Singapore Noods

There are so many variations of Singapore Noodles recipes. To me, the basics are: rice noodles, a good curry powder (madras, muchi), and red chilies...the rest is up to you! I love it because of the fragrance and taste and because it feels like I'm making restaurant worthy fast-food in my kitchen. It's super easy- and the only thing that takes a bit of time is the prep. You want everything ready to go, as it all gets thrown in together very quickly.
Nick and I made this the other night...I prepped and he cooked. We made it with shrimp, but any other protein would work well, like firm tofu, etc. Our recipe is a bit abstract...you just have to go with your own taste.

This is how we do:
* 1 package of rice noodles/vermicelli
* 1 large red bell pepper, thinly julienned
* 2 red chilies, minced and de-seeded
* 4 cloves minced garlic, or to taste
* about 2 inches worth of fresh ginger, minced
* 1/2 cup or about 2 shallots, minced (scallions are generally used, but we were out)
* 1 package of cooked, peeled shrimp from Trader Joe's- they sell them with tails off, which is great.
* 1 tablespoon of curry powder, more to taste (muchi or madras)
* soy sauce
* vegetable oil
* sesame oil
* sherry vinegar (rice vinegar is good too)
* 1/2 cup of vegetable broth or water
* fresh cilantro- a nice big handful.

Soak the noodles in hot water and set aside.
In a big pot, get some vegetable oil nice and hot. Throw in onions and red bell pepper and sautee until both are tender. Throw in the garlic, red chiles, and curry powder, stir quickly. Add the broth.

Once the broth has been mixed in well and you scrape up all the goodness on the bottom of the pot, throw in shrimp, stir it all up fast. It's easy to overcook shrimp. I always do. You can set them aside if you want, after the initial toss around, and add them back in the end.

Take drained rice noodles, throw in the pot, stir it up some more. Add some sesame oil, vinegar, and soy sauce to taste...keep it light, this is ultimately a dry noodle stir-fry, so you can keep tossing around at a high heat until the liquids reduce and flavor intensifies.
Add cilantro and stir in to disperse. Serve!

(bean sprouts, napa cabbage, celery, etc. are also great in this dish...)