Stir-Fried Shrimp With Udon Noodles

Happy New Year to all of my fellow foodies!  I've taken another break from blogging after a very action-packed couple of months with family and friends...We are beyond blessed.  I'm ready to get adventurous again when it comes to food and I'm more than ready to share all of my newest finds.  I've got so many great recipes teed up, so lets get cooking.

It seems there's a bit of a noodle craze going on.  With the likes of ramen, Soba, Udon and rice noodles showing up in the hippest of restaurants.  Although we've been cooking with rice noodles in our signature dish, Pho for many years, I've been particularly intrigued with Udon noodles lately, mostly because they're a healthy alternative to regular pasta, as are they all. 

The definition of Udon is it's a type of thick wheat flour noodle of Japanese cuisine. Udon is often served hot in a noodle soup in its simplest form, as kake Udon, in a mildly flavoured broth called kakejiru, which is made of dashi, soy sauce, and mirin.  I'm going to have to google that recipe and try it out.

The original recipe I found for this Udon variation, in addition to the shrimp, it called for 1/4 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced and sauteed in oil.  I left the chicken out and increased the amount of shrimp.  It also called for 2 1/2 cups of chopped Napa cabbage, which I also opted not to add and added snap peas instead.  You can add any combination of veggies that you like...or leave out the chicken and shrimp all together and make it a vegetarian dish.  The possibilities are endless.

My family loved this dish, not only because of all the wonderful flavors going on, but especially because we're all trying to eat healthier.  We'll be making this dish again soon, but will change it up a bit, maybe by adding some oyster and fish sauce to the mix.  And of course, top with Sriracha hot chili sauce to make it as spicy as you like.  Happy Cooking my friends!

2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 lb large shrimp, shelled and de-veined
1 cup or so of snap peas
1 small onion thinly sliced
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tsp grated ginger
1 - 2 carrots thinly sliced
7 oz enoki mushrooms
4 oz oyster mushrooms
1/4 cup dried wood ear mushrooms, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained
1/2 cup chicken stock
3 TBSP soy sauce
1 tsp Asian sesame oil
zest and juice of 1 lime
18 oz Udon noodles
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds or chopped roasted peanuts
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
chopped scallions, for garnish 
chopped cilantro leaves, for garnish

In a skillet, heat 1 TBSP of the vegetable oil.  Add the shrimp and stir-fry over moderately high heat until curled, 2 minutes; transfer to a plate. 

Add the remaining 1 TBSP of oil to the skillet.  Add the snap peas, onion, garlic, ginger, carrot and the mushrooms and stir-fry for 4 minutes.  Add the stock, soy sauce, sesame oil, lime juice and zest and shrimp; remove from heat.

Meanwhile, cook the Udon according to package directions.  Drain and add to the skillet.
Stir-fry over medium high heat until heated through.  Season with salt and pepper, garnish with scallions and cilantro and serve.


This recipe is adapted from a recipe I saw on Food and Wine Magazine's website.