Fried Spicy Noodles

I like the way the cooks at Ruen Pair prepare their Khii Mao or "drunkard’s noodles." It is less elaborate than some, but I prefer its simplicity. This is a typical bar food dish in Thailand, intended to be washed down with buckets of Singha beer. Don’t be afraid to make it as spicy as you can stand—it will certainly be true to the original. Stir-frying noodles isn’t hard, but it does require a lot of oil. To minimize the amount of oil used, add a little at a time as you cook the noodles.

Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken breast

• 4 tablespoons oil

• 3 garlic cloves, crushed

• 1 pound fresh wide, flat rice noodles (Sen Yai)

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

• 2 tablespoons fish sauce

• 2 to 8 Thai chiles, chopped coarsely

• 1 small bunch Thai basil

• White or black pepper to taste

Instructions

Slice the chicken breast into strips 1/4-inch wide. Heat the oil in a wok and add garlic. As soon as the garlic begins to cook, add the chicken and cook for a few minutes. Remove from heat and set aside, saving the oil. Stir fry the noodles in the oil with the soy sauce until cooked, then add the chicken breast. Mix together and add fish sauce, chiles, and basil leaves. Toss in a wok, remove from heat and add pepper. Serve with vast quantities of Thai beer.