T'ung Ching Street Noodles

Contributed by: Larry and Julie Snyder

These noodles were once sold from handcarts in Szechwan. Can be served either as plain tossed noodles, or mixed with the chicken and cucumber salad.

Tossed Noodles Sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon finely minced ginger
6 tablespoons soy sauce
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons Oriental sesame oil
1 teaspoon chili oil, or more to taste
Green onions, minced

Chicken and Cucumber Salad

12 ounces fresh egg noodles
8 ounces skinned, boned chicken breast, cooked
1 1/4 cups cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and cut into strips 1/8-inch wide and 2 inches long
3/4 cup carrots, shredded or in matchsticks
(1 cup tiny cooked shrimp, or 2/3 cup Black Forest ham cut into fine dice)
Sauce Mixture

For tossed noodles sauce, combine all ingredients in a bowl except green onions. Stir to thoroughly dissolve the sugar, and let sit at room temperature about an hour. Toss the sauce with noodles and serve. Garnish the noodles with the green onions.

For chicken and cucumber salad, cut the chicken into fine slivers. In a large bowl, combine the chicken, cucumbers, carrots, and (shrimp or ham). Add the noodles, toss with half the sauce. Add more sauce to taste. Can be served warm, at room temperature, or chilled.