Let’s talk the contents of my refrigerator and Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken.
Open my postcard/wedding invitation/birth announcement/sassy sayings-covered refrigerator door on any given day and you will find:
- 17 different types of mustard. Just kidding. Sort of.
- Leftovers packed in lunch-sized containers, then stacked like an interactive Tetris game. (Recent cargo: Skinny Greek Mac and Cheese; Vegetarian Bibimbap; 20-Minute Healthy Ricotta Pasta)
- Almond milk (for smoothies), skim milk (for cooking/cereal), buttermilk (for baking), half and half (for coffee), heavy cream (for life).
- Half-eaten dessert with the lid slightly askew; fork marks indicate direct fridge-to-mouth consumption. (Reference: Irish Whiskey Brownie Pie)
- Assorted cheeses.
- Part-empty bottle of white wine—unless you are checking after 9 p.m., in which case check the recycling bin instead.
- Salsa, hummus, pickles, and almond butter. Always and forever.
- A comfortable supply of butter.
Without fail, my refrigerator will also contain:
- A random assortment of orphaned vegetables I feel too guilty to throw away.
Throughout the week, rogue vegetables migrate to my crisper, then give me the stink eye for neglecting them. I recently found myself in a stare-down with a half-used head of cabbage (a remnant of Corn Beef and Cabbage Grilled Cheese) and an almost-empty carton of chicken stock. Kitchen combat commenced, and I emerged victorious with a pan of Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken as my prize.
Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken is a simple, flavorful and healthy stir fry dinner that comes together in 30 minutes (just like this Zucchini Stir Fry). I supplemented my cabbage with frozen stir fry veggies that I keep on hand, but you can use any fresh or frozen vegetables you like (or have languishing in the fridge.)
The chicken and vegetables are quickly stir fried with ginger, chili, and garlic, then mixed with whole wheat spaghetti noodles. Tangy rice vinegar, toasty sesame oil, savory soy sauce, and fiery red pepper flakes are added directly to the pan to create an instant, multi-dimensional sauce—no cooking required. A shower of crunchy roasted peanuts provides the final flourish of texture and flavor. The entire process requires only two pans, one for the pasta, one for everything else.
To make Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken even easier, I reached into my freezer—whose contents I will save for a later post—for Dorot garlic and herb cubes. I was sent an assortment of these flavor-packed little squares to earlier this year, and I’m hooked. Herbs and garlic are chopped, packed into cubes, frozen when they are super fresh, so they maintain their true taste. Instead of mincing and chopping ingredients, I pop the cubes right into the pan and sauté away. It’s less mess, and I’m shortening my prep time, which means an earlier collision between Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken and my face. YES.
Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken may be been inspired by my need to find a happy ending for our straggling produce, but its ease of preparation and dynamite taste have earned it a place on our regular weeknight menu.
From my refrigerator, with love: Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken.
Hot and Sour Noodle Stir Fry with Peanut Chicken
Ingredients
- 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (plus extra for coating pasta)
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed into bite-sized pieces (1 to 1 1/4 pounds)
- 3 Dorot crushed ginger cubes (1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger)
- 3 Dorot garlic cubes (1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, about 3 cloves)
- 1 Dorot chopped chili cube (1 teaspoon finely chopped red chili pepper)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 16 ounces frozen stir fry vegetables, thawed (or any fresh or frozen vegetables you have on hand—I used Trader Joe’s Harvest Hodgepodge)
- 1/2 head green cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable stock or water
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons sesame seed oil
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup chopped peanuts (unsalted and roasted) plus additional for serving
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or more to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until just tender. Drain and toss with a little olive oil to prevet sticking. Set aside.
- In a large nonstick skillet or wok, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, 2/3 of the ginger, 2/3 of the garlic, and salt. Saute until chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 4 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside.
- To the skillet, add the stir fry vegetables, cabbage, remaining 1/3 ginger and 1/3 garlic, and sauté until the vegetables are hot and the cabbage is slightly tender, about 8 minutes. Add the stock, soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Cook 2 minutes. Add the reserved pasta, reserved chicken, peanuts and pepper flakes to pan. Toss gently to combine, then serve warm, topped with additional roasted peanuts as desired.
Nutrition
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RegisterLook for Dorot garlic and her cubes in your grocer’s freezer section. At Walmart, they will be packaged under the Walmart-exclusive brand “Pop & Cook,” but the products are the same. Want to learn more? Visit Dorot and Pop & Cook‘s Facebook pages.
Dorot compensated me for my time to create this recipe and post. All opinions are, as always, my own.
Yum! This looks so good!
I found this recipe through Pinterest. I must find some of those frozen cubes. Thanks for the tip about the product. And, this recipe looks great.
I am so happy you found it Lea Anne! Thanks for saying hi and for your kind words. Have a great day!
These Dorot products Erin where can I find them to help me cut time in the kitchen as well? Are they American product or international some sort?
Hi Peter! You can actually find resources for where to find the products on Dorot’s webpage. I think it’s only the US, but feel free to type in your address and see what you can find out. They really are time-saving, which I love.
http://www.mydorot.com/?pg=stores
HI Erin 1 more question, about this Dorot product. I located where I can purchase them ,pray to God that they really have them. Now are these frozen or what Isle should I look for them or ask?
Hi Peter! You’ll find Dorot in the freezer section of some grocery stores. I have seen them at Trader Joe’s. Another option is that you can substitute fresh ingredients. I’ve listed measurements in the ingredient list, so you can definitely still make this stir fry.
Really yummy! I used about one and a half sweet peppers (red and orange for color), an 8 oz package of bean sprouts, 2 spiralized zucchini, and about 3 cups of chopped broccoli in addition to the cabbage for the veggies. I also used high protein edamame pasta (24 grams of protein in 2 ounces!), doubled the garlic and ginger and red pepper flakes and used 2 heaping teaspoons of red chili sauce because I didn’t have an actual chili pepper. Delicious! (Ours came out slightly soupy but that was actually really nice.)The next day I drained any excess liquid, reheated the second two portions, topped them with two fried eggs each and enjoyed a great brunch:)
I’m so happy that you enjoyed it, Martha! Thank you for sharing this kind review!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I had a ton of fresh veggies and chicken on hand, but no desire to cook. Then, went to your website for some inspiration and found this little number. It was delicious! My husband asked if we could have it again.
I’m so happy that you enjoyed it, Katie! Thank you for sharing this kind review!