Mee Goreng Into Summer!

To celebrate the end of the academic year, we decided to have a Friday night dinner party.   The plan was to use the wok:  a brand new, 14-pound cast iron cooking vessel.    We have been slightly obsessed with cast-iron recently, especially after our many attempts to create a glossy, non-stick surface on our new skillets.   And who could resist the idea of wok-charred noodels on a rainy, 50-degree early summer day?   We found this recipe for Mee Goreng in Yotam Ottolenghi's fantastic book, Plenty, and the pictures had us sold.   The dish is so flavorful -- a perfect hybrid of South and East Asian flavors, and yet still somehow summer-like -- even on a rainy day!

Veggies:
1 bunch bok choy, cut length-wise
1 bunch of fresh green beans, cut in halves
1 package of egg noodles
1 package of tofu, cubed
lemon wedges for garnish

Spices, Oils, and Aromatics:
3 tablespoons peanut oil
1/2 onion, diced
3 sprigs of green onion
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sambal (chili paste)

Heat up your wok -- or any other cooking vessel -- with the peanut oil.   The goal is get the wok as hot as you can while still feeling safe and comfortable cooking on it.   When the oil smokes a little bit, add your onions, and sautee until they are translucent.   Add the tofu and allow it to gain some color and firmness.   Follow with green beans, and then the boy choy.   The bok choy will look very big in contrast to everything else, but it will cook down quickly.   When the veggies are just short of being fully cooked, add your noodles.   Ottolenghi suggests adding all the spice and sauces at the end, which we did.   We paired this dinner with a summer rose : )