Singapore Rice Noodles with Tofu

I'm not really that into take-out food... unless it's Indian. Or Thai. But I never understood the hubbub about Chinese take-out.

Maybe it's because the tastiest dishes are the ones with meat- I used to like the sweet-and-sour chicken balls, when I was a kid and didn't really question what was in them. But as a general rule of thumb, I'm not much one for fried rice and noodles, or vegetables and tofu doused in sweet and not particularly flavourful sauces. (I know that take-out by no means reflects Chinese cuisine accurately, even when the dish itself has real roots- it's got to be modified for the target customers, right? And it seems that in my area, blander is better.)

There are a couple of dishes I like, should I ever be handed a pamphlet and asked what I want to get- this is one of them. It's incredibly hard to screw up vermicelli fried in a simple sauce with vegetables and tofu, so it's always a safe bet.

When I tried this recipe for Singapore noodles, I was pleasantly surprised to find how similar they are to the take-out staple- only with a hint of British-style curry power (yum), a spice level to my taste, and a guarantee of not being cooked with any non-vegetarian stock. My noodles turned out quite brown because the only mushroom soya sauce I could find was the dark kind used to add colour to dishes. I also didn't have any cabbage on hand, so I included a double helping of bean sprouts.

Apparently, these noodles have no Singapore heritage at all- they're m0re of an amalgam of ingredients from regions of former British involvement, featuring that very vague "curry powder" I'd never use in an actual curry but that seems just right here. The only ingredient that may be tricky to find is the mushroom soya sauce, but you can always just use the regular kind.

This is also an incredibly easy recipe once you have the ingredients on hand, and it comes together quickly- that makes one more dish I won't have to order out for!

Singapore Noodles
From Veggie Belly

For the Sauce:
2 Tsp. Curry powder
1 Dried red bird pepper
3 TBSP Soya sauce
1 Tsp. Brown sugar
1/2 Tsp. Rice vinegar
1 TBSP Mushroom flavoured soya sauce
3 TBSP Water

Mix all together and set aside.

For the Noodles:
6 Oz. Rice vermicelli noodles
1 TBSP Vegetable oil
1 Tsp. Ginger paste
1 Tsp. Garlic paste, or 3 finely minced cloves
1 Carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
1 Red bell pepper, in thin slices
1 C. Bean sprouts
3 Scallions, chopped
1 C. Cubed fried tofu, or regular firm tofu fried in 2 TBSP oil until golden
1 1/2 C. Shredded cabbage (I used more bean sprouts)
1 TBSP Sesame oil
Lime and cilantro, to garnish

Soak the noodles in cold water for 5 minutes and drain. Set aside.
Fry the garlic and ginger in the vegetable oil in a large wok or skillet until browned, on medium heat. Add half of the sauce.
Once the sauce begins to bubble, add the tofu, carrot, pepper and cabbage/sprouts. Sauté for 2 minutes on medium-high heat.
Add the noodles and remaining sauce. Toss with a pair of tongs to coat in sauce.
Turn off the heat. Add the sprouts, scallions and sesame oil. Serve with lime wedges and chopped cilantro.