Veggies, Stirred & Fried

They say, never shop when you are hungry. Whoever this 'they' is, they are damn right! I feel this every time I see my pantry full of stuff that I cook rarely and tch-tched with regret... and this feeling is generally followed after a frantic gobbling up of whatever it is that I picked up during the shopping trip.

As usual, during my regular trip to Godrej Nature's Basket this weekend, I picked up tons of stuff, and only when I came home did I realize that I was starving, which indirectly was the reason for the pantry to overflow with stuff like Whole Wheat Noodles, Organic Mustard Paste, Balsamic Vinegar etc. Instead of waiting till all these live through their expiry period without even as much as being opened, I decided to make a meal out of all these and respond to the angry roars my stomach was giving me!

If you are a regular here, you might've noticed that I am not a fan of Chinese food. It took me a long time to narrow down and figure out that am allergic to certain brands of Soya sauce, and I hate Ajinomoto. Well, that takes out two main ingredients of Chinese cooking, at least per me. Off late, I've been thinking that its not right for me exclude an entire cuisine just because I cannot deal with two ingredients, which is why this attempt at making stir-fried noodles.

My version of a meal cannot be without vegetables, and so this one is packed with veggies, so much so that its more veggies than the noodles. I also wanted to utilize the flavor of Balsamic vinegar. You can totally omit that from this recipe if you don't have any at hand. But do not omit the mustard paste. In fact, if you can, just stock up some mustard paste in your fridge. Am so in love with this ingredient that I've eaten it in my meals throughout the weekend and intend to finish my jar of mustard paste before the end of the month. The flavor it imparts to the dish is unique, and no matter which cuisine am eating, it makes me feel like am eating something Indian, and appeals to my Indian palate. I'll let you decide how much of this you use, though.

Stir-Fried Vegetables with Whole Wheat Noodles
Level - Easy
Preparation time - 30 min, including the time to assemble and cut the veggies
Ingredients [Serves 1]
Whole Wheat noodles - 1 nest, or a handful
Vegetables - 1.5 C [Mix of beans, cauliflower, bell peppers, sprouts etc.]
Onions - 2, finely diced
Garlic cloves - 4-6, diced
Balsamic Vinegar - 1 Tbsp
Chili Vinegar - 1/2 Tbsp
Soya sauce - 1 Tsp
Chili Flakes - 1 Tsp
Mustard Paste - 1 Tbsp
Mustard oil - 1 Tbsp
InstructionsHeat the oil in a pan, and sauté the onions and garlic together till they are golden brown.
Add the veggies to this and let this be on medium flame for 5 min, while stirring frequently.
Add the mustard paste and sauté more.
Pour the vinegars, soya sauce and add the chili flakes and stir this well.
On one stove, boil water and add the noodles to cook. Mine took 3 min to cook.
Drain the water from the noodles and mix these into the veggie mix.
Stir them all together so that the noodles mix well with the veggies.
Serve hot.
Let the veggies cook in the vinegars for at least 5 min.