Serves 2, 10 minutes preparation, 10 minutes cooking

These noodle are perfect for a quick meal any night of the week and are packed full of flavour thanks to lots of fresh herbs and chilli.

Ingredients

• 220g wheat or egg noodles, fresh or dried
• 3-4 Tbsp. oil for stir-frying
• 1/4 cup raw or roasted, unsalted peanuts, ground or roughly chopped with a knife
• 8-12 medium or large prawns, OR 1 cup medium-firm tofu, cubed and tossed with 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 egg
• 2-3 Tbsp. white wine / white cooking wine / sherry

For the paste

• 1 red or green chili (de-seeded if you prefer less spice)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
• 1 thumb-size peeled piece of galangal (or ginger), grated
• 2 Tbsp. fish sauce - Vegetarians substitute 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• juice of 1/2 lime
• 3 spring onions, sliced
• optional: 1 cup bean sprouts
• 1/2 to 1 loosely-packed cup basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh chives, chopped into small pieces
• 1 loosely-packed cup fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Method

1. Boil the noodles until cooked or nearly cooked (they will be fried later), then rinse briefly with cold water to keep from sticking. Set aside.
2. If you have a food processor or mini chopper: add the paste ingredients and process well. OR, simply mince the paste ingredients well and stir together in a cup. Set aside.
3. Wash, rinse, and chop/slice fresh herbs. Set aside.
4. Heat up wok or large frying pan for 1 minute (medium-high heat). Add oil and swirl around.
5. If not using prawns or tofu skip to Step 7. Add 1/2 the paste plus the prawns or tofu. Also add 2tbsp. white wine / white cooking wine / sherry.
6. Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes until prawns are pink and plump, or tofu is warmed through and fragrant. (If wok or pan becomes dry, add another Tbsp. or two of wine or broth.) Now clear a space in the centre of the wok or pan.
7. Break the egg into the wok or pan and quickly stir with a spatula until egg is cooked (like scrambled eggs).
8. Push eggs and other ingredients aside and add 1 more Tbsp. oil to the bottom of the wok or pan. Now add the noodles plus all the [remaining] paste and stir fry one minute, or until noodles are cooked.
9. Do a taste test. If not salty enough, add more fish sauce or vegetarian substitute. If not spicy enough, add more fresh chilli, or a little chilli sauce and toss well to incorporate.
10. Remove wok from heat. Toss in the fresh herbs, sliced spring onions and bean sprouts (if using).
11. Sprinkle noodles with the ground or chopped peanuts. Serve with fresh lime wedges on the side.