In our ongoing quest to improve How to Eat, Dara and I have to decided to double test our recipes whenever possible. Meaning, when one of us feels like we’ve got a real winner on our hands, the other will either ‘yay’ it or ‘nay’ it after a test batch.
YAY, people.
YAY.
Look, we know we’ve promised time and time again we won’t use specialized cooking equipment for our recipes. But guys, spiralizing is so fun. It’s also taking over Pinterest, so it’s obviously very important market research for us to be spiralizing the hell out of stuff.
But is it a worthy trend?
I’ll be real with you.
For testing purposes I borrowed Dara’s, and I’ll probably try to get a few more spiralizing seshes in before I return it, but in the end I think I’ll live without one.
That being said it’s easy, it’s fun and if I had unlimited space to keep kitchen appliances (which I don’t) I might change my mind. I do think it’s a great kitchen tool for getting kids involved in the kitchen though (I would say ages 3 years and up with supervision). Once set up, the spiralizing itself is quick and safe.
We know kids who help prep and cook what they’re served are way more likely to eat it, and in this case your kids don’t need mad knife skills to pull off some pretty impressive prep work. At about $40 for an entry level number, the kid factor may be worth it on it’s own.
We realize most of you won’t have a spiralizer at home, but don’t let this stop you from cooking this dynamite recipe. We’ve given you some tips about how you can make this spiralizer-free in our recipe notes below. Whether cubed or noodle’d (new word!) the sweet potatoes taste delicious, promise. If you do decide on spiralizing, the cook time for this recipe is perfection. The sweet potatoes cook through just enough, but still have a nice satisfying bite to them.
Mix it up!
As always, substitute to your heart’s desire with the other additions, too. We love the colourful mix of veg here, but broccoli, carrots, eggplant, green beans, edamame etc. etc. would all work. Sub chicken or shrimp for tofu, too.
What I’m saying is, you can put this sauce on anything and hit a home run.
Like, outta the park.
Tell us, do you spiralize? What do we need to make next?
Erin
Spiralized Thai Sweet Potato Noodles
Serves | 4 |
Prep time | 20 minutes |
Cook time | 20 minutes |
Total time | 40 minutes |
Website | Adapted from Cooking Light's Thai Sweet Potato Noodle Bowls |
Ingredients
- 1 package extra firm tofu (drained, pressed and cut into 3/4 inch cubes)
- 2 tablespoons canola oil (divided)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (divided)
- 2 Medium sweet potatoes spiralized into thick noodles (about 8 cups)
- 1 Medium red bell pepper (thinly sliced)
- 1/2 cup water (divided)
- 1 Medium zucchini (halved crosswise and thinly sliced into matchsticks)
- 1 cup whole snap peas
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 1/2 can or 200mL coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened almond butter (or nut butter of choice)
- 2 tablespoons thai red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- the juice of 1 lime
- 1/4 cup chopped cashews
Note
No spiralizer? No problem. Change the method slightly by chopping sweet potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. During Step #2 when the potatoes are covered and cooked, they'll take an extra minute or two to cook through.
Directions
1. | Preheat oven to 425. Toss tofu with 2 tsp of canola oil and 1/4 tsp of salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes until browned, flipping once halfway through. |
2. | Meanwhile, heat remaining canola oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add sweet potato noodles, red pepper strips and remaining salt and sauté for 5 minutes. Add 1/4 cup water, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover, add zucchini and snap peas and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and stir in spinach until wilted. |
3. | In a medium bowl, add remaining 1/4 water and remaining ingredients and whisk until combined. |
4. | Add 1/2 of sauce to the potato mixture and toss. Divide potato mixture among 4 bowls, top each with tofu and and remaining sauce. Sprinkle with cashews and serve. |
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