8 hours ago
5
Call me well and truly influenced. I am jumping on the social media trend of roasting noodles in a fragrant sauce for an easy one-tray family dinner. If I was being authentic to my socials, then I would throw a few frozen gyozas in there too (and why not, if you have them feel free to chuck them in), but what I will say is that this is delicious as it is. You can get a fresh Thai herb and spice kit from most large supermarkets these days, which includes the key ingredients you need here – lemongrass, bird’s eye chillies, lime leaves, etc; it also saves you from having to buy them all separately. Use this base as your hero, and think of it as a plant-based core recipe – perfect, but also happy to be finished with some shredded chicken or pork, a soft-boiled egg or even some of those failsafe frozen dumplings on top.
Spiced roast noodle traybake
Prep 5 min
Cook 20 min
Serves 4
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated
3 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp soy sauce
1½ tbsp runny honey, or maple syrup
400ml coconut milk
Salt and black pepper
1 lemongrass stalk
4 makrut lime leaves
2 bird’s-eye chillies
1 vegetable stock cube
4 ramen noodle bundles (250g)
250g cherry tomatoes
1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
1 bunch Thai basil, leaves picked
Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Put the garlic, tahini, soy sauce and honey in a 20cm x 30cm roasting tray, stir in three tablespoons of just-boiled water to loosen the tahini, then whisk in the coconut milk. Season generously.
Crush the lemongrass in a mortar to break it up a bit, then pop it in the tray with the lime leaves and chillies – if you don’t want the noodles too spicy, just prick the chillies a little; if you want them spicier, crush them slightly in a mortar.
Dissolve the stock cube in 900ml just-boiled water and pour into the tray. Whisk everything together, then nestle in the noodles so they are totally submerged. Poke in the cherry tomatoes, scatter the broccoli florets on top, then pop in the oven.
Roast for 15-20 minutes, until the noodles are tender, the sauce has thickened and the broccoli is a little charred. Scatter over the basil leaves and serve.
English (US)