Easy stir fry noodles

Easy stir fry noodles is a balanced, quick fix, clean out the fridge dish. From China to Nigeria with love, noodles, the dry instant variety, are consumed in copious amounts in Nigeria, you’d think it was invented here. Made from rice, egg or wheat, it has saved so many weary homemakers from -“what are we having for breakfast, lunch or dinner”. It is also a lifesaver for busy students and singles.

There are so many types of noodles, fresh, dry, rice noodles, glass noodles etc., but in Nigeria, we love our dry instant noodles by whatever brand. There are so many, so many ways to prepare it to make it more nourishing, interesting, gourmet and diverse.

For easy stir fry noodles, any type of noodles can be used, you can even substitute your favourite pasta, spaghetti noodles, angel hair, fettuccine etc. for this recipe, I used dry instant noodles. Cook to have the noodles al dente, not soft, it is better to undercook than overcook it. You need to break up the noodles a bit, to have a shorter length so that they will mix easier and better with other ingredients. Cut the meat against the grain, across the long fibres for tenderness.

As I said, this is a basic easy stir fry noodle recipe, you can tweak and change some of the components for variety each time you prepare it.

The vegetables can include any or some of these:

Bell pepper, Carrot, Peas, Green beans, Spring onions, Mushroom, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Sweet corn, Onions, Zucchini, Cabbage, Green ‘green’ amaranth, Spinach, Bok choy, Beans sprout, etc.

The broth can include any or some of these:

Soy sauce, Oyster sauce, Hoisin Sauce, Sriracha, Ketchup, Rice or White wine vinegar, Dry sherry, Sweet chili sauce etc. (Please use no more than 2 or 3 at a time)

The meat can include any or some of these:

Chicken, Beef, Pork, Sausage, Bacon, Shrimp, Tofu (Wara) etc.

Easy stir fry noodles is a quick cooking dish so be sure to prepare all your ingredients and have them near the cooker before you start.

To make easy stir fry noodles

140g dry noodles
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon shredded root ginger
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic (2 cloves)
chili
120g shredded beef (1/2 cup)
1 small carrot 
1/2 small green bell pepper
50g mushroom (sliced)
1/2 small onions

Broth
2 tablespoons light Soy sauce*
1/4 cup water
1 seasoning cube**
1 teaspoon corn starch
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon oyster sauce

*A mixture of 1 tablespoon light soy sauce and 1/4 teaspoon dark soy sauce can be used for a darker coloured dish.

**Seasoning cube can be replaced by the seasoning included in instant noodles packets. Meat or vegetable stock can also replace the seasoning cube and water.

Shred beef and ginger, crush garlic, julienne chilli, carrot and green bell pepper. Slice mushrooms and onion.

Mix together the broth ingredients and place all of them near the cooking station.

If using dry noodles, break into shorter pieces, not into tiny bits, see picture below (If using fresh noodles, cut after cooking).

Cook according to package instructions, it needs to still be firm. Drain into a sieve, shake to remove as much water as possible. Put back into the pot add 2 teaspoons oil, stir and set aside.

Place wok or saucepan over high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil, spread to coat the surface. Add garlic and ginger, stir and when it becomes aromatic, add beef, break up the clumps and don’t stir till it starts browning.

Stir and continue cooking for 2 minutes.

Add carrot, green pepper, mushroom and onions, fry for 2 minutes.

Add noodles stir and pour in the sauce. Toss and cook till meat and vegetables are all cooked. You can use 2 forks, 2 chopsticks, even a tong to toss the noodles. Tossing is better for noodles than stirring because as you toss, you loosen the noodles and this allows the broth and vegetables to mix better with it.