mee goreng (vegan or with chicken)

savory, spicy and tasty, based on Malaysian/Indonesian recipes, this is a quick dish to cook

NB the marinade can be omitted if you don't have time. Cut everything up and cook the noodles before you start

for 2

• marinade:

2tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1.5 tbsp dark soy sauce 
2 tbsp ground nut oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

• sunflower oil
• 125g extra firm tofu, drained well, cut into about 12 thin bite sized pieces
• 100g broccoli or cauliflower, sliced 
• ½ onion, cut into thin wedges
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 red chilli, thinly sliced into rings 
• 1 pak choi, sliced across
• 150g rice noodles, cooked as packet instructions
  
• additional soy sauce
• additional chilli paste or sauce, depending on taste
• coriander leaves (or flat parsley)
  
• 25g roasted cashew nuts, roughly chopped

•  (optional): 1 pre cooked roast chicken breast, sliced
  

Mix the marinade ingredients together and place the tofu and broccoli/cauliflower into it.  Leave to marinade for at least an hour.

Remove and separate the tofu and broccoli and set aside the marinade.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok and fry the tofu for 1–1½ minutes on each side, or until crisp and lightly browned, turning carefully. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper. 

Fry the broccoli/cauliflower and onion in the same pan and cook over a medium-high heat for 6–8 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for a few seconds more. 

Add the tofu, (chicken if used), the marinade, noodles and pak choi and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes more, or until the noodles are hot and the leaves have wilted.

Taste and add most of the chilli pepper, soy sauce and additional chilli paste to suit your taste, cook for 1–2 minutes more, stirring and tossing all the ingredients until hot. 

Scatter with the few remaining chilli pepper rings, cashew nuts and coriander leaves and serve.