection got restored yesterday. 

I have been to a few western countries but Australia is the only western place where I found Laksa. People here love it and is one of the favourite meals as lunch. I was very skeptical in the beginning to try it as I was unsure about the ingredients that go in it. After a year and a half, I gathered the courage and tried it. I loved it so much that I couldn't wait to try it at home. My first attempt was brilliant and since then I repeated it many times.

Ingredients:

1 packet of cooked shrimp

1/2 cup of grated carrot

1/2 cup of finely chopped Chinese cabbage

1 cup of thin rice noodles

1 can of light coconut milk

For Laksa Paste

3 large dried chillies 

1 tablespoon shrimp paste
6 shallots
5 cloves garlic 
4 kaffir lime leaves
1/4 cup mint leaves 
3 fresh chillies
2 stalks lemon grass roughly chopped 
1 large knob fresh galangal or ginger, roughly chopped 
1 teaspoon ground turmeric 
2 teaspoons ground cumin 
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preparation time: 50 mins

Cooking time: 15 mins

For laksa paste blend all the ingredients in the blender until smooth paste. Heat the oil in a wok and add the blended paste to the oil. Sauté until the oil separates from the paste. Keep aside. Cook the grated carrots and Chinese cabbage in a pot of water and drain the water. Add the thin rice noodles to cold water and set aside for 15 mins until the noddles are soft. 

Add the laksa paste to a wok and add the coconut milk to the laksa paste. Add 1 cup of water to the laksa. In a bowl add the noddles at the bottom then add the carrot and cabbage mix. Place 4/5 cooked shrimps on the cabbage mixture. Pour the hot laksa in the bowl until all the ingredients are submerged. Enjoy the hot and spicy laksa.