I had such a fabulous weekend with some very special friends at St. Ali. Then, Monday came and nothing went right. Nothing at all. My train was delayed and there was no replacement bus. I was late for everything. The worst part was facing really unfriendly admin staff at a government department and following their ridiculous policy. It was frustrated, yes. But ya know what, there are only three days left until Good Friday and the Easter break so I have calmed myself down. Three more days. So hang on there, people!
At least back at home, things are a lot calmer now. The husband is attending his martial art training and the sister is hanging out with her friends. Sometimes, being alone is nice. It balances out any insanity moments I may have during the day. Reading a book, catching up on TV programs, things are not that bad. Like my friend used to say, “it´s ok to start the days in chaos as long as it ends nicely!”
This noodle is a lovely vegan dish I learned from a Korean friend when living in Sydney. Very simple and healthy. The flavor comes almost entirely from the purée kabocha sauce. It is sort of a dish I can cook with ingredients from the pantry without exercising too much brain power. Lazy cooking and it still tastes good. I´m not gonna complain about this one.
Serve 2, for a light lunch
150g dry udon noodles, cooked as instructed in the packet. Drained and set aside.
Around 400g kabocha {Japanese pumpkin}, peeled and seeded
1-2 tbp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
1 nori sheet
Salt, vegetable stock powder {optional} & pepper
Method
Cut the peeled and seeded pumpkin into big chunks. Put it a microwave-safe bowl with some water. Cover with cling wrap and microwave for 5 mins or until the pumpkin is tender and cooked through. Using a food processor, purée the kabocha to get a smooth consistency.
In a frying pan, heat up 1 tbp olive oil. Sprinkle the nori sheet with salt and pepper, then quickly fry the nori until crispy. Set aside.
Pour in some more olive oil, and heat up. Fry the garlic slices until golden. Set aside.
Pour the kabocha into the garlic-infused oil. Heat up the sauce. You may have to add in some water to get the right consistency. Season with stock powder (or salt) and pepper.
Divide the noodles into serving bowl. Ladle the source on top, garnished with thin strips of nori and the garlic chips.
hmmm.. this reminds me of a pumpkin puree that I use for a risotto recipe! Looks yum and I may steal this for one of my meatless days
A perfect combo!
Ahn, it's a beautiful, elegant dish. Or perhaps it's just you.
Have a good, restful break.
I completely understand your feelings and I am also very much looking forward to the Easter break.
A lovely dish. I'm feeling very inspired to cook Japanese.
This is something deliciously new to me – kabocha sauce! I will definitely have to try. 😎
It's new to me but looks healthy and delicious. Have a wonderful break, Ahn!
This is such an elegant looking noodle dish! Absolutely lovely!
This look really yummy!! I love it!! gloria
Beautiful! I wish kabocha squash were easier to find here in New England, but not many farmers grow it. We do have lots of wonderful winder squashes to substitute, though — Blue Hubbard is one I'm going to try.
This pasta looks wonderfully simple and delicious. I don't actually think I've tasted Kabocha, but it certainly looks nice!
That looks delicious! I've been making a similar sauce out of butternut squash and love to be able to use squash in a different way. Awesome photos too!
That dish looks so tasty! I will have to try and find some kabocha now.
This looks scrumptious! I love udon noodles but have never tried kabocha squash. I can't wait to make this!
Mmmmm – this reminds me of a Malaysian dish that we make with a sweet potato sauce on chewy egg noodles. Oh-so-comforting (even for those like me who are orange-vegetable-averse!)
After a stressful day a simple meal like this can really soothe one's soul.
it's nice to stumble upon blogs that do such different dishes that i have never heard of before. it's a great way to learn more about different cultures and cuisines. kabocha sauce is something i haven't had the pleasure of trying yet. thanks for the idea!
Glad your day settled down in the end. I love garlic chips, and this really does sound like such an easy yet very tasty dish. Where do you find kabocha? (I don't even know what it looks like)
It really looks nice and creamy Anh! Is it very creamy? 😀
Looks lovely! Initially I thought it would be hard for me to make since I may need to puree the squash and I have no blender/food processor. But with the microwave, it may just work. Thanks.
Hooray for being halfway through the week – thank goodness for the coming long weekend!
I like the quote by your friend, it's so true! I'm so looking forward to the weekend as well! Bring on all the eating!
Now I know.. It looks nice. Thanks for sharing
it's always good to spoiled yourself after 'crazy' days 😀 like mine, try to relax and change TV's channel often. The point is, I can't change TV's channel when husband around hahahah..
Udon noodles + kabocha + veganism = Excellent!
This is so healthy! Pumpkin puree as a sauce for udon.
Sorry de faire un copié-collé, mais je ne suis pratiquement plus là en ce moment. J´apprécie tous tes passages et je suis désolée de ne pouvoir te répondre autant que je le voudrais. En tous les cas, MERCI, MERCI. Je te souhaite une bonne fête de Pâques, avec beaucoup de chocolat ! A bientôt !
Your photos are exquisite.
I love the fact that no matter how hard it is to slice, peel and chop pumpkins, in the end they always turn change into this beautiful mushy orange explosion of sweetness and flavour! This recipe is simple yet beautiful!
Thanks everyone for your sweet comments :).
Oh my! I never considered kabocha as a base for a sauce….Silly me! I love this! (And thanks for stopping by my blog..)
love the pumpkin puree sauce. looks really creamy and luxurious with the noodles.
What a lovely dish. You say it is simple but it looks so appealing. I've never tried kabocha before.
I've just had dinner and you've made me hungry…again.
I am looking forward to a quiet weekend by myself too. :)
This is really a simple, delicious and healthy dish for my family. Never thought of using kabocha sauce for udon. A brilliant idea! Take care and have a good rest during your Easter break!
I -love- the sound of this- Exactly my style! I'm gonna have to hunt down some kabocha and make this dish asap.
I love pumpkin ravioli, this is almost similar but an Asian version ehy? Looks delicious!
I was wondering what the yellow paste was made out of. Pumpkins, I see. One Japanese restaurant that I frequent regularly uses a similar looking sauce in their salad. Hmmm..maybe it's kabocha after all. I am definitely gonna make this dish. So simple and healthy.
Kabocha? New to me. I like the look of the noodles and the sauce
Thank you for visiting my site! Yours is really nice and I love your pictures
This dish looks sooooo good. I'm sorry you had a bad week, however. I've had them. Boy oh boy. Have a great weekend and enjoy Easter!
I too was wondering about kabocha and now I now!
Such a simple sauce, but packed with flavor and nutrition too! Man, I'm suddenly so hungry
Glad you're back home, safe and sound.sometimes the only nthing we can do, is practice patience!
Simple yet delicious. I love it.
looks lovely. If i could taste it then i will appreciate it for sure.
Wow! Never thought of using pumpkin puree as a sauce for pasta…sounds yummy!
do join http://www.ozbloggers.com and ping every time you blog a topic..
I love Japanese noodles but have yet to try it with kabocha.
what a wonderful idea! My daughters live on udon noodles and this is a great way to get veggies in them too! it looks delicious!
Somple is good – especially when it's finished with garlic chips!
Nice recipes There is a lot more juice in grapefruit than meets the eye
Nice recipe There is a lot more juice in grapefruit than meets the eye
Anh: I have some udon noodles in the pantry. Is there any reason why I can't use squash? It ought to be delicious over those noodles.
What a simple, yet delicious dish!
Hope you had a good Easter break! The creamy pumpkin on top looks like melted cheese!
That's a good recipe for a cold day. I've never tried pumpkin with noodles, but I like the sound of it, especially with the garlic.
That's an inspired "sauce" for noodles. Thanks for sharing!
Great recipe. I love your Udon – white thick and tastful Udon.
http://staranisefoods.com/our-products.aspx. But you can also get them from Amazon.com I think. I´ve also joined
Thanks for the recipe, I will try them
Looking for udon recipes that reminded me of the many years I spent teaching in Japan – I'm sorry to be the one to tell you, but those are not udon noodles. Udon refers to a thicker, more chewy kind of noodle. Still looks delicious, mind!