Taste of August: Asian Inspired Stir Fry

The hubby and I both love Chinese food. We make a date once a month and go to our favourite Chinese restaurant. Aside from the ginger chicken and mushroom fried rice, we make sure to get their shanghai noodles. We were so inspired by their stir fry noodles that we decided to make them at home and try out our Asian cooking skills! With so many different recipes online, we decided to modify them to our liking and make this dish to our taste. And I will share with you our version of this popular Asian classic. We couldn't find shanghai noodles anywhere, so we chose chow mein noodles instead. They are still thin and very yummy! We love to add a lot of spice to the dish, so we tend to add a couple extra teaspoons of chili flakes. Enjoy!

Chow Mein Stir Fry
Prep time: 30 min Cook Time: 30 min Yield: 2-4 servings

Ingredients
- 4 cups chow mein noodles
- 4 green onions, diced
- 1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1" pieces
- 1 pkg. (225 g.) mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp crushed chilis (or chili powder)
- 1 tsp Herbes de Provence
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- Chopped cashews or peanuts for garnish

Directions
1. In a medium bowl, toss the chicken cubes with the garlic powder, chili flakes, salt, pepper and 1 tbsp soy sauce. Allow to marinade for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil until hot over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and sautee until almost done. Season with Herbes de Provence and add asparagus and onions. Sautee a bit longer until the asparagus is done, about 5 minutes.
3. As the vegetables are sauteeing, cook the chicken in a frying pan until chicken cubes are cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Add to vegetables and stir to combine. Turn off heat.
4. Cook chow mein noodles according to package. Drain. Add vegetables and chicken to noodles. Add remaining 2 tbsp of soy sauce. Stir until well combined. You may add more soy sauce, depending on what your taste preference is. I tend to add enough to turn the chow mein noodles a light brown colour. This is how I know they are seasoned enough.
5. Serve topped with chopped cashews or peanuts.

Variations:
Use rice noodles instead of chow mein noodles, or omit them completely for a yummy chicken stir fry.
Add/replace veggies with other kinds, like broccoli, red pepper, green beans, bean sprouts, carrots.
For extra heat, add 1-2 tsp of chili flakes to the chicken or sprinkle the finished product with chili flakes.