Sunday, April 30, 2006

American Chopsuey & Fruity Choco Dessert

American Chopsuey is a misnomer. It is not really american, more of chinese origin. It is a great recipe for a graduate student who is bound to stock up on Ramen noodles and wants to prepare a fancy meal.
Chopsuey: noodles + corn flour + cabbage + tomato
+ onions + any veggie you like



Fruity-Choco Dessert


Optimized Method of Preparing the meal in less than 40 minutes

Timer begins at 00:00 (m m: s s)

00:00 - Rummage cupboards for 2 pkts of Top Ramen noodles. We are not going to use the accompanying flavor. So choose the one you dislike most. If you have no ramen any other noodle type will work too.

For the dessert we use a ready made cake mix recipe. I like Betty Crocker's products, especially the chocoloate variety.

00:02 - Boil the noodles in a saucepan of water. Add a little salt + oil too.
Prepare the dough for the cake according to the instructions on the packet. Spread the batter in a baking dish, topped with some almonds and pista. Place in the oven.

00:05 - Keep checking the noodles. We don't want it to get sticky. For the sauce, chop some cabbage, 1 onion into long strips. Also can add some french beans and diced carrot.

00:07 - Take the noodles off the stove and drain the water.

00:20 - You should have all veggies ready by now. Remember to use an electric chopper for quick cutting. Heat a pan with some margarine in it. Saute onions on medium heat.

00:23 - Add some red chilly flakes to the onion and stir for a couple of seconds. Then add the rest of the veggies and saute well.

00:24 - Add dry corn flour to the wet noodles and deep fry in oil. This will take some time, so manage the heat accordingly.

00:30 - Time to add the tomatoes to the sauce. Too much tomatoes can never hurt, but too little can. I added about three quarters of a can of diced tomatoes (Hunts) to get that lovely red color. Add salt and stir on medium heat.
Working on frying noodles on the other stove.

00:35 - Add 2 tbsps of vinegar. Mix 2 tsps of cornflour in water and make sure there are no lumps. Add this to thicken the sauce. At this point one should get a good aroma of both the cake and the sauce.
Working on frying noodles on the other stove

00:40 - At this point all 3 dishes should be done. Pour the sauce over the crispy noodles.
I used a tutti-fruity flavored icecream (available in indian stores) to top my chocolate cake. I think the softness of the cake with fruity ice cream is a wonderful dessert after the crispy crunching of chopseuy!

posted by Subbu at 1:18 PM 5 comments