Yakisoba

I've been doing some over-the-phone and face-to-face job interviews this past couple of weeks. The other day, I had an interview with a high profile company in downtown for my second interview. Before my interview started, I asked if I could use the bathroom. To my surprise, they called a big security guy and had him escort me to the men's bathroom. He waited for me outside the door with his thick arms crossed. That's some security they got going there.

A couple of weeks ago, I was getting myself to start a mini-Atkins diet, where I reduced eating carbs like rice and noodles. But then I talked to some of the people that have tried it, and they all said the same thing; "I lost 10 to 20 lbs in a few months, but as soon as I started eating carbs again, I gained it all right back." Well, I could cut down rice and noodles for a couple of months, but if I am going to gain it back then I didn't see much point in continuing.

So, today I'm introducing yakisoba. My wife isn't a huge fan of noodles (including pasta), but somehow she loves yakisoba (probably because it's stirfried in oil). If you have ever been to Japan, I'm sure you've come across yakisoba stands, at festivals or in front of random train stations. The smell of yakisoba sauce sizzling on a hot pan is irresistible.

IN JAPANESE: Yakisoba
CATEGORY: Rice/Noodles
COOKING METHOD: Stirfry
DIFFICULTY: Medium
SERVES: 2 people
LENGTH OF TIME: 15 min

INGREDIENTS:
1 Pack of yakisoba (usually have 2-3 bags of noodles)
assorted vegetables chopped in bite size (cabbage, onion, carrots, asparagus, mushrooms, etc)
your choice of meat or shrimp
some beer if you are drinking (optional)
1/2 TBsp sesame oil
1/2 TBsp vegetable oil
some pepper
shredded seaweed [nori] (optional)
pickled ginger (optional)

HOW TO:
The most important part is buying a pack of yakisoba. You can usually find something like shown on the photo in the noodles section, or possibly in the frozen-food area. These usually come in pack of 2 or 3, with packets of sauce.

There are instant yakisoba noodles (comes packed similar to Top Ramen), but I recommend the fresh noodles instead.

Pre-heat your wok or frying pan with mixture of sesame oil and vegetable oil. When the oil feels hot, throw in the meat and chopped vegetables and stir-fry. While you do this, place the packets of noodles near the stove so they will warm up and loosen up a bit.

If you are drinking a beer as you do this, feel free to splash some into the pan, or water will do if you don't like to drink as you cook. When the meat (or shrimp) is fully cooked, add one of the sauce packets and some pepper, so your veggies will have some flavor.

Hopefully your noodles are warm by now. Loosen them with your hands as you drop them to the pan, and mix well for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add rest of the sauce packet and mix until the color of sauce looks even. Garnish with dried seaweed and pickled ginger and serve.