At least once a week I make a meaty pasta dish to have in the fridge for husband to take for lunch or to have on hand for a quick dinner on busy days. This recipe for Sesame Noodles with Chicken is in the rotation.
I added some shredded cabbage and carrots (coleslaw mix) to the noodles for more veggies. Although you may not use all the dressing when you first toss the noodles with it, don’t throw it out because the noodles soak up the dressing as they sit so you may end up needing to add more. Enjoy!
Sesame Noodles with Chicken
-recipe from Fine Cooking Magazine
This Chinese-restaurant favorite becomes a main dish with the addition of browned chicken tenders. For more color and flavor, add some thinly sliced red pepper or grated carrots. Serves six.
Kosher salt
1 lb. dried plain or whole-grain spaghetti
6 Tbs. Asian sesame oil
4 medium cloves garlic, peeled
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup less-sodium ginger-flavored soy sauce
6 Tbs. rice vinegar
1/4 cup light or dark brown sugar
1-1/2 lb. chicken tenders
2 tsp. peanut oil
Freshly ground black pepper
6 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the spaghetti and cook according to package directions until the pasta is al dente. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water until cool. Transfer the pasta to a large bowl, and toss with 1 Tbs. of the sesame oil.
In a food processor, pulse the garlic until roughly chopped. Add the remaining 5 Tbs. sesame oil, and the peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, and 1-1/2 tsp. salt. Process until smooth, stopping as necessary to scrape down the bowl, about 30 seconds. Set aside.
Trim off any exposed tendon ends from the wide tips of the tenders, if necessary. Season the tenders with 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Heat the peanut oil in a in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Cook the tenders until well browned on both sides and just cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and slice crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces. Add the chicken to the spaghetti along with half of the scallions.
Pour about 1-1/4 cups of the dressing over the pasta and chicken and toss to coat. Add more dressing to taste—you may not need to use it all. Transfer to a serving platter, sprinkle with the remaining scallions, and serve.
Tags: Asian, chicken tenders, Chinese, Pasta, peanut butter, rice vinegar, Sesame Noodles with Chicken, sesame oil, soy wauce, spaghetti
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