The Food
This dish was served as chilled noodles with hot stir fry.
The sōmen noodles we're boiled for just 1 minute, then rinsed and put in ice water.
Meanwhile, thinly sliced radish, celery, and jalapeño were stir-fried in high-heat sesame oil. After about 3 minutes, some smooth peanut butter, mixed with soy sauce and a little bit of the water the noodles boiled in, was added to the veggies.
The vegetables and peanuts cooked out, were plated (or maybe 'bowled'?) atop the drained noodles, with chili-garlic sauce as a side-condiment.
The Flavor
Peanut and jalapeño are the dominating flavors in this dish, and I'm not complaining. They both balance each other and, surprisingly, complement each other. The slight sesame and soy undertones also prevent the spice from becoming overbearing.
The noodles are a joy to slurp, and the veggies add a necessary crunch while still being easy to eat.
Not quite Thai, not quite Japanese, not even wholly Asian... and that's alright.
The Feeling
Between you and me, I didn't add any extra chili sauce on top. Of course, there's no shame in not wanting to burn your mouth off with food, although coming from an Indian background, that's not always true.
But I didn't de-seed the jalapeño pepper! It was proper spicy, honest!
I enjoyed the meal. Simple food. Happy food.
Although I recommend adding ginger.