Basil, mint, chilies, fish sauce, lime, and peanuts - what do you get when you bring all of these things together? You get fresh, floral, spicy, tangy, and crunchy. That’s all of the things, guys! Those are all the things food can be! These base ingredients from Vietnamese cooking are some of my favorite and in an effort to eat less meat, I made udon noodles with a generous helping of oyster mushrooms. If you’ve ever had larb before (like this dope mushroom larb I love so much), these noodles are a riff on those flavors. I’ve added an egg because we were hungry but you can skip it!

You can make substitutions but this recipe works because:

• the base is key - green onions, ginger, and garlic. This triple threat not only works great as the base in these noodles, it’s also a perfect start to any stir fry or fried rice dish

• Thai basil is better in this dish than Italian. You can sub Italian in a pinch but Thai basil is woodsier and has a bold enough flavor to stand up to the rest of the ingredients

• fish sauce! If you’re vegan, a pinch of MSG and a some tamari are an acceptable substitution but if you’re not, go get some fish sauce. It does the same work in this dish than anchovies do in a great Caesar salad, pesto, or pasta sauce.

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 servings of udon noodles, prepared according to package instructions

• 2 tbsp grape seed oil

• 4 green onions, chopped finely

• 4 garlic cloves, minced

• 3-4 tbsp minced ginger

• 1 Fresno or Serrano chili, minced (remove the seeds to make it less spicy)

• A TON of mushrooms - oyster mushrooms are my favorite here

• 1 tbsp fish ssauce

• 2 cups Thai basil leaves, whole

• 1 cup mint leaves, chopped

• 1 tbsp lime juice

• 2 tbsp chopped peanuts

• salt and pepper to taste

Method

Prepare all of the vegetables and herbs first and set aside, as this dish will move quickly. Prepare the noodles and set aside; drizzle with a little oil and salt, toss to prevent sticking and to season.

Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat and add the oil. When the oil is almost smoking, add the green onions, ginger, garlic, and chili. Toss well and frequently for 2 mins, until fragrant.

Then add in the mushrooms and spread them around the pan as much as possible. Cook undisturbed for 3 mins on one side, toss, and cook undisturbed for another 3 mins. Then continue cooking for another 5 mins, stirring every minute or so. The goal is golden brown mushrooms. Season with fish sauce, salt, and pepper. Lower the heat to medium.

In a separate pan, make your eggs. While the eggs are cooking, add the basil and mint leaves to the mushrooms and mix well; it will take about 1 min for the herbs to wilt. Squeeze in the lime juice, cook for another minute and turn off the heat.

Add the noodles to the mushroom pan and a few tablespoons of the noodle water. Toss well, plate, and top with peanuts and a fried egg!