Singapore Noodles With Shrimp

Singapore Noodles with Shrimp
Serves 4
The key to moist, tender shrimp is to finish cooking them off the heat. If you like spicy noodles, add a pinch of cayenne to the finished dish or serve with Tabasco. If you can't find thin rice vermicelli, substitute 6 oz capellini.

6 oz thin rice vermicelli
1 lb medium (40/50) shrimp, peeled & deveined
*2 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 shallots, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, cored & sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup bean sprouts, well rinsed
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin
4 scallions, sliced thin

MAKING THE MINUTES COUNT:
Prep the remaining ingredients while the noodles soak.

1. SOAK NOODLES: Cover rice vermicelli with hot tap water in large bowl & soak until softened, pliable, limp but not fully tender, about 15 minutes. Drain noodles & set aside.

2. COOK SHRIMP: While noodles soak, pat shrimp dry with paper towels, then toss with 1/2 teaspoon of curry powder. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in *12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add shrimp, spread into single layer, & cook without stirring for 1 minute. Stir shrimp & continue to cook until spotty brown & just pink around the edges, about 30 seconds. Transfer shrimp to clean bowl, cover, & set aside.

3. COOK VEGETABLES: Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet & return to medium heat until shimmering. Add shallots, bell pepper, & remaining 2 teaspoons curry powder, & cook until vegetables have softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic & cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4. COOK NOODLES: Stir in soaked vermicelli, shrimp with their accumulated juices, bean sprouts, broth, soy sauce, *mirin, & scallions. Cook, tossing constantly, until noodles & vegetables are heated through, about 2 minutes. Serve.

Baldwin changes: as usual, we used a wok instead of a 12" nonstick skillet. Also, we used rice vinegar instead of mirin. Our Thai friend told us mirin is a waste of money, so I opted to not buy the $4 bottle at Publix & use the rice vinegar I already had at home. Curry powder. We totally used the wrong kind. The only kind of curry powder I had was Jamaican curry powder, which undoubtedly wasn't the right kind, but it's all we had, so.... It was still good. A little yellow, but good. Definitely recommend this recipe, just use non-Jamaican curry.