Crispy Noodle Cakes with Chilli Sauce

I was home alone and realised I haven't cooked for the blog in a while – so I needed a lunch idea.  In one of the many cookbooks I have flipped through in the last wee while I had a vague recollection of seeing an egg and noodle dish.  This is my version of it.  I recommend it to you – I'll be doing it again.

Ingredients:

Rice noodles (vermicelli)

2 tblsp chopped parsley (didn't have coriander)

1 tsp grated ginger

½ tsp Chinese 5 spice

2 eggs (lightly whisked)

1 tblsp sesame oil

½ tsp garlic oil

2tblsp sweet chilli sauce

1 tblsp cornstarch (cornflour)

Salt & pepper

Canola oil (for frying)

For the sauce – sweet chilli sauce, tomato paste and soy sauce

Method:

Boil some water and soak your rice noodles in the hot water for 5 minutes.  While they are soaking cut them into shorter lengths with some kitchen scissors.

Drain them and rinse with cold water – this is important because you don't want to mix hot noodles with the egg because you'll scramble.

Put the cold noodles into the bowl with the whisked weggs and all the other ingredients – except for the canola oil which you put into a pan.  Keep back a little parsley for a garnish.

When your pan is hot pour the mixture into some egg rings – I only had the ones with little handles so fried the mix on the first side until I felt it was safe to release it from the ring with a knife and then flipped it over.  It would have been better if I could have flipped the whole thing but it worked well enough.  You could also do it without the rings but the mix will spread and be thinner and more like an omelette.

The sauce is a simple mix of 3 parts sweet chilli sauce to one part tomato paste and soy sauce.