We're back... and we brought noodles

The B.L.T. Project is back ladies and gentlemen! After a hectic month of school and work, it feels fantastic to get behind the chopping board and cook again. By now you've probably noticed a few changes to the blog. Content-wise everything is still all here.

What's new is a visual update to welcome spring and the wonderful weather we've had the last few weeks. I'm still on the fence about the background, but I'll let the readers decide upon that. Another small change is with my writing: I'm using the word "I" now. That's a first-person pronoun for all you grammar Nazis out on the interweb.

I tend of avoid putting myself into my writing. It's a big no-no in your typical hard-news journalism. "The focus is on the story and not you," or so my profs say. And really, there's no "I" in a B.L.T. Trust me, I checked.

But lately I've found this blog --possibly the farthest thing from hard-news there is-- lacking in personality. So, what I'm doing now is a little pilot project. I'll going to try this "immersion of the writer" business for the rest of the month and take it from there. After all, how can you condemn what you've never tried?

Anyhow, you're probably wondering where this week's recipe is. I give you: Instant Noodles!


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Instant noodles? Well, put it this way, if Kraft Dinner is the bread of the stereotypical university student diet, then instant noodles are the butter. It's dirt cheap, quick to make, and impossible to screw up. And God help you if you do mess it up.

I came across a whole box of these noodles the other day and after binging on sandwiches all week long I decided to switch things up. But I'm a growing boy and it takes much more than a package of noodle to satisfy me. When faced with hardship and in need of answers, I turn to my fridge. There I had some veggies in my crisper, half a rotisserie chicken, and some BBQ pork from my butcher. Noodles + veggies + chicken + BBQ Pork = satisfaction.

Chicken and Mushroom Noodle Soup

Ingredients

-One (1) package of instant noodles (Go for your favourite brand)
-One (1) cup of chicken broth
-One (1) cup of water
-One (1) head of baby bok choi(Chinese cabbage), cleaned and seperated into segments
-Half (1/2) cup of chopped rotisserie chicken
-Half (1/2) cup of BBQ pork
-Four (4) white mushrooms, sliced into quarters
-One (1) handful of enoki mushrooms (lower ends of the stem removed)
-Salt and pepper to taste

Makes one bowl



1. In a medium-sized pot, add water as well as chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add in bok choi pieces and cover. When water comes back to a boil, reduce heat to low and let simmer.



2. Add in mushrooms and simmer for 4 minutes. Then add noodles, cover, and continue to cook on low heat for 3 minutes.



3. Using a fork (I prefer chopsticks, but that's just me) layer the bok choi into your serving bowl followed by a layer of noodles. Top it off with remaining mushrooms, bok choi, chicken and pork.



4. Pour the leftover soup mixture over top, cover and let stand for 3 minutes.



5. Garnish with imitation crab stick and fried shallots. Savour!

Tips:

-I omitted the soup base (the seasoning packet) that comes with the noodles. It's too salty for my taste. There's enough flavouring from the chicken broth and the other ingredients that you can just ditch the packet.

-Like many of the recipes on the B.L.T Project, this one goes with pretty much anything you've got in your fridge. If you don't have chicken or BBQ pork, try throwing in some soya chicken or roasted duck. You can find either at your local oriental market.