Spicy Peanut Noodles with Chicken

As I near the halfway point of my 20s (sob.), I sometimes feel like I’ve aged from 21 at heart to 40. Gone are the days of eating Cheetos for dinner before a night of drinking, dancing and late-night baked ziti pizza. Instead, most nights all I can muster up is an hour or two of sitting at a bar before I need to go home and rest up for morning hot yoga. And on those nights where I do get a little cray? Odds are high that I will be completely sedentary for the next 24-48 hours. (Thankfully, omelets can be delivered and yes, I know how shameful that is.)

Rather than lament my total lameness, I’ve started to embrace it. Yoga makes me feel great, so I’m willing to sacrifice an extra hour partying on a Friday night in order to get up early and go to class. Junk food gives me a stomachache, so I’m happy to eat homemade granola bars or kale chips when I want a snack. I’m slowly becoming one of those people that feels really great after eating a salad and considers chocolate a snack rather than its own meal (sometimes).

And since I know that my beloved delivery habit, while always delicious, is generally laden with salt, fat, preservatives and other things that I shouldn’t be eating more than once a week, I wanted to approximate a version of pad Thai that I could feel good about eating day after day.

Peanut noodles are pretty popular on the Interwebs: generally made with a quick peanut butter and chili sauce that is tossed with noodles and scallions and often eaten cold. To bulk them out, I added chicken and my favorite stir-fry vegetables. The real star of the show is the nutty, crunchy peanut butter sauce, with the ginger and chili-garlic sauce creating an amply spicy kick. (I think I might love that sauce as much as I love harissa, and I may or may not have slathered it on bread for a delicious PB sandwich.) Tossed in that glorious sauce, these noodles are delicious hot or cold, for lunch or dinner, and they don’t even leave you with that post-delivery food coma. If this is what people eat as they get older, I’m almost okay with turning the big 2-5.

Spicy Peanut Noodles with Chicken
Adapted from Eating Well

– 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs

– 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, divided

– 1 small bunch scallions, sliced

– 1-1/2 tablespoons minced garlic, divided

– 1-1/2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger, divided

– 1/2 cup natural chunky peanut butter

– 2 tablespoons Thai chile-garlic sauce, or to taste

– 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti (or you could use soba if you’re gluten-free — just make sure your soba noodles are made with 100% buckwheat)

– 8 ounces frozen broccoli, thawed

– 1/2 cup frozen edamame, thawed

– 1 small box cloud-ear mushrooms, rehydrated*

– 2 bell peppers, sliced into long strips

– 4 ounces snow peas

– 1/2 cup shredded carrots

*These mushrooms, also called black fungus, come dried in a small box — you can find them at most Asian stores. To rehydrate them, submerge the mushrooms in a large bowl of warm water, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. If you can’t find them, use 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, such as shiitake, as a substitute.

1) Marinate the chicken: Rinse the chicken, pat dry with a paper towel and cut into bite-size pieces. Mix with two tablespoons of the soy sauce, 1/2 tablespoon of the minced garlic, 1/2 tablespoon of the minced ginger and 1/3 of the chopped scallions. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2) Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water.

3) Make the peanut sauce: In a large skillet or wok, heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add 1/2 tablespoon each of the garlic and ginger, as well as 1/4 of the scallions (use the whites and less green parts here; reserve the greenest tops of the scallions for the garnish). Saute the garlic, ginger and scallions on medium-low heat until fragrant, 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, then add the remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, the peanut butter and the chile-garlic sauce. Stir until well combined.

4) In the wok, add an additional tablespoon of olive oil, then the remaining garlic and ginger, and 3/4 of the remaining scallions. Saute on medium-low heat until fragrant, 3-5 minutes. Then increase the heat and add the broccoli, edamame and mushrooms, tossing frequently to ensure even cooking (tongs work wonders here). Cook for 3-5 minutes.

5) Add the peppers, snow peas, carrots and the marinated chicken. Cook for an additional 5-7 minutes, tossing frequently, until chicken is cooked. Turn off the heat and stir in the peanut sauce, adding reserved pasta water little by little to thin out the sauce. (My stir fry released some water, so I didn’t need to use any pasta water. Just make sure the sauce is thin enough to coat the noodles and vegetables.) Garnish with the remaining scallions and serve warm or cold.