Brown Sauce Noodles

This recipe comes from a book I picked up years ago in the $10 bin at a bookstore. It's called Noodle, which is amusing to me, but it has paid for itself many times over in terms of how yummy these recipes are. One of the ones we come back to over and over again is this recipe for Brown Sauce noodles, which the book says is a translation of "Zha jiang mian."


The author of the book makes a silly joke about how the fight over who invented pasta extends now to who invented bolognese sauce, but he's on to something. The taste is anything but Italian, but the comfort and rich flavours are both there.


You need:


4 tbsp ground bean sauce*
1 tbs hoisin sauce
1/2 c chicken stock
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbs canola oil
5 spring onions, white part, chopped
1 tbs minced garlic
500g ground turkey**
400g fresh Shanghai noodles***
1 cucumber, cut into long matchsticks
2 spring onions, green part, finely sliced****
1 c fresh bean sprouts, blanched

* The recipe actually calls for brown bean sauce, but I've never been able to find it and now I've stopped looking because ground bean sauce is really really delicious.

** The recipe actually calls for pork, but I usually use turkey just because.

*** Shanghai noodles are sold fresh in Asian grocery stores. They are thicker than spaghetti - more like udon but not quite the same.

**** If you don't want to slice the onions, because it is a pain, I assure you that you can still make the dish pretty with chopped green onion and it will taste identical. It's good practice for knife skills, though!

So here's what you do.

1. In a small bowl, mix the sauces, stock, and sugar.

2. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and fry the spring onion (white parts) and the garlic for 20 seconds. Then add the turkey and stir until it browns. When the meat is cooked, add the sauce mixture and simmer on a lower heat for 5 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, cook your noodles in boiling water for 4-5 minutes. Drain and place in bowls.

4. Spoon sauce over noodles, then add a sheaf of cucumber strips, green onion strips, and bean sprouts. Enjoy!

Rainbow Stuffed Peppers

How beautiful are peppers? So succulent, and perfect for the summer - and available in a rainbow of colours! These stuffed peppers are a great light supper - I think you'll like them. I made them with turkey and brown rice, so they're also pretty healthy - you don't have to tell anyone that, though - they'd never guess.

You need:

1 lb lean ground turkey
1 tbs olive oil
1 c uncooked brown rice + enough stock to cook the rice in - I used chicken stock.
4 peppers of any colour you like
1/2 a large onion, finely diced
1 stalk of celery, finely diced
1/4 c finely minced herbs - I used basil, rosemary, and chives because that's what's growing in my garden
1 medium tomato, chopped
2 tbs tomato sauce
6 tbs finely grated parmesan cheese.

1. Start by cooking your rice according to the directions. Instead of water, use stock to cook the rice - it'll give you a better flavour.

2. While the rice is cooking, sautee the onion, celery, and turkey in the olive oil.

3. Slice the peppers in half lengthwise and clean out, leaving the stems intact. You can fit more filling in if you leave them.

4. When the rice is cooked, mix it with the celery-onion-turkey mixture along with the tomatoes, the tomato sauce, and the fresh herbs.

5. Fill the peppers with the rice mixture and place the peppers into a rimmed baking dish or casserole dish. Top with 1 tbs of parmesan each. Carefully pour 1/4 c water into the casserole dish, being careful not to get the insides of the peppers wet.

6. Bake in an oven which has been preheated to 375ºF for 40 minutes, or until the peppers are soft and the cheese has browned. Let rest 5 minutes, then serve!