Sweet & Savory Crispy Beef Vermicelli Noodles

I love everything about these noodles. I love the crispy caramelized beef, the lightness of the vermicelli noodles, and the classic sweet and savory sauce. And even thought it's not a saucy noodle dish it has just the right amount of sauce that it stains the extremely white vermicelli noodles to a light brown color and flavors the noodles perfectly.

These noodles are the definition of pantry noodles because even though all the sauces I put into this dish were picked out specifically to create a sweet, savory, and umami flavored dish, what ended up happening was me pulling out a good chunk of my sauces out and mixing everything together. It was done in less than 20 minutes and eaten in less than 10 minutes so basically these noodles have been giving me life during all this quarantine madness.

Normally, I would use bok choy or some chinese broccoli but for some reason I just wasn't feeling it. I really wanted some broccoli but use whatever veggies you have on hand. No matter what veggie you use in this dish, its really important to finish it off with some chili oil and chopped parsley. It really brightens up the dish.

Sweet & Savory Crispy Beef Vermicelli Noodles

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound of dry vermicelli noodles

• 1 tablespoon of oil

• 1/2 pound of ground beef

• 1/2 onion, chopped

• 2 cloves of garlic, minced

• 2 tablespoons of fish sauce

• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce

• 2 tablespoons of sugar

• 2 tablespoons of xio shing wine

• 1 tablespoon of hoisin sauce

• 1 teaspoon of gochujang

• 1 tablespoon of sesame oil

• 1 teaspoon of mirin

• 1 teaspoon of salt

• 1 teaspoon of black pepper

• 1/4 cup of water

• Handful of parsley, roughly chopped

• Chile oil, for topping

• Chopped peanuts, for topping

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and drop in your vermicelli noodles. Follow the instructions on the package or just cook until they are soft. Drain your noodles and run them under some cold water to keep them from cooking any longer.

2. Using the same pot, add 1 tablespoon of oil, 1/2 of a chopped onion, and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Saute on medium heat until the garlic and onion are soft & becoming golden on the edges.

3. Turn your flame to medium high heat and add in your ground beef. Break it into smaller pieces and sear it until it a few bits of it becomes crispy. This process will take about 10 minutes.

4. While the ground beef is getting nice and crispy, mix together 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of sugar, 2 tablespoons of xio shing wine, 1 tablespoon of hoisin sauce, 1 teaspoon of gochujang, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon of mirin, 1 teaspoon of salt, & 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Pour this mixture over the beef and continue cooking everything together for about 1 more minute.

5. Lower the flame to medium low, toss in your noodles, add in 1/4 cup of water, the roughly chopped parsley, and combine until the noodles go from being white to light brown and everything is combined.

6. Give it a taste and add more salt if you need it. If not, serve it while its hot and add some chopped peanuts, chili oil, & some more chopped parsley!