Dr Who Scarf Noodle

Penghui for Noodles

 I've been experimenting with an odd alkaline substance this past week. It goes into a lamian noodle, apparently used often in China though fairly impossible to find in the US. It's called penghui and as far as I can tell is ash, processed in some fantastic way, made from mugwort, which is an Artemesia species. The first time I made a solution and rubbed it onto a well worked and rested wheat flour dough. It was made from King Arthur Bread Flour. Not much happened and it didn't behave differently from the batch not rubbed with the solution.


But today I made a batch with 1/16 of a tsp of this white powder directly into a cup of flour and water. Worked for 15 minutes, left over night and then cut and worked into noodles this morning. It was very stretchy. A few strands broke so I couldn't get it into one super long noodle to wrap around my hands many times and stretch, but it made a pretty decent pulled lamian all the same.

My only complaint is that the cooked noodles above tasted a little chalky like Bayer aspirin. Maybe a hint of sulfur too. I rinsed in cold water for a while.

Then they went into a lamb stock with kale. Actually really chewy, and a great noodle. But I noticed afterwards a slimy texture in my mouth and a little lye-burn on my tongue and palate. It's still a little burnt a full 12 hours later. So I do not recommend putting this in the dough.

I'm going to try a diluted solution and working it into the kneaded and rested dough, maybe a little more of it, not just splashed on, will work without tasting weird.

Mushroom Noodle Cubed

1 lb mixed mushrooms (enoki, maitake, porcini, shi’itake)

1 tbs butter or oil

½ tsp salt

3 c water

1 c white wine

½ c porcini powder

½ c all purpose flour

1 egg

3 slices of portabello mushroom

1 tsp butter

½ c milk

Dill

Sour cream

Sautee mushrooms in butter or olive oil with salt. Let them brown. Put over water and wine, simmer for 30 minutes. Strain and put the mushroom solids in a sturdy cloth and squeeze out all the liquid. Discard solids. Combine porcini powder with flour and egg. Knead into a smooth ball and lightly oil. Roll out into a very thin sheet (without extra flour) and cut by hand into extra thin noodles. Let these dry slightly on a wooden board. Sautee three slices of portabello mushrooms in butter, salt lightly. Heat the mushroom stock and add milk. Add the noodles. When cooked through arrange in a bowl with the mushroom slices, a sprig of dill and a dollop of sour cream. 

Laghman

This is a pulled noodle. Really simple to make. Look out for my noodle soup book for the recipe.

Ohn-no Khao Swè

Although you will find this dish transliterated a dozen different ways, the name simply means coconut milk chicken noodles. It is sometimes regaled as the national dish of Myanmar (Burma), alongside Mohinga, the wonderful fish noodle soup. Each is equally deserving of the title. You might also be familiar with this recipe from northern Thai cuisine (khao soi), where it seems to have been borrowed and evolved into many different forms. There are quick and easy ways to make it, but I think pounding the ingredients to extract their flavor does make a big difference, as does a good fresh chicken stock. The recipe works best with fresh medium sized rice noodles. See the recipe in the section on noodles or purchase them in an Asian grocery. Dried noodles also work. It is is also often made with thin egg noodles. The unique flavor comes surprisingly not only from the coconut, but from chickpea flour, which can be purchased or made from dried chickpeas whizzed in a powerful blender or food processor. You can also garnish this however you like, with hard boiled egg or pickled mustard greens.

Serves 1, multiply for more servings

4 ounces fresh medium rice noodles, a small handful of which are fried

¼ cup peanut oil, plus 2 tbs

1 inch piece fresh peeled ginger

1 small garlic clove

1 inch piece fresh peeled turmeric  

1 small red chili pepper

1 skinned boneless chicken thigh

2 cups chicken stock

1 tbs fish sauce

1 tbs chickpea flour dissolved in 1/2 cup of water

3 oz coconut milk

1 handful of chopped cilantro

¼  lemon

1 small shallot chopped

Start by taking a handful of noodles and frying them in hot peanut oil for a few seconds, just until they puff up. Set them aside on a  paper towel to drain and cool. Then take ginger, garlic, turmeric and chili and pound them in a mortar into a fine paste. Fry this paste gently in 2 tablespoons of oil about 5 minutes. Add the cubed chicken thighs and stir. Let it stick a bit to the bottom of the pan and cook through. Then add the chicken mixture to your chicken stock, add fish sauce and the chickpea flour dissolved in a half cup of water (stirred well so it doesn’t clump). Stir and let the chicken gently simmer for about 10 minutes.

Put the fresh noodles in to boiling water about 10 seconds and then put them in a collander, run them under cold water to stop the cooking. Or cook and drain dried noodles according to package directions.   

When ready to serve add the coconut milk to the chicken and bring to the boil.  

To assemble put the noodles in the bottom of a bowl and pour the chicken and soup over it. On top add the fried noodles, a good handful of chopped cilantro, chopped shallot and a big wedge of lemon. You can also add a little more ground chili if you like it spicier as well as other garnishes.  

Marbelized Noodle Experiment #1

Marbelizing technique works nicely with thick colored batters. This is a plain flour batter base with lines of tomato and olive batter piped on top, feathered through with a toothpick. I then dehydrated them. I should have cut them before completely dry. These were broken into pieces. In any case, maybe the even greater discovery, apart from the pattern is that you can make an ultrathin noodle my spreading batter and drying it.

I'll have be a little more careful and deliberate with this, next time should work perfectly.

Recent Lecture at the Getty about banquet management. LOADS of fun.

http://www.getty.edu/research/exhibitions_events/events/art_of_food/index.html#albala