Rice noodles cooked in a hoisin chile-garlic stir fry sauce with charred bok choy, green and red peppers, broccoli, onions, peanuts, spiced cashews, and a touch of sriracha.

Short History: Rice noodles originated from the Qin dynasty, which was about 2230 – 2279 years ago! When people from northern China invaded the south, they were unaccustomed to eating rice, and preferred noodles – but wheat is harder to grow in south China. To adapt, northern Chinese chefs created noodles that were made of rice – thus inventing the rice noodle.

Hoisin is a thick sauce that is sweet and salty that is historically a Cantonese seafood sauce, but over time has lost the seafood ingredient. However, it still retains the name hoisin (general Cantonese word for seafood sauce) even though the main ingredients of the sauce are soybeans, sugar, garlic, chilies, and five-spice powder. Combination with the rice noodles and the fresh vegetables gives this dish a savory flavor.