A - Z Indian Street Foods ~ V for Veg Hakka Noodles

Chinese food has become an integral part of Indian cuisine today. Thanks to a small Chinese community of “Hakka’ origin that immigrated and lived in Calcutta during the 18th and 19th centuries. These Hakka people, the first Chinese immigrants to settle in India adapted their native cooking techniques and seasonings to vegetarian dishes to suit the Indian palates. However, the interesting fact to be noted is that the modern fusion Indo-Chinese cuisine bears little resemblance to traditional Chinese or Hakka cooking. 

Today’s dish, Hakka noodles is a fusion Indo-Chinese dish that also has it's origins tracing back to Kolkatta (formerly Calcutta), the capital city of west Bengal. The signature aspect of the Hakka cuisine was Hakkas blended the Chinese spices and ingredients with the local ones to flavor dishes. These Hakka noodles are no exception and it is a quick stir fry of noodles with crunchy vegetables in a base of garlicky and spicy 'Indo-Chinese' flavors. The dish would be completely dry and no sauce left after the noodles are cooked. My husband prepared gobi machurian to go with it but I did not include it in the pictures.

The recipe source is this post from ecurry. The blogger gives a glimpse on the background of the Hakkas and Hakka cuisine in Calcutta. I am not a fan of garlic and prepared it exclusively for my husband who loves Hakka noodles. He enjoyed them very much and had already asked a couple of times to prepare it again. I therefore consider it a hit and recommend it to those who are looking for the recipe. 

Ingredients for the sauce:
4 garlic cloves
one inch piece of ginger
1 tbsp. sriracha / green chili sauce 
2 tbsp. ketchup or tomato paste
1 tsp. white sesame seeds

Ingredients:
200 gm Hakka noodles *
1 carrot, peeled and cut into match sticks
1 capsicum, julienned (I used 3 colors of capsicum.)
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 cup beans, cut diagonally
1 onion, sliced into thin half moons
1/2 bunch scallions / green onions chopped
1 tsp. red chili flakes
2 tbsp. Asian sesame oil
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. vinegar
Salt to taste
* (I used organic semolina spaghetti noodles instead.)

Method:
* Combine all ingredients of the 'Sauce' in a food processor and pulse to a fine paste. Add a tbsp. or two of water if the mixture appears too dry. However do not make the sauce runny.
* Cook noodles al dente along with some salt and a splash of oil, according to the instructions on the package. Drain immediately, spread the noodles on a wide plate and splash a little more oil to prevent them from sticking together.
* Heat the sesame oil in a wok and add chili flakes. Saute for about 20 seconds or so and add onions. Cook on high heat until they are just clear and add the ground sauce and salt. Continue to cook on high heat until the raw smell of garlic disappears. 
* Then lower the heat and add vinegar and soy sauce. Stir well to combine and increase the heat to high again. Add capsicum, carrot and beans. Cook for a couple of minutes and turn off the stove. The vegetables should retain their color and crunch. 
* Stir in the noodles carefully until the cooked ingredients in the pan coat the noodles completely. Add the shredded cabbage.
* Again turn on the heat to high and cook the noodles tossing / flipping them frequently so that noodles, sauce and vegetables are combined uniformly. Take care not to stick the noodles to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes and switch off the stove.
* Combine the chopped green onions and serve immediately with some hot oil. (Ours was served with gobi manchurian.)

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