What I Eat In A Week: Cold Noodles For Summer
This week is the hottest week of the summer, and I’ve been eating different cold noodles everyday ALL WEEK! I lowkey love this heat, because the sun doesn’t set until 10 p.m. every day. With such high heat, the only thing I want is refreshing, cold foods like cold noodles and salads, from sesame chicken cold noodles to a pesto pasta salad. This week’s recipes are full of hot day must-try’s, so cool down with me with some summer recipes!
So, here’s everything that I cooked this super hot week in order to cool down!
- Wednesday
- Lunch: Shredded Chicken Sesame Noodles
- Snack: Hwachae
- Dinner: Garlic Water Spinach & Shrimp and Egg Stir Fry
- Thursday
- Lunch: Bibim Guksu & Crispy Pork Belly
- Dinner: Gyudon
- Friday
- Lunch: Rococo Cold Noodles
- Dinner: Sesame Pesto Pasta Salad
Workday Lunch: Shredded Chicken Sesame Noodles
Spicy Creamy Shredded Chicken Sesame Cold Noodles is the perfect speedy summer meal I need when I have 30 minutes to eat before a meeting. Growing up in Taiwan where it was 38° every summer, creamy sesame noodles always cool me down. You need to try this noodle recipe: it’s so savory, spicy, and nutty from the roasted sesame seeds and peanut butter.
This cold chicken noodle recipe is the perfect way to use leftovers – today I used leftover rotisserie chicken, cucumbers, and carrots. Normally, I like adding shredded egg, but I simply didn’t have enough time today.
Chicken Sesame Noodles Ingredients
- 2 servings noodles (qq or hand cut)
- 2 tbsp sesame paste
- 1 tbsp peanut butter
- 0.5 tbsp roasted sesame seed grounded
- 3-4 tbsp hot noodle water or until it becomes creamy consistency that you like
- 1.5 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp black vinegar
- Chili oil to your own spice level
Toppings
- carrots
- cucumbers
- leftover rotisserie chicken or any cooked chicken
Staying Hydrated: Hwachae Korean Watermelon Punch
I’ve been seeing Hwachae ALL OVER TIKTOK, and it’s time to try it out. This refreshing Korean Watermelon Fruit Punch is made with a variety of berries, toppings, strawberry milk, and soda. It’s a refreshing way to rehydrate (haha) and cool down. For my toppings today, I chose some fruity jelly from the Asian Market, but I definitely recommend you try using my Fruit Jelly recipe too!
It’s so easy to make, and super refreshing. It cools you right down! Grab a big bowl, and take 5 minutes to make this fruity summer treat!
Hwachae Ingredients
- 2 cups Watermelon, cubed
- 1 dragonfruit, cubed
- 1 carton blueberries
- 1.5 cup sliced strawberries
- 1 carton blackberries
- 6 coconut jellies
- 1 bottle of strawberry milk
- 1 bottle of Sprite
- ice
Classic Homecooked Dinner: Shrimp Scrambled Eggs
I defrosted some shrimp before I went to class so for dinner we’re going to make shrimp fried egg, garlic water spinach, and some multigrain rice. It’s one of Dom’s favorites! I think as part of an Asian immigrant family, many of you probably had these two dishes on the dinner table ALL THE TIME. This meal reminds me so much of my childhood, and make me feel right at home no matter where in the world we are.
Shrimp and Egg Stir Fry Ingredients
- 300g of Prawns (peeled and deveined)
- 6 Eggs
- 1.5 tbsp of Corn Starch
- 1.5 tbsp of Chinese Cooking Wine (optional)
- 1 tsp of White Pepper
- 1 tsp of Salt
- 2 Stalks of Green Onion (chopped)
- Salt & Pepper to Season ( Eggs)
- 2 tbsp of Cold Water
Garlic Water Spinach Ingredients
FOR BLANCHING
- 1 tablespoon Salt
- 2 tablespoon Oil
- Water
FOR STIR FRYING
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 tablespoon Oil
- 2-3 cloves Garlic
- 1 bundle (around 200-300 g) Water Spinach, washed, cut into 2-3 inch segments
Instant Cool Down: Korean Spicy Cold Noodles
It’s so hot outside, and I’m really craving spicy cold noodles after a Pilates session. I got some fresh kimchi from the market, so the cold noodle of the day was Bibim Guksu – Korean Spicy Kimchi Cold Noodles. To add some protein, i paired it with some pan-fried pork belly, and it was the most satisfying meal!
If you have kimchi in your fridge, this is a super appetizing cold noodle dish you can make. It’s a quick summer meal you can make in 10 minutes,
Bibim Guksu Ingredients
- 2 servings of noodles
- 5 ounces of kimchi, chopped
- 1/4 cup of kimchi juice (optional)
- 2 tbsp of Korean red chili paste (gochujang)
- 0.5 tbsp of sweetener, I like to use plum extract or you can swap for sugar (optional)
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 0.5 tbsp of sesame seeds
- Sesame seeds to garnish
- 1 cup cucumber sliced
- 2 soft boiled eggs
Crispy Pork Belly Recipe
- 300 grams of pork belly, sliced into 25 thin slices
- 2.5 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon five-spice powder
- 0.5 tablespoon paprika
- 0.5 tablespoon garlic powder
- 0.25 tablespoon cumin
- Salt and pepper to season
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Super Easy Weeknight Dinner: Japanese Gyudon
For dinner, Dom was craving Beef Gyudon, one of my favorite recipes to make whenever I want something quick and easy. Every time we make this, the smell of sizzling beef and caramelized onions fill the house! It’s savory, saucy, and so good topped with a runny poached egg.
This is a super easy meal that Dom and I enjoy eating, and really doesn’t take a lot of time at all! I also threw together a few random things and made a fish cake miso soup to make it a full meal.
Gyudon Ingredients
- 1 pack Hotpot Sliced Beef ~ 1 pound
- 2 Onion whole, sliced
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup Mirin
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 2 cups Dashi Stock/Beef stock/ chicken stock
- Eggs
- Green Onion chopped, for garnish
Potluck Dinner Dish: Sesame Pesto Pasta Salad
For my sister’s pizza party this week, I kept with my cold noodles theme and decided to make an Nut Free Sesame Pesto Pasta Salad. Salad dishes make for such a refreshing and easy to make recipe for larger groups. Seeing all the fresh produce at the grocery store today got me so excited to run home and make this delicious pasta salad!
I tried using sesame seeds instead of pine nuts for the pesto, and it worked beautifully! This recipe is so easy and uses such simple and fresh ingredients. This homemade pesto is also NUT FREE, so you won’t have to worry about nut allergies.
Sesame Pesto Pasta Salad Ingredients
- 12 oz Pasta
- 1 large cucumber
- 1 Red Bell Pepper
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper
- 2 cans of Corn
- 4 stalks Green Onions
Pesto
- 1 cup olive oil
- 4 cup fresh basil leaves
- 6-8 cloves garlic, peeled
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- Salt to taste
