Korean Chicken Noodle Bowls

I love Korean food. Of course, I've only eaten Korean food either at home or at Japanese restaurants, so I have no idea if I love real Korean food. But I do love my version of Korean food.

So I jumped all over this recipe, which I saw in Rachael Ray's Everyday magazine. What's not to like? Stir-fry? Good. Noodles? Good. Kimchi-like sauce? Good.

And it WAS good. However, I did make modifications that I think made it better. Namely, I added extra veggies and reduced the amount of noodles that were called for. But the recipe still made too much of a good thing (after three meals of this, even the little man grew weary), and was too heavy on the pasta for my tastes. I think the recipe would improve with even less pasta, which I adjusted in this recipe.

Even though it takes away from the kimchi nature of the recipe, I think you can swap in any veggies that you've got on hand. And while I like the texture of whole-wheat pasta here, you could use regular old pasta or Asian noodles in its place.

Korean Chicken Noodle Bowls
Serves 4

Salt and pepper
8-10 oz. whole wheat spaghetti
1" piece of ginger, grated
2 large cloves garlic, grated
1/4 c. tamari
3 Tbsp. honey
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. sriracha
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken, cut in thin strips
1 c. coleslaw mix
1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 zucchini, cut in thin strips
1 c. mushrooms, sliced
3 scallions, thinly sliced

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil.

2. In a blender or food processor, combine a splash of the boiling water with the ginger, garlic, tamari, honey, tomato paste, vinegar, sesame oil, and sriracha. Blend until smooth.

And then taste it, and adjust your seasonings accordingly. Rachael Ray is fond of eyeballing measurements, which I did. Mine was a bit on the salty side, so I decided to add some more honey and sriracha to make it sweeter and spicier.

3. Salt water and add pasta, cooking according to package directions. Drain the pasta well.

4. When pasta is almost finished cooking, heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add chicken and stir-fry, about 3-5 minutes.

5. Add cabbage, pepper, zucchini, and mushrooms, Stir-fry for 2 minutes.

6. Add the ginger sauce and toss for 1 minute.

7. Pour stir-fry over the drained noodles and top with scallions.