To make this a truly international dish, substitute linguine or spaghetti for the Chinese egg noodles. Just break 7 ounces of uncooked pasta into 3- to 4- inch lengths and cook it according to package directions.
4 large boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 pound total) Optional for a vegetarian dish
2 cups fresh pea pods or one 6-ounce package frozen pea pods, thawed
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar or white vinegar
1 teaspoon chili oil
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
8 ounces steamed or fresh Chinese egg noodles or 5 ounces dried Chinese egg noodles
1 tablespoon cooking oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large sweet red or green pepper, cut into thin strips (1-1/3 cups)
2 green onions, sliced (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped peanuts (optional)
Rinse chicken and pat try. Cut into 3/4-inch pieces. Coarsely chop the pea pods. For sauce, in a small bowl stir together the soy sauce, rice vinegar or white vinegar, chili oil, and crushed red pepper. Set aside.
In a large saucepan cook noodles in boiling lightly calted water for 4 to 6 minutes or until tender. Drain. Set aside.
Pour cooking oil into a wok or large skillet. (Add more oil as necessary during cooking.) Stir-fry the garlic in hot oil for 15 seconds. Add the pea pods, red or green pepper, and green onions; stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove the vegetables from the wok.
Add half of the chicken to the hot wok. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until no pink remains. Remove the chicken from the wok. Repeat with remaining chicken. Return all chicken to the wok. Add the sauce to the wok. Add the cooked vegetables and noodles. Stir ingredients together to coat with sauce. Cook and stir about 1 minute more or until heated through. Sprinkle with peanuts if desired. Serve immediately. Makes 5 servings.
For vegetarians, just leave out the chicken. Alternately, try just the pasta & sauce sprinkled with parmesean cheese!
