Fried Chicken Soup Noodles and Asian Noodles Cookbook Review

Asian Noodles: 86 Classic Recipes from Vietnam, Thailand, China, Korea and Japan, written by Maki Watanabe features a delicious assortment of noodles prepared in a variety of styles. Highlights include Fresh Clam Noodle Soup, Crab Omelette Crispy Noodles, Spicy Cold Korean Buckwheat Noodles, Sichuan-Style Pork and Tofu Noodles, Shrimp Wonton Noodles, and Thai Rice Noodles with Pork and Spinach. Following the review, I will also be sharing Maki’s recipe for Fried Chicken Soup Noodles.

Disclosure: I received this book from Tuttle Publishing in exchange for my honest review. All comments and opinions are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.

Maki Watanabe

Maki Watanabe is active in the natural lifestyle community and has written many cookbooks in Japanese including the two-time “Recipe Book Award” winner, Daily Side Salads. She has made appearances in advertisements and on television, contributed to books and magazines, and collaborated with SHOP to create kitchen utensils and clothing. You can also find my review here for her cookbook, Asian Salads.

Asian Noodles

Chapters are divided according to the following: Tossed or Mixed Noodles, Stir-Fried and Pan-Fried Noodles, Soup Noodles, and Sweet Endings. The contents have a list of all the recipes with page numbers for easy reference.

Maki begins with a short introduction and how her love of noodles has developed with her travels. Before getting to the recipes, she includes a basic pantry guide to the types of noodles and flavorings used in the book with photos, descriptions, uses, and where to find them. Beginners will particularly appreciate the in-depth guide and step-by-step photos on how to cook a variety of fresh and dried noodles such as soba, somen, udon, mi fun (rice vermicelli), glass noodles, and more. 

The photography is provided by Taro Terasawa with styling by Kanako Sasaki. Every single recipe is accompanied by a quarter to full-page photo of the finished dish. You will also find a few process shots for techniques such as cooking noodles, tossing ingredients, caramelizing onions, frying wonton wrappers, and more. Each recipe has a headnote with tips, serving size, and ingredient notes. Measurements are listed in US Customary and Metric. Titles are written in English.

This book is a great pick for noodle lovers. Many of the dishes are perfect for weeknight meals while others have longer simmering times to help develop the flavors or require reconstituting dried ingredients. Having an Asian market nearby will be helpful for locating items such as different types of specialty noodles, Shaoxing wine, doubanjiang (Sichuan bean paste), black vinegar, fish sauce, shiitake mushrooms, Thai chili pepper, pork belly, nori, Thai basil, lemongrass, gochujang (Korean red chili paste), perilla leaves, umeboshi (sour salted plums), Yuba (tofu skin), mustard greens, daikon, and more.

Fried Chicken Soup Noodles

When I saw this recipe for Fried Chicken Soup Noodles, I was immediately reminded of one of my favorite soups at Din Tai Fung- Pork Chop Noodle Soup. Maki was inspired to create this dish based on the classic Chinese Pai Gu Mian or Pa-Ko-Men in Japan, which is a noodle soup with pork pieces on the bone. 

In her version, Maki takes boneless chicken thighs, beats them to an even thickness, and covers them with a five-spice and cornstarch coating. Each piece is fried in hot oil until cooked through and golden. She recommends raising the heat during the last few seconds of frying the chicken to help develop a crisp crust.

The fried chicken thighs are sliced into easy-to-eat pieces and placed on top of cooked lo mein noodles in a dashi stock with spinach and negi (or green onion).

Notable Ingredients

Shaoxing Wine is a fermented rice wine originally from Shaoxing in eastern China. I have been able to find it at larger grocery stores with a sizeable wine selection, such as Wegmans. It is also available in Asian food markets specializing in Chinese ingredients. Sherry (or in this case, Sake) can be used as a substitution.

Dashi is a stock used in Japanese cooking. It is made from Kombu (dried Japanese kelp) and Katsuobushi (bonito flakes). I have seen these ingredients at Whole Foods and Japanese markets. You can find my instructions on how to make dashi in the first step of this Niku Udon (Japanese Meat Udon).

Other Noodles

I also made Five-Spice Pork Noodles, Somen with Walnut Sauce, Vietnamese Stir-Fried Beef Noodles, and Ma Lai Go (Cantonese Steamed Sponge Cake). 

Inspired by food stalls in Taiwan, Five-Spice Pork Noodles is an easy and comforting meal. Thick noodles are mixed with a five-spice seasoned ground pork, soft-boiled egg, green onions, and nori. 

Maki includes a few different ways to prepare somen noodles such as with eggplant and grated daikon, seaweed and sour plum sauce, and a warm pork and soy milk somen. I had some extra walnuts I needed to use up and they were perfect in this Somen with Walnut Sauce. Somen noodles are served chilled alongside a dipping sauce flavored with ground walnuts and wasabi.

For the Vietnamese Stir-Fried Beef Noodles, thinly sliced vegetables and beef are tossed with wheat noodles and flavored with a mixture of oyster sauce, Shaoxing wine, and fish sauce. This one was a big hit with the whole family and another great option for weeknights.

The final chapter of the book focuses on sweet endings with a compilation of Maki’s 10 favorite dessert recipes from around Asia such as Banana Coconut Fritters, Mango Pudding, and Almond Jelly. I recently tried Ma Lai Go (Cantonese Steamed Sponge Cake) for the first time at a nearby dim sum restaurant and was excited to come across a recipe to make it at home. Maki’s version includes coconut milk and coconut oil to create a fluffy and fragrant steamed cake.

Fried Chicken Soup Noodles Recipe

Excerpt from Asian Noodles