Cold noodles with sesame sauce

[MatthewB]

For the past two summers, one of my favorite seasonal recipes has been Cold Noodles w/ Sesame Sauce. I've tinkered with Mark Bittman's recipe that has appeared, in various forms, in HTCE, The Minimalist Cooks Dinner, & (most recently) in a June 2002 Minimalist column.

Here's my version . . .

12 to 16 ounces fresh Chinese egg noodles or dried linguine

8 to 12 ounces shredded cooked chicken

1 pound cucumber (peeled, seeded, & cut into matchsticks)

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1/4 to 1/3 cup EACH of sesame paste (tahini) & natural peanut butter

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 to 1/3 cup soy sauce (dark Chinese, if you have it)

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoon of Tabasco or other hot sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

At least 1/2 cup minced scallions

1. Cook the noodles in boiling salted water. Drain & rinse in cold water. Toss with 1 tablespoon of the oil and refrigerate for up to 2 hours, or proceed with the recipe.

2. In a large bowl, mix the tahini, peanut butter, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, and remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Add the hot sauce and salt & pepper; taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Thin the sauce with hot water (1/4 to 1/2 cup), so that it is about the consistency of heavy cream. Mix the cucumber with the sauce.

3. Add the noodles and chicken to the sauce & mix well. (Add more of any seasoning, to taste.) Garnish with the scallions and serve.

Any one else doing something similar to this? If so, what are you doing? (Of course, the chicken is optional, especially if one is doing this as a side dish.)

(After making this again last night, I'm think of substituting pork for the chicken.)

[guajolote]

Do the pasta salad haters think this is OK?

Sounds great to me, I'm going to try it this week (w/ cashew butter instead of peanut butter)

Edited August 4, 2003 by guajolote (log)

[slkinsey]

I make something fairly similar, although I also use a healthy dollop or Worcestershire sauce.

A handfull of crushed dry-roasted peanuts is good in this too.

[MatthewB]

I'm going to try it this week (w/ cashew butter instead of peanut butter)

Mmmmm. Let us know how it turns out with the cashew butter!

[VivreManger]

I too make a similar recipe -- in fact did it last week, though I hadn't known that Bittman made it too.

I know MB is committed to recipes with standard supermarket ingredients so this suggestion is not completely kosher, but I make this dish with Chinese -- not Middle Eastern -- sesame paste. It is darker and saltier than Sahadi and similar pastes.

[Stone]

Do the pasta salad haters think this is OK?

I hate pasta salad, but I could eat cold noodles wss with every meal. I've found that for a simple dish, it's very hard to find a good version. I never found a home version that was any good, I haven't found a decent restaurant example in San Francisco either.

[tissue]

You need chili oil.