Thai Pork and Noodles

I've purchased cookbooks and magazine subscriptions from Food Network stars in the past, only to be disappointed that I could find all the recipes on the website.  Why was I wasting my money, I thought.  It turns out, though, that it's a valuable resource for me.  It highlights recipes that are seasonal, and things I might never have found on the website otherwise.  (Seriously, you can find what you're looking for pretty easily, but browsing can be daunting).

This was not a recipe I would have tried on my own.  I have to say, fish sauce is daunting to me.  I never saw the point in buying a bottle of it, but went ahead and went for it this time around.

EW.  Fish sauce is disgusting.  Gag worthy for sure.  As I was making this, I got a really bad feeling that it wasn't going to be good.  Getting ready to serve it, I said to M, "I hope this doesn't suck."

After taking a few bites, I said, "Well, it doesn't suck....  it's not good, but it doesn't suck."  M agreed, saying that it was weird that it was neither good nor bad.  There are two rave reviews on the recipe on Food Network's website, though  they both made some serious modifications.  Maybe I didn't modify it.  Maybe I messed up.  I don't know, but we won't be making this one again.

Oh yeah, and 1200+ mg of sodium in a serving?  Sooooo not worth it!!

Ingredients

• 1 pound thin boneless pork chops, fat trimmed
• 8 ounces wide Thai rice noodles
• 1 cup fresh cilantro (leaves and stems)
• Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
• 2 slices peeled ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 3 red jalapeno peppers, seeded and roughly chopped
• 2 shallots, roughly chopped
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1/4 pound green beans, split lengthwise and cut into pieces

Directions

Place the pork in the freezer about 10 minutes to make it easier to slice. Soak the noodles in very hot water until just tender, about 10 minutes; drain. Snip the noodles with scissors into shorter lengths. Cut the frozen pork crosswise into 1/4-inch-wide strips.

Puree the cilantro, lime zest and juice, ginger, garlic, jalapenos, shallots, fish sauce, brown sugar and 1 tablespoon water in a food processor until smooth, scraping down the processor as needed.

Heat 3 tablespoons peanut oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add half the cilantro mixture and stir-fry 1 minute. Add the pork and stir-fry until no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the pork with a slotted spoon to a plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut oil to the skillet; add the green beans and stir-fry until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the noodles, pork and 2 tablespoons of the remaining cilantro mixture. Cook, tossing with tongs, until heated through, about 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining cilantro mixture to taste.

Per serving: Calories 553; Fat 24 g (Saturated 6 g); Cholesterol 60 mg; Sodium 1,210 mg; Carbohydrate 61 g; Fiber 3 g; Protein 22 g