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Eating Lunch with Rachael Ray: Curry Noodle Bowl

Curry Noodle Bowl

It had come to my notice a few days ago that I was spending a lot more time cooking than actually eating. This is not to say that I have been burdening myself with tedious and slow-cooking meals. In fact, it was quite the contrary. While my meals have been loaded with quick and simple salads, soups and the occasional sandwich, it seemed strange to me that I was eating in less than half the time I took to prepare the meal at hand.

I have recently begun to have lunch at my desk, if only to try and get as much work done as I possibly could cram into my day. With my food sitting on my right and my laptop on the left, it’s almost impossible for me to sit back and actually take a moment to even look at my plate, let alone enjoy it. And this, my dear friends has been bugging me since the time I started doing it.

There are piles of emails flagged for responses, a ton of article ideas bookmarked for research, a growing tower of books (which I now use as a side table to hold my morning cup of coffee) for review, and the odd request or two for help with a menu plan, that are all screaming for my undivided attention. Well, what can I say but that it’s hard trying to balance your work and hobby at the same time. Even harder when they both are interlinked, like in my case. That was until I found Rachael Ray.

I was first introduced to the great RR a few years ago with her show 30-Minute Meals. Like many, I thought she was too perky to be sane. I thought it was crazy of her to bang pots and pans to flatten meat, and create acronyms like EVOO and GB (which I must add is a wonderful trick I learnt from her!). But what I did admire was her penchant to get real creative in the kitchen and make everyday food seem exotic and exciting.

A few days ago, as I got ready to take my lunch into my home office, I had the sudden urge to stop and see what was on TV. A quick scan and I found myself taking a seat with The Rachael Ray Show. She was just as I remembered her: quirky, overly excited and bubbly. But even then, I found myself grinning at her silly jokes. She passed around the ’snack of the day’ to her audience as I took the first bite of my lunch. By the end of the episode, I had polished my plate, relishing every bite and enjoying what I ate. I tried doing the same the next day. And the day after. And the day after that.

It’s been more than a week since, and my lunches, though take hardly any time to cook, seem to take a whole hour to be eaten. And not to mention, enjoyed. All thanks to the Queen of Quick!

CURRY NOODLE BOWL
Prep time: 15 min | Cooking time: 15 min | Serves: 2

1 cup boneless cubed chicken/cubed tofu
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 cups chopped bok choy
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp curry paste (red or yellow)
1 stalk lemon grass, bruised and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 cup coconut milk 
2 cups chicken/vegetable stock
2 lb noodles
1 tbsp light cooking oil
salt & pepper, to taste
fresh coriander leaves, chopped chillies and lemon wedges, for garnish

HEAT oil in a deep pan, and saute garlic and curry paste till fragrant. Add in onions and chicken/tofu, and saute till lightly brown.

ADD in coconut milk, stock and lemon grass, and let it come to a boil on low heat. Add in musrooms and noodles, and cook covered till noodles are tender and done. Stir in bok choy, and cover cook for 5 minutes.

SEASON with salt and pepper, add garnish with coriander leaves, chillies and a dash of lemon juice. Ladle in large bowls and serve piping hot.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 4th, 2008 at 1:04 pm and is filed under Recipes: Non-Vegetarian, Recipes: Vegan, Recipes: Vegetarian. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


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