One of my favourite dishes when I'm using things up ... when there's just a few prawns left in the freezer, or one rasher of bacon and some cooked chicken.
I often use bacon as an ingredient not as the main part of a meal, such as in this fish recipe where there's just one rasher for two people. So I'll keep single rashers in the freezer - they defrost really quickly.
So, Singapore noodles.
It's basically ALL in the prep as when you start cooking it only takes minutes, so getting everything ready is key.
PESCATARIANS! Just use more prawns.
VEGETARIANS! Up the vegetables and add some pre-fried tofu.
Read through the whole recipe first as there's quite a lot going on - it's all simple but there is a bit to prepare.
To serve two, you'll need:
around 100g vermicelli rice noodles
a handful of green beans, cut in half
Soak the noodles in freshly boiled water according to pack instructions. Mine said five minutes and I added the beans for the last minute to blanch them.
When they're done, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the noodles cooking further or becoming sticky.
Into one bowl add 1 egg, beaten with a little shake of white pepper and a tiny splosh of sesame oil
Into another bowl go the vegetables. I had half a red pepper, sliced ; a couple of mushrooms, sliced and if I'd had waterchestnuts I'd have added them too
Now into another bowl go 2 spring onions, sliced on the diagonal; 1 garlic clove, crushed and minced; a small piece of ginger, approx 1 teaspoon, peeled and minced or grated; 1 green birds eye chilli, finely chopped and 1 teaspoon curry powder
1 rasher bacon, chopped
a few prawns in a bowl with a little fish sauce, maybe 1/2 teaspoon
some cooked chicken - I had approx half a breast in the fridge so cooked that on the griddle and then chopped
(What would be lovely to have had would have been char siu pork - next time I make it, I'll make sure there's a piece left over to make noodles).
Once all the other ingredients are ready the noodles should have dried out a bit so now separate out the green beans and put them aside.
I normally cut the noodles in half with kitchen scissors as it makes them easier to stir fry later, but forgot today!
Put the noodles in a bowl and add:
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
And mix it all around to combine thoroughly - I just use my (clean) hands!
Now, you just need some cooking oil and we're ready to cook ...
Add a few sprays - or a couple of teaspoons - of cooking oil to a wok or good deep frying pan over a medium heat, add the bacon and cook until done. Remove the bacon and set aside.
Add the prawns and a splash of water, cook for a few minutes until done and set aside too.
Add a little more oil to the pan, tip in the contents of the dish with the spring onions, garlic etc and cook quickly, stirring all the time - you don't want it to burn - for a few seconds until it starts smelling good.
Then add the bowl of vegetables plus the green beans and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
Add a splash of water if it looks like sticking but not too much as after a couple of minutes you then push the vegetables aside and tip in the beaten egg mixture.
Leave it for a few seconds - I usually count to 10 - to start setting and then quickly scramble in to the other ingredients.
Add the prawns, bacon and chicken and stir and then finally add the noodles and cook for another minute or so until everything is hot.
This is where it would have been much easier if I'd cut the soaked noodles in half!
Remove from heat and tip out onto a serving dish.
If I'd had some coriander, I'd have added a small handful of the leaves to garnish.
But with or without the garnish, this is very good - and after you've made it once or twice, very easy.
