Noodle Peanut Salad = Yum!

What a dinner we had tonight! For some reason since school starts this Thursday I feel like everything I want to make better be made by tomorrow night, because school starting simply means that most hobbies and extra time spent cooking/baking are all put to rest. Our life is going to be extremely regimented just to fit in all that we have to do. So since tonight marks one of our "last"nights until the chaos begins, I wanted to make a dish that we both would love, especially Joe! I found the recipe here at the Never Home Maker.  Such a great site filled with awesome recipes, I just want to make them all!


It is a Noodle Peanut Salad. Joe love's peanut sauce so I knew this would be right up his alley. I got home from a midday run (it was 110 degrees out when I did it, not recommended!) and started whippin up this delightful dish. There is a bit of prep time as you have to wash all of the kale, zucchini, carrots, and chop them all up. As well as squeeze the juice out of the tofu, get it cut up and make the peanut sauce, but it's all worth it.


Noodle Peanut Salad

Photo from neverhomemaker.com

For the sauce:

·       1/2 cup light coconut milk

·       3 tablespoons natural peanut butter

·       2 tablespoons soy sauce

·       5 tablespoons POM pomegranate juice (or rice vinegar)

·       2 tablespoons maple syrup

·       1 tablespoons grated ginger

·       1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes

·       1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

·       2 cloves of garlic, minced

For the salad:

·      1/2 package udon noodles, cooked as per package directions

·      16 ounces extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes

·      6 cups kale

·      2 carrots, cut in the batonnet style(sliced)

·      1 zucchini, cut into half moons

·      1 tablespoon dried cilantro (or 1/4 cup fresh)

Method :

·      Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.

·      Cook your udon noodles, drain, and spray with some cool water. Set aside.

·      Heat a tablespoon or so of oil over medium-high heat and fry the tofu until golden. Set aside.

·      In that same pan, add a bit more oil. Throw in the vegetables (kale, carrot, and zucchini). Cook for five to seven minutes -- until they are soft, but still a bit crisp.

·      Pour half of the sauce mixture onto the veggies. Cook a couple more minutes, until saturated with flavor.

·      Add the cilantro once the heat is off. Stir.

·      Then toss everything together. Or, if you'd like it to look nice, lay a bed of veggies and top with half the noodles and tofu cubes. Drizzle more of the sauce on top for extra flavor.

Most peanut sauces are ridiculously awful on the calorie/fat scale but this one actually isn't too bad. Be sure you use light coconut milk because there is a HUGE difference in the calories and fat between regular and light.  Also I didn't have the POM Juice that it called for so I followed the recommendation of using Rice Vinegar instead. The sauce calls for fresh grated ginger but even if you hate ginger as much as I do, you must man up and use it because it adds great flavor. 


Not a fan of tofu? Unless you've had it cooked this way before and you've concluded you don't like it, then just give it a try! Joe is usually a hater of tofu (I haven't cooked it the best ways in the past) so I cooked him a chicken breast to have with his. And what did he do? He liked the tofu so much he didn't even go for the chicken! I consider this a victory. Next time I make it, I'm going to try to bake half the tofu to compare between the two methods. 


One other tip: The recipe says to saute the kale, zucchini, and carrot all together at the same time. I would recommend sauteing the kale for 1 minute or so, then adding the carrot - saute for another minute, then add the zucchini for the last couple minutes of cooking time. I like my vegetables to remain tender and not cooked to death.


Joe's tip: Sub shrimp in for the tofu. I just haven't braved shrimp yet. What can I say... handling meat of all kinds just grosses me out.


Stay tuned for dessert: Chocolate mousse (it's more similar to pudding in my opinion), but it's not your average mousse. It's thick, chocolatey, and doesn't leave you feeling sick after. Such a treat!