Spicy Tofu Teriyaki with Ramen Noodles

7.13.10

Crazy weather in Seattle. After being below 70 degrees for 200+ days, it has hit the 90s in the past week. Today, it's back to below 70. What the heck? Excuse my language but seriously. I got sick because the weather keeps changing its mind. Anyway, life must go on.

Last weekend, I accepted a request from NAAAP-Seattle, a non-profit organization, and volunteered to prepare food for approximately 50 people at the membership drive picnic on Sunday. It was exhausting...but...I didn't regret it. I was bitching about it at the beginning, but with patience and support from friends we finished the task. It was a success and priceless experience. Details of the menu and event will be posted soon!

To continue the love for ramen, we will talk ramen here. I like the texture and chewiness of ramen noodles that pasta or any other kind of noodle doesn't have. It's fresh flour-and-water noodles made with  alkaline salts. There are no eggs in the mixture. The yellow color isn't from eggs but from the chemical reaction between flour and salts. Not only are they good with a hot soup, but also in a stir-fry version.

Teriyaki places can be found on almost every corner in Seattle. You can probably bump into either a teriyaki place or Starbucks at each corner. The teriyaki sauce I used is adapted from the Wagamama cookbook. There's no corn starch or syrup added unlike store bought. It's super easy and tastes way better than a store-bought. I remembered having spicy teriyaki for lunch and dinner when I was in school. The portion was huge and it would cover 2 meals for me. Nowadays, I could finish the whole thing myself. Oh no, this is a bad sign of hitting 30 years of age!

My husband's face immediately lights up whenever I say let's order take-out spicy teriyaki tonight. They must add some kind of addictive sauce to it that makes him "high" in a sudden (?) It's a spicy Sriracha sauce! or else he's getting bored of my food..sigh..

We've had it with rice of course but the taste compliments better with ramen noodles. Believe me; try it with ramen noodles. I cooked with tofu but you can change to chicken or your choice of meat. Surprisingly, the tofu absorbs the sauce and the flavor is succulent. The trick of this dish is to not stir-fry the noodles and sauce. Yes, you heard me right. Just mix it.

Red Chili

Spicy Tofu Teriyaki with Ramen Noodles

Yield: 4

Spicy Teriyaki Sauce (makes about 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup light soy sauce

2 tbl sake

2 tsp black soy sauce - look carefully for a label of black soy sauce and not dark soy sauce; it's different

2 tsp garlic chili sauce or more for spicyness

1 tsp Sriracha

Directions for the sauce:

• Place a sauce pan on low heat. Add sugar and light soy sauce. Simmer it until the sugar dissolves and the sauce is thicker
• Add sake, black soy sauce, and garlic chili sauce; turn off the heat. Leave out a garlic chili sauce if you want a regular teriyaki sauce
• Let cool completely. If you use it right away, the sauce is too liquidy
• Set aside

Ingredients for the dish:
1/2 cup minus 4 tsp spicy teriyaki sauce (recipe above)
1/2 sweet onion, sliced
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup shredded carrots
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbl grapeseed oil or vegetable oil
1/2 cup sliced shitake mushroom (optional)
1 firm tofu package
1 lb fresh ramen noodles
4 tbl chopped scallions for garnish
2 red chillies, seeded and thinly sliced for topping
Sriracha

Directions:

• Cook ramen in boiling water for 5 mins until tender or follow the package instruction. Do need to add salt. It's unlike cooking pasta. Drain and divide it to 4 bowls. Pour 1 tsp of the teriayaki sauce over each bowl and coat well
• Heat up a wok under medium high heat. When the wok is hot and about to smoke, add 2 tbl oil. You should hear a sizzling noise.
• Add garlic and onion; stiring often. Remember how to work on a wok from the Pad Se Ew post? - Speed and motion are the key.
• Add carrots and bean sprouts and half of the sauce; stiring it.
• Add tofu and the remaining of the sauce. Stir fry gently because tofu can break easily until tofu is coated by the sauce. You could swirl a wok so that a spatula or wooden spoon doesn't touch tofu
• Sitr fry everything about 7 mins or until they are cooked through and bean sprouts are partial crispy
• Pour everything over prepared bowl
• Sprinkle with scallions and red peppers, and add a splash of Sriracha if you prefer a big kick!

Without rice or noodles

On another note, I've been wanting to share these photos. I had a dozen of raw oysters with a South East Asian seafood sauce myself, with fried red onions and dill on top. YUM! I know I need to watch out my cholesterol!