Bean Thread Noodles are my favourite noodles. They are gluten free, quick to prepare and not heavy, so you feel great after you eat them. When I have a busy study day 
and I want a quick lunch I usually make this dish. Its very quick, healthy and satisfying. Even though the individual packed noodles look small, after you cook them they look like a lot more then what you started with. But never fear they are not fattening, so don’t feel guilty eating them all. They are also extremely cheap here in Australia. You can buy them from Asian supermarkets, Coles and Woolworths. I know they are usually about $0.97 for a 5 pack from the big supermarkets. At the Asian supermarkets you can also find other starch noodles made of potato, peas and mung bean starch. They all taste great, well rather they don’t have much taste at all, but they soak up what every else you are cooking with it.
I also discovered a great chicken substitute that is vegan. You can buy it from the big supermarkets or health food shops in the frozen section. It is 
Fry’s Chicken Style Stripes. My boyfriend and his little nieces and nephew didn’t even realise they weren’t eating chicken, when I made it a couple of weeks back. According to his niece ‘this is what chicken taste like when chickens eats lots of vegetables’. I doesn’t taste exactly the same, but its closer then tofu. Of course its not an every day thing to eat, but its a nice comfort when you are craving chicken.
The ingredients for this recipe can be altered. The vegetables are all optional, depending on what you have in the fridge. For me onion, garlic and ginger are a must and the rest doesn’t matter, so long as you have some leafy greens in there as well. As for the soy sauce, sweet chilli and oyster sauce (vegan), add as much as you like. I usually start with a little bit then add more depending on the taste. Basically more soy sauce for salt, more sweet chilli or sugar (if you don’t have for sweet chilli for more sweet or to balance the salt and more oyster sauce for more flavour. To make this perfect you need to be quick and not let anything cook for too long, otherwise the vegetables will go limp and the noodles will all break up.
Bean Thread Noodle & Vegetable Stirfry (gf, nf)
Ingredients:
3 packed thread bean noodles (1 per dish)
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 red onion diced (or other)
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 small knob of ginger, diced
2 baby leeks, chopped
2-3 stalks of celery, diced
2 carrots, chopped into match sticks
1 small red capsicum, diced
1 handful of mushrooms, diced
1 large zucchini, chopped into match sticks
2 big handfuls of baby spinach
1-2 tbsp soy sauce
1-2 tbsp vegan oyster sauce
1-2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp of mirin (optional-its sweet)
200 grams Fry’s Chicken Style Stripes (1/2 packet) (optional)
Method:
1. Boil water in the kettle and take a large bowl. Soak the noodles in the bowl with boiled water.
2. Heat coconut oil in a wok, then add garlic, onion, ginger and leeks. Cook for 2 mins, continuously stirring so all gets cooked evenly.
3. Add the carrots, celery and capsicum and vegan chicken strips. Cook for 3-5 mins
4. Add zucchini and mushrooms and cook for another 2-3 mins.
5. Add noodles and spinach, and add the sauces and stir through. Once you have the flavors and strips have cooked through you can serve.
Live Blissful 