Preparation time
less than 30 mins
Cooking time
less than 10 mins
Serves
Serves 4
Dietary
Vegetarian
From Saturday Kitchen
Ingredients
For the noodles
- 200g/7oz wheat udon noodles
- 3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
- 3 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the cabbage pickle
- 150g/5½oz red cabbage (about ⅓ red cabbage), shredded
- ¼ cucumber, deseeded and chopped
- handful mint leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- ½ tbsp white sesame seeds, plus extra to garnish
For the mouth-numbing chilli oil
- 1 tbsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 1½ tbsp dried chilli flakes
- 5 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- ⅓ tsp salt
Method
-
To make the noodles, bring a saucepan of water to the boil and cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water and drain again. Set aside.
-
To make the cabbage pickle, put the cabbage, cucumber and mint in a bowl. Add the vinegar, sesame oil and a large pinch of salt, and mix with your hands. Scatter with the sesame seeds and set aside.
-
To make the mouth-numbing chilli oil, place the peppercorns and chilli flakes in a blender or spice grinder and blitz to a rough powder. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and add the garlic, sugar, salt and the peppercorns and chilli mixture. Bubble gently for a couple of minutes then take off the heat.
-
In a large bowl, mix the peanut butter, sesame oil and a third of a teaspoon of salt. Add a couple of tablespoons of the mouth-numbing chilli oil, mix again and add the noodles. Toss with your hands and season to taste.
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To serve, transfer the noodles to a serving platter (or four shallow bowls) and top with a handful of the cabbage pickle. Add a drizzle of the mouth-numbing chilli oil, depending on how much heat you like, and scatter with more sesame seeds.