From Leftovers To.....Restaurant-Quality Fried Noodles!

Oftentimes, I have plenty of leftovers in my fridge just because, well, I cook too much! :) So here's a tip on how you can turn leftovers into a delicious fried noodle dish fit for a restaurant. OK, here's what I had in my fridge:

• Shrimp stir-fry with broccoli and carrots
• 5-Spice roasted pork belly (sliced into thin pieces)
  

What I added are rice noodle sticks (the same ones used for Pad Thai), mushrooms, onions and garlic. That's all, very simple. To add a little bulk to the dish, I also cut up a piece of chicken breast cutlet that was sitting in the freezer.

OK, let's get to it. First, soak the noodles in hot water for about 30 minutes. You don't want to boil the noodles and make too soft as you'll be frying it in a little while. Get a wok or pan hot with vegetable oil in it. Start by sauteing the onions first, sweating them before adding the garlic. Now add the raw protein, in this case, it is only the chicken meat as the shrimp and pork belly are already cooked. Add some seasonings like fish sauce and pepper. Make sure that the chicken is cooked before adding the noodles. I would normally cook the vegetables at this point but as they are already cooked, there is no need to. Use a pair of tongs to stir up the ingredients together with the noodles. Add soy sauce and sweet soy sauce (or Kicap Manis) to get the darker color that you see on the noodles and keep stirring. Now, add the leftovers and the mushrooms and stir it up some more. Taste and add more soy sauce if needed. I also like to add a teaspoon of sugar and a dash of sesame oil to my noodles. So, keep mixing and frying until the noodles become soft.

And there you have it. Delicious fried noodles made from leftovers. Yummy!