I LOVE Asian food.  Thai, Korean, Japanese, Chinese.  You name it, I’m totally into it.  Lately I’ve really been into Vietnamese food and I’m excited to say that after a LOT of trial and error I finally came up with a noodle bowl recipe that makes me SO HAPPY.

How can you go wrong with a big bowl of noodles and chicken?!  Don’t be intimidated by the ingredient list.  You’ll notice that I use the same things in the marinade and the sauce both.  These are all good things to keep in your pantry to make cooking all kinds of Asian food super easy!

This recipe would be great with shrimp too.  Cut the marinade time to 20-30 minutes.  Grill shrimp 2-3 minutes per side or until cooked through.

Lemongrass Chicken Noodle Bowls
Serves: 4, Prep time: 1 hour to marinate, 30 minutes to cook

1 ½ lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts*
2 Tablespoons lemongrass paste
1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fish sauce
½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
1 green onion, sliced
¼ cup cilantro, chopped

1 cup water
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
½ teaspoon fish sauce
1 Tablespoon light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 (8.8 oz.) package rice vermicelli
2 cups romaine lettuce, shredded
2 cups carrots, shredded
2 cups English cucumber, julienned
1 cup peanuts, chopped
½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
Sprouts or micro greens
Lime wedges

In a medium bowl, mix together lemongrass, ginger and next 5 ingredients (through cilantro). Add chicken, cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge for one hour.

Remove chicken from fridge. Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade and reserve marinade. Grill chicken 3-4 minutes on the first side. Flip chicken over and cook another 2-3 minutes. Baste chicken with reserved marinade and finish cooking in a 350° oven for about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest. Slice thinly.

In a small saucepan, add water, soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, and rice wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer and let cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

While chicken and sauce are cooking, prepare noodles according to package directions (usually pouring hot water over noodles and letting them soak for 15 minutes).

To assemble bowls, drain and rinse noodles. Divide noodles between 4 bowls. Top with romaine, carrots, cucumbers, chicken, peanuts, cilantro, mint, and sprouts. Pour broth over bowls and finish with a squeeze of lime.

*This recipe would also be great with shrimp. Reduce marinating time to 20-30 minutes. Cook shrimp for 2-3 minutes per side or until cooked through.

Source: Ruth’s Table, 2018.