Edamame and Spicy Peanut Noodle Bowls

Photography by America’s Test Kitchen

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Edamame and Spicy Peanut Noodle Bowls

Serves 4 to 6

Total time: 45 minutes

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: Inspired by the sweet, savoury, and spicy flavours of Southeast Asia, this noodle bowl is a real stunner, boasting a colourful medley of simple but texturally interesting toppings. We combined tender rice noodles with savoury edamame, tangy lightly pickled carrots, and crunchy cabbage, and we draped it all with a rich peanut sauce that’s a little spicy, a little sweet, and enlivened with a hint of curry powder for aromatic appeal. Instead of taking the time to pickle our carrots in advance of making the dish, we simply added seasoned rice vinegar to shredded carrots and let them sit while the rice noodles soaked and softened. After the 20-minute soaking period, we started the cooking process by first quickly sautéing the edamame just until they were speckled brown but still maintained a tender-crisp texture and fresh flavour. After removing the edamame from the skillet, we finished cooking the noodles in the same pan with half the sauce and some water until the noodles were perfectly tender and chewy. After topping our bowls with the veggies, we added plenty of garnishes—chopped peanuts, fragrant Thai basil, lime wedges and a drizzle of additional sauce. If you can’t find Thai basil, you can substitute regular basil. You can substitute frozen shelled edamame beans for first in this recipe. We prefer the flavour of seasoned rice vinegar in this recipe.

Peanut Sauce

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 Thai, serrano, or jalapeno chiles. stemmed, seeded, and minced

3 garlic cloves

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder

1/2 cup water, plus extra as needed

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

Noodles

1 cup shredded carrots

2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

12 ounces (1/4-inch-wide) rice noodles

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

6 ounces shelled edamame beans (1 cup)

1 cup shredded red cabbage

1/3 cup dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

2 tablespoons torn fresh Thai basil

Lime wedges

1. For the peanut sauce: Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add Thai chiles, garlic, ginger, and curry powder and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in water, peanut butter, vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar and bring to simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally until thickened slightly and flavours meld, about 2 minutes. Adjust consistency as needed with additional water; set aside off heat.

1. For the noodles: Combine carrots and vinegar in small bowl; set aside. Cover noodles with very hot water in large bowl and stir to separate. Let noodles soak until softened, pliable, and limb but not fully tender, about 20 minutes. Drain noodles.

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-heat until just smoking. Add edamame and cook until spotty brown but still bright green, about 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl. In now empty skillet, heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat until shimmering, add drained noodles, 1 1/4 cups water, and 1/2 cup peanut sauce and cook until sauce has thickened slightly and noodles are well coated and tender, about 1 minute.

Divide noodles among individual serving bowls, then top with carrots, edamame, and cabbage. Drizzle with remaining peanut sauce, sprinkle with peanut and basil and serve with lime wedges.

Recipe reprinted with permission from America’s Test Kitchen.