This is one of those dishes where I am embarrassed by one of the ingredients but I love it and everyone who's tasted it, agrees.
I call it Kitchen Sink Salad because I throw in whatever I've got around. The constants are the sauce, green onions, cabbage, carrots, and almonds. Then it's time to clean out the 'frige and throw in everything but the kitchen sink. Make this salad well enough in advance for the noodles to soften.
Kitchen Sink Salad
Break up two packages of ramen noodles in a bowl. Save one flavor packet; discard the other. (This is the embarrassing part -- I mean really, RAMEN?)
In a saucepan, bring to a boil:
o Equal parts rice vinegar and cider vinegar to total a little more than ½ cup
o Equal parts sesame oil and olive oil (or whatever’s on hand) to total a little more than ½ cup
o Tablespoon brown sugar
o One Ramen flavor packet
o A few shakes of soy sauce
o Garlic powder and anything else that strikes you. I used cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and hot sauce
Pour boiling sauce over noodles; stir occasionally and let cool. Noodles will soften but will not be completely cooked and some may even be a little hard.
Here’s where the ‘kitchen sink’ comes in. Add veggies, dried fruit, nuts, etc. to the salad. I always use:
o Green onions
o Green and red cabbage
o Slivered almonds – toasted
o Grated carrots
This time I also added:
o Dried cranberries
o Celery
o Sugar snap peas
o Cucumber
Other times, I’ve substituted pine nuts or sesame seeds for the almonds, added granny smith apples, green and red peppers, tomatoes, … you get the idea.
