2mediumcloves garlic, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1tablespoonminced fresh ginger
5tablespoonssoy sauce
2tablespoonsrice vinegar
1teaspoonhot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
2tablespoonspacked light brown sugar
Hot water
1 ½poundsboneless skinless chicken breast
1tablespoonsalt
12ouncesdried spaghetti noodles
2tablespoonstoasted sesame oil
4scallions, green onions, sliced thin on diagonal
1mediumcarrot, grated
Instructions
Toast sesame seeds in medium skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Reserve 1 tablespoon sesame seeds in small bowl. In blender or food processor, puree remaining 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, peanut butter, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, hot sauce, and sugar until smooth, about 30 seconds. With machine running, add hot water 1 tablespoon (for a total of about 5 tablespoons, give or take) at time until sauce has consistency of heavy cream, slightly thickened but pourable. Set blender jar or workbowl aside.
Bring 6 quarts water to boil in stockpot over high heat. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to 6 inches from broiler element; heat broiler. Spray broiler pan or rimmed baking sheet lined with foil with cooking spray; place chicken breasts on top and broil chicken until lightly browned, 4 to 8 minutes. Using tongs, flip chicken over and continue to broil until thickest part is no longer pink when cut into and registers about 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 6 to 8 minutes.
Transfer to cutting board and let rest 5 minutes. Using 2 forks, shred chicken into bite-size pieces and set aside. Add salt and noodles to boiling water; boil noodles until tender, about 10 minutes or according to package directions.
Drain then toss noodles with sesame oil until evenly coated. Add shredded chicken, scallions, carrot, and sauce; toss to combine. Divide among individual bowls, sprinkle each bowl with portion of reserved toasted sesame seeds, and serve immediately.
Notes
Chicken: to be honest, I think the chicken is a bit of an afterthought in this recipe, and while good, this could easily be made vegetarian by leaving out the chicken. Alternately, the chicken could be grilled or cooked in any number of ways since the shredded chicken is simply added to the noodles (just make sure the chicken is well seasoned with salt and pepper before cooking for great flavor). Sauce: also, if you like noodle dishes a bit on the saucier side, consider doubling the sauce and adding it gradually to the noodles until reaching your desired consistency. Temperature: finally, the original recipe stated to serve the noodles cold but I didn't - instead we ate these slightly warm, at room temperature even, and they were fantastic.