Keeping with one of my New Year’s resolutions, I have been exploring cooking from the items we keep on hand in our pantry. This shift in meal preparation was precipitated by Christopher Kimball’s Cook What You Have, and while it is an adjustment, I’ve found it particularly satisfying to raid our fridge and pantry. We still cook from our repertoire of favorites, but having a 25 +/- pantry of standards is helping me to be more mindful about shopping for seasonally available and local items, and we’ve been able to cut our food shopping expenses quite a bit.

On this pre-snowmagedden afternoon in Massachusetts (the list of school cancellations is growing by the hour), I made Tuna Gochujang Noodles (p. 43). This was served with kimchi on the side and with some unsalted, roasted peanuts on top for a little added crunch. Gochujang really makes this both savory and rich and, at least here in Massachusetts, it is fairly commonly found in food stores.

Delicious, satisfying, and, I almost won’t care if we lose power.

Tuna Gochujang Noodles

Ingredients (see referenced cookbook p 43 for instruction)

• capellini or somen noodles (I had capellini in the pantry)
• gochujang
• toasted sesame oil
• soy sauce
• brown sugar
• unseasoned rice vinegar
• fresh ginger or garlic or a combination (I stuck with the ginger)
• 2 cans of water- or oil-packed tuna