Thai-style Vegetables En Papillote With Noodles Recipe

Serves

Preparation time

20 minutes

Cooking time

20 minutes

Ingredients

4 carrots, finely chopped into matchsticks
2 shallots, finely sliced
2 pak choi, leaves separated and centres halved
1 daikon radish, peeled and finely sliced or 14 to 16 red radishes, finely sliced
2 large red chillies, finely sliced on the diagonal
50g roughly chopped galangal or ginger in 2cm pieces
2 lemon grass stalks, bruised and sliced into 2cm pieces
150g trimmed and chopped green beans in 2.5cm pieces
100ml rice wine
8 pieces of okra, trimmed and sliced into 5mm pieces
100g shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and quartered
A good splash of sesame oil
600g pre-cooked medium noodles
Vegetable oil, for frying

To serve

Dark soy sauce
A small bunch of fresh coriander
Cashew nuts, crushed

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) Gas 4.

2. To make a papillote bag, cut a rectangle of baking parchment approximately 30 x 45cm and a piece of foil 40 x 55cm. Place the baking parchment on top of the foil and fold in half. Seal the sides by folding the foil over several times, capturing the baking parchment inside, forming an envelope.

3. Carefully place the carrots, shallots, pak choi, daikon radish or red radishes, chillies, galangal or ginger, lemon grass and green beans inside the envelope and add the rice wine. Seal the top and put on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

4. While the vegetables are cooking, prepare the noodles. Preheat a large frying pan over a high heat with just enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom. When the oil is just starting to shimmer from the heat, add the okra and mushrooms. Cook for 3 minutes, turning occasionally, until the okra is starting to turn golden. Add a good splash of sesame oil and then the noodles. Reduce the heat to low and turn the noodles in the pan to warm them through and mix with the okra and mushrooms.

5. To serve, place the papillote bag in a large bowl and rest for 5 minutes (don’t serve the lemon grass or galangal or ginger pieces). Put the noodles in another large bowl and dress with a little soy sauce. Put the coriander leaves and cashew nuts in smaller serving bowls. When you open the papillote bag at the table, it will fill the room with wonderful aromas. Allow your guests to help themselves for the perfect balance.

Recipe and image taken from Vegetable Perfection by Mat Follas, priced at £16.99 and published by Ryland Peters & Small. Photography by Steve Painter.

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