So tonight we decided to make some Thai food. I don’t use the wok often so this was going to be a bit of an adventure for me.

Unfortunately when I went shopping for the ingredients this weekend I picked up rice noodles instead of glass noodles. It was a simple mistake on my part as I didn’t recall that glass noodles are actually made of bean threads and not rice. Even with the incorrect noodles I figured I should still give the recipe a go.

I made the Young Thailand Hot Sauce this morning to give it some time to rest. All I have to say is that if you aren’t used to heat, use this sparingly.

Overall I think the recipe was very easy to follow, even for a novice with the wok such as me. The key to it was definitely timing and being able to control the heat properly. Even with the change in noodles I think that the dish worked really well. I didn’t bother with the black fungus as I didn’t have the time to go to the local Asian market. I forgot to garnish with the red pepper at the end so it looked a little bland even with the green onion. It still tasted wonderful, and the the Young Thailand Hot Sauce gave it just enough kick.

Young Thailand Hot Sauce

Adapted from Simply Thai Cooking

• 3 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
• 1 Tbsp chopped garlic
• 3 Tbsp fish sauce
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1Tbsp finely chopped fresh hot chilies (6-7 chilies)

Mix all ingredients together, stir to dissolve the sugar, let rest for a while, and call the fire department.

Glass Noodles with Chicken

Adapted from Simply Thai Cooking

• 4 oz glass noodles (bean threads)
• 3 Tbsp dry black fungus (optional)
• 6 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast
• 7 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp soya sauce
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 6 Tbsp water
• 1 tsp dark soya sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/2 small onion, roughly chopped
• 1 stem green onion, cut into 1 inch pieces

garnish-

• pinch black pepper
• strips of red pepper
• Young Thailand Hot Sauce

Soak noodles in plenty of cold water for about 1 hour. Separately soak black fungus in plenty of cold water, also for 1 hour. At the end of the soaking period, transfer the noodles to a strainer and drain excess water (the noodles will have swollen to about 3 times their original volume) and reserve in strainer. Now turning to the black fungus (it’ll have swollen 5-6 times its original size and become shiny and slightly slippery), wash it several times in gold running water, drain and reserve.

Slice chicken in strips that are 1/4 inch thick, 2 inches long and about 1 inch wide. Reserve.

Heat oil in wok (or frying pan) on high heat until it is just about to smoke. Add Garlic and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add chicken and stir-fry 1 minute. Turn heat down to medium and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes more, until the chicken has warmed through and turned white. Break the eggs directly into the wok. Increase heat to medium high and fry eggs without breaking them up for two minutes, until they are partially set.

Push the eggs and chicken to one side of the wok, and add the reserved, drained noodles and black fungus to the other side. Take wok off the fire, and add the soya sauce, black pepper, sugar, oyster sauce, water, and dark soya to the noodles, sprinkling evenly. Return wok to fire and using a shoveling motion, combine the contents of the two sides, tossing-stirring for two minutes, working from the bottom up, so that all the noodles have a chance to fry in the oil, and everything is integrated.

Add sesame oil, onion and green onion and toss-stir for 1 minute. Take off the fire and transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle with black pepper and top with red pepper strips. Serve immediately with Young Thailand Hot Sauce on the side.