Shrimp with Cellophane Noodles (French Fridays with Dorie)

We somehow don't have the time to participate in French Fridays with Dorie as often as we would like. But this week's recipe, Shrimp with Cellophane Noodles (page 322), seemed pretty easy, and so we made it last night. Basically, it involved preparing Asian noodles (we used rice vermicelli), then cooking shrimp with onions and garlic and spices (cayenne, five spice, white pepper) in a wok, then adding tomato puree (which we couldn't find so we used an immersion blender on some crushed tomatoes and added that). For a little fun, we even made garlic chips (thin slices of garlic "fried" in a little olive oil), as suggested, for a garnish.

Now, we love Dorie Greenspan, love her recipes, love her book Around My French Table (from which this recipe comes, and around which French Fridays revolve). But as for this recipe, it was just sort of weird. It tasted like an oddly sweet shrimp spaghetti that seemed neither Italian, Asian or French. After we ate it, we actually felt bad that we had treated those beautiful shrimp in such a way. We won't be making that mistake again.

 

Shanghai Chicken and Shrimp Stir Fry

Happy Chinese New Year! Chinese New Year is a celebration of the lunar new year, and this year is the Year of the Dragon, year 4710 of the Chinese calendar. Amy has had an affinity for all things Chinese since she was a little girl and had Chinese neighbors who shared with her their language, culture and various celebrations. So of course we had to celebrate this new Year of the Dragon with a proper meal.

In Chinese culture, certain foods are symbolic, and this is especially apparent at the New Year's dinner which is meant to feature foods that will bring health, wealth and prosperity in the coming year. We kept our own hopes for the new year in mind when we thought up the auspicious ingredients of this dish, which we are calling Shanghai Chicken and Shrimp Stir Fry.

First are the noodles themselves, which symbolize long life, as long as they are left uncut, which we did. Slurping them from the bowl is a must. Next is the chicken, symbolizing happiness, marriage and prosperity. The word for prawn in Cantonese is "ha" which of course is reminiscent of the sound of laughter and happiness. (We are using regular shrimp, but maybe it's the thought that counts?) The color red is an especially important part of the celebration, so we chopped up a couple of dried red chiles to add color and spicy heat (like the fire of the dragon!) to the dish. Finally, we garnished the dish with chopped peanuts, which symbolize long life, good health, and good fortune. For dessert, we ate a couple of clementines, which are a variety of mandarin orange, and are considered to be good luck to the Chinese.

So here's to hoping this Year of the Dragon is one filled with all good things, including more delicious dishes such as this one!

Shanghai Chicken and Shrimp Stir Fry

Ingredients:

12 ounces Chinese wide lo-mein noodles

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspooon sugar

1 teaspoon cornstarch, mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water to make a slurry

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

3 green onions, chopped

1 star anise

3 dried red chilies, chopped* (see cooks' notes)

1/2 pound boneless chicken breast, cut into thin strips

1/2 pound large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 cups snow peas, trimmed

2 tablespoons chopped peanuts

Notes: we had "dragon" on the brain and bravely put in three (chopped) dried red chilis, which made this dish pretty darn spicy. We suggest doing 1 1/2 to 2 unless you love love love the heat.

Prepare noodles according to package directions. Rinse under cold water, drain well and toss with sesame oil to coat evenly; set aside. Combine soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch slurry in a small bowl; set aside. In a wok or large saute pan, heat vegetable oil over high heat. Add ginger, garlic, green onions, star anise, and chilies, and stir-fry for 20 seconds. Add chicken strips and stir-fry until mostly cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add shrimp and snow peas and continue to stir fry until shrimp turn pink and snow peas are cooked but still crunchy, about 2 minutes. Pour in soy sauce/slurry and stir for 30 seconds. Toss in noodles and stir until all ingredients are well combined and noodles are coated with sauce. Serve in large noodle bowls topped with chopped peanuts.

Red Curry Shrimp with Rice Noodles

About a month ago, we read this recipe for "Thai Red Curry Shrimp Linguine" from the food blog My Tasty Handbook, and it sounded really, really good. Jump ahead to the other night, when we were craving Asian. Would it have been easier to order take-out? Well, duh! But the Christmas bills are rolling in, and unless we win MegaMillions (update: we did not win), they aren't going anywhere.

So, a tiny bit grudgingly, we put away the takeout menu, defrosted that bag of shrimp we had in the freezer and adapted the recipe to suit our tastes and what we had in the house. The spicy heat packed a flavorful punch but next time we'll try the original recipe, made with linguine. In ours, the rice sticks were a little gummy and soaked up every ounce of the sauce. We'd also add  more coconut milk, by the way. We admit, it was not our best meal, but it was still cheaper than takeout!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 cup chicken broth
1 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 package rice noodles
1 pound raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 cup chopped green onions
juice of one lime
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
lime wedges for garnish

Soak the rice noodles in warm water for 30-45 minutes until tender but firm. In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, stir the red curry paste until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar, and whisk until paste dissolves. Bring to a boil and cook until sauce coats a wooden spoon, 7-10 minutes. Drain the rice noodles and add to the sauce. When they begin to stick, add the shrimp and green onions. Cook until shrimp turn pink, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, then turn off heat. Serve garnished with cilantro and lime wedges.