Homemade Red Lentil and Yellow Split Pea Noodles

These pre-cooked noodles, made from vegan ingredients, resemble egg pasta and "Hokkien" noodles. The recipe follows the technique for rice flour sheets used in Dim Sum rice rolls. For further details, check out Ellen Leong Blonder's Dim Sum book. Borax powder, available from oriental stores, makes the noodle glossier, more elastic and less sticky. Borax powder can be omitted by using more tapioca starch and oil. Recipe follows.

Basic Recipe
2 tablespoon yellow split pea flour (subtitute with mung bean, also known as green pea flour, or chickpea)
2 tablespoon red lentil, finely milled
2 tablespoon tapioca starch
8 tablespoon rice flour
1/4 teaspoon salt, optional
1/4 teaspoon borax powder, optional
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup boiling water

Combine dry ingredients. Add 3/4 cup water and oil. Stir to a smooth batter. Add the boiling water and stir to a thickened consistency which coats the back of a spoon.

Oil a square 15 cm baking dish. Pour in 4 tablespoon of batter. Steam, or microwave with a cover for 3-4 minutes until cooked, when the red lentil changes to yellow.

Cool the dish immediately in a cold water bath. Peel off the cooled noodle sheet. Cut to desire shape with a pasta maker or a knife.

The noodles can be served with a soup, however, do not boil the noodle in the soup. Instead heat the noodles in a microwave or by pouring hot water over the noodles in a strainer.



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Paper Chef #17 Postponed to 5th May

In view of Easter holidays, Passover, Owen on renewal, Stephen on the move, Mrs D on recovery from January's edition with a record of 23 entries.....

Paper Chef #17 is postponed till next month on Friday May 5th instead of the first Friday of this month.

... meaning, Noodle Cook gets to wear the prestigious Paper Chef hat for another month!

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Homemade Lentil Pasta

The nutritious high protein, gluten-free Papadini Lentil Bean Pasta with "al dente texture and mild nutty flavor as semolina pasta" makes an excellent choice for low carbohydrate, high protein (such as the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet) and low GI meals. The CSIRO diet, although meat based can be adapted for vegetarians using the following substitution: 200 g meat/fish/chicken = 200 g tofu = 260 g lentils/beans.

Unfortunately, the Papadini product is not readily available at local shops. So, it's a matter of discovering how to make it at home.

Lentil pasta requires a few extra steps to help consolidate the texture, otherwise the lentil flour disintegrates on boiling. The recipe below, which is derived from papadum, yields a soft pasta, similar to wonton noodles. The soy lecithin, intended for a yellow colour and to prevent stickiness, fails to produce the expected egg yellow, although the pasta darkens slightly from the baking soda. The baking soda helps maintain a chewable texture.

Basic Recipe
1 cup (150 g) white urid flour
2 teaspoons soy lecithin granules, finely milled (optional)
1/3 cup (75 mL) boiling water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate soda)
walnut or olive oil for rolling, optional
seasoning, optional

Mix the flour and soy lecithin together. Dissolve baking soda in the water. Pour over the flour. Stir to a stiff dough. Using dough hooks on an electric mixer, beat for about 15 minutes until the flour softens and develops a pliable texture. This beating makes the dough stretchy and prevents the pasta from disintegration during cooking.

Oil the dough and roll to desired thickness in a pasta machine. The dough can be rolled to the thinnest setting without breaking, very much like a gluten flour dough. Air dry for about 15 minutes to firm up the surface. Cut the sheets to the required shape.

Depending on thickness, the pasta only takes 2-3 minutes to cook in boiling water. The pasta can be cooked and eaten as papadums.

Where to find white urid flour:
Maharajah Stores (Retail/Wholesale)
Shop 2, 40-46 Rostrata Avenue, Willetton WA 6155
Contact: M Shoukat (Proprietor)
Tel/Fax (08) 9259 0958

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