Cold Peanut Noodles

My friend Aya introduced me to the concept of consuming boiling soups during the summer as a means to induce sweating cooling your body. Now that Aya lives in Melbourne, that philosophy is now hers to keep. My cravings lately have been centered around consuming meals straight from the fridge. Whole offerings once warmed then sequestered to the chilly darkness of the refrigerator are very appealing to me.

I’ve been shy around making these noodles for a while. It freaks me out when peanut butter seizes like tahini once anything with moisture is added to it. I have a strong distaste for anything cosplaying as creamy then come to find out its stodgy as hell. That kind of trickery is just evil. I’ve also been really feeling the vibe of tofu lately. Some circles will tell you tofu tastes like nothing, but thats kind of what I like about it, especially the extra firm kind. I believe if you want something from tofu, it won’t give it to you, but if you accept tofu for what it is, you’ll take pleasure in it.

Here I’ve quickly boiled Chinese wheat noodles, thin yet chewy. The sauce is warm from chili crisp, savory from the dark soy sauce, balanced with a hit of sugar and nutty from the dual relationship of sesame oil and peanut butter. Garnishes are free for creative indulgence, but I went with cilantro and thinly sliced scallions. There’s a quick pickled smashed cucumber added for a crunch and acidity I find to be crucial to the fattiness/richness of the sauce. My final thoughts, a quick and perfectly adaptable cold peanut noodle dish for summer to have many lives over, especially from the depths of the fridge.

Cold Peanut Noodles

Serves 4

ingredients:

6 persian cucumbers, halved, smashed and cut into thirds

splash of rice wine vinegar

kosher salt for seasoning