Cold Peanut Zoodles with Chicken

Oh, wow, is this good! My DH often sends me recipes from the NYT and I often just ignore them--too much time, too many ingredients-feeling lazy-whatever. However, recently he sent me this recipe and it piqued my interest because I am basically a complete sucker for anything that may involve a peanut sauce. The original recipe called for rice noodles but I had a gigantic zucchini that wanted to be made into noodles and my waistline agreed that would be a good idea. It gave me an excuse to use my cute spiralizer tool, too. This is a bit of work because you need to make a couple sauces and a marinade but after all that is done, it comes together pretty quickly and it is quite delicious. Here are the directions for the original recipe with my changes:

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE DIPPING SAUCE

• 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
•   2 serrano chiles, sliced thinly

FOR THE PEANUT DRESSING

• 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 6 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 4 Tablespoons peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
•  Pinch cayenne

FOR THE CHICKEN AND RICE NOODLES

• 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 1 1/4 pounds
• 4 large garlic cloves, halved
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
• 1 large zucchini, spiralized into "noodles"
• 2 small cucumbers, cut in 1/4-inch half moons
• 1 medium carrot, cut in thin julienne
• Small handful basil sprigs
•  Small handful mint sprigs
•  Small handful cilantro sprigs
• 4 tablespoons slivered scallions

• PREPARATION

Make the dipping sauce: Combine ingredients in a small serving bowl, making sure to dissolve the sugar. Leave to ripen for 15 minutes. Refrigerate any extra and use within a few days.

Make the peanut dressing: In a blender or small food processor, puree all ingredients to a smooth sauce, about the thickness of heavy cream. Pour into a serving bowl.

Put the chicken thighs in a zip-lock bag. To make the marinade, puree the garlic, ginger,  fish sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar and cayenne in a blender or small food processor. Pour the marinade over the chicken and toss to coat. Let marinate at least 15 minutes-better if longer like an hour.

Grill the chicken on stove-top grill pan, or under the broiler until nicely browned, about 3 to 4 minutes a side. Let cool slightly, then chop roughly into 3/4-inch pieces.

In a small bowl, dress the cucumbers, carrots with 1 tablespoon dipping sauce. Divide the cooked noodles among 4 bowls. Top each bowl equally with the cucumber mixture and chopped chicken. Spoon 2 teaspoons dipping sauce and 2 tablespoons peanut dressing over each portion. Add the basil, mint and cilantro sprigs, torn or roughly chopped (leave whole if leaves are small). Sprinkle with the scallions.  Pass small bowls of the two sauces.

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