Curry Noodles were such a surprise. Since almost every Indian dish I cook has an element of ‘curry’, I don’t go out of my way to add a curry flavor to my recipes. And especially not to something that is essentially Not Indian, like pasta or noodles. I wanted a quick evening snack and decided to make some lemony oats because I was craving something tangy. Now these ‘masala’ oats have taken the Indian market by storm, but I still prefer my oats the old fashioned way in the morning.

Anyway, like most things I make, once I started cooking, I started adding more and more elements to make some veggie packed lemony masala oats. Halfway through, I realized that I was out of oats. Dang! The options were to just drink the whole concoction as a soup, or maybe cook rice in it. Until I saw a packet of noodles in the pantry, and Curry Noodles were born in my kitchen. I just read an article yesterday about how different foods are eaten for luck on New Year’s day depending on where you are. Black Eyed Peas are a tradition in Southern America. And noodles are eaten in Asia for longevity.

You can use any kind of noodle here – rice noodles, linguini, spaghetti, angel hair, even elbow macaroni – but if you’re using pasta, you might use cooked pasta and add it directly to the veggies instead of adding the several cups of water that I add in the recipe below. Or you can add raw noodles in the water like I did.

Check out these spicy tangy noodles and give your senses a big nudge!

Ingredients

2 medium boiled potatoes

½ cup chopped celery

½ cup peas

1 tomato chopped

4 cups water

1 tsp curry powder

½ tsp black mustard seeds

Pinch Asfoetida optional

½ tsp turmeric

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp sugar

Salt to taste

1 packet Hakka noodles

1 Tbsp oil

Method

1. Chop potatoes, celery and tomato and set aside. Defrost or shell peas as needed.
2. Heat oil in a Wok and give a traditional tadka. For this, add mustard seeds once oil is hot. Let the mustard seeds pop – you will hear a sound. Add the pinch of Asfoetida, turmeric, cayenne and immediately add the potatoes and celery.
3. Stir potatoes for 2 minutes and then add tomatoes and peas.
4. Add 4-5 cups water and bring to a boil.( If you are using boiled pasta or boiled noodles, skip adding water and directly add the noodles to the veggie mixture in the wok)
5. Season the liquid using salt and sugar. Add the curry powder.
6. Once the liquid starts to boil, add the noodle. Break them into 3-4 chunks as needed. Now be patient as the noodles cook.
7. The noodles I used had a cooking time of 4 minutes on the packet but it actually took a while longer. You want the noodles ‘done’ since they are absorbing the broth as they cook.
8. As the liquid is absorbed, you might have to add more. This will depend on the type of needle and cooking conditions. Or it is also possible that there may be some broth left.
9. As the liquid is almost absorbed, lower the heat and cover with a lid. Let the noodles stew and soften.
10. Serve hot with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

These noodles turned out to be super spicy and flavorful. It’s an easy to make dish that you can make more robust by adding some tofu or paneer. My kind of one pot meal!

How about trying these curry noodles the next time you get a craving for curry? Here’s wishing you all a Happy New Year.