Stir-fried Vegetables with Rice Noodles and Tofu

I think this recipe is a healthy and easy dish that works for people like to enjoy Asian food without having to order it from a takeout restaurant. This dish is full flavored with many choices of vegetables, which are easy to find in most groceries. I use some mushroom seasoning to enhance the favor of this dish, but it can be omitted by using some soy sauce instead.  If tofu is not available, then substitute it with shrimp or chicken. Fresh noodles are recommended for this dish, "banh pho tuoi’; however, dried noodles are acceptable. Soak the dried noodles for a longer time than the fresh noodles. The vegetables used are very much what each cook has in his or her kitchen.  As for myself, I use a little of each kind of vegetable that can be cooked together.  This recipe is very nutritional and healthy, and I am very happy to share it with all my frequent blog followers.

Ingredients;

6 oz. of fresh rice noodles

8 oz. fried tofu, julienned

2 tbs oil for stir-frying

Vegetables;

Red peppers, Napa cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, celery

1 dried fungus

2 dried shiitake mushrooms

1 cup bean sprouts

Spices:

1 garlic clove, minced

2 shallots, sliced

2 green onions, white part chopped

Salt and sugar 11/4 tsp total

1/4 black pepper and cayenne

1 tsp mushroom seasoning or soy sauce

Other ingredients:

Chopped roasted peanuts

Chopped cilantro

Directions:

Soak fresh noodles in warm tap water for 5 minutes and drain.Combine the salt, sugar, black pepper and cayenne and set aside.

Add mushroom seasoning on drained noodles and mix well.

Julienne all the vegetables (about 2 cups of vegetables total) and set aside.

If you do not have fried tofu, slice the tofu and fry them until golden brown, and then slice fried tofu into strips.

Add 2 tbs of oil in a wok. Add shallots, garlic, and the white parts of green onions. Stir and cook for 30 seconds. Remove and put this flavored oil in a bowl to use sparingly.

Add noodles into the empty skillet now. Stir and cook while sprinkling with seasoning.

  Add a little water if the noodles appear dry. Remove from the wok.

Add some flavored oil to the wok. Add fresh mushrooms and two dried mushrooms and cook for a few minutes or until the fresh mushrooms have wilted (about 1 minute).

 Stir in carrots and celery (do not forget to season the vegetables each time). 

Add Napa cabbage and bean sprouts and make a quick stir; return the noodles to rejoin with the vegetables.

 Add tofu (do the final seasoning at this point). Serve on a serving plate topped with roasted peanuts and cilantro. Also, include sweet soy dipping sauce with fresh hot chilli slices on the side.

*The reason this dish is cooked this way is that each vegetable has different cooking times. Season each time to make sure all the vegetable are seasoned equally.

If using shrimp, pan-fried shrimp