Thai Noodles With Cinnamon & Prawns - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 tablespoon sunflower oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
fresh ginger, peeled and cut into fine matchsticks
1 star anise
1/2 long or 1 short cinnamon stick, broken into shards
2 -3 leafy stems at the top of 1 stick celery, cut into short lengths, leaves roughly chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
100 ml cold water
1 teaspoon chicken stock, concentrate
1 tablespoon ketjap manis or 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce mixed with 1 tablespoon soft dark brown sugar
10 raw peeled king prawns, thawed if frozen
80 g mung bean noodles (glass) or 3 ounces rice vermicelli, soaked and drained as per packet instructions
1 fat pinch ground cinnamon
1 fat pinch ground cloves

Preparation

On a high heat, heat the oil in a large wok. Add the garlic, ginger, star anise, cinnamon and the sliced leafy stems of celery, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
Stir in both soy sauces and leave to simmer for 30 seconds, then stir in the oyster sauce and ground pepper.
Add the water, followed by the chicken stock concentrate and the ketjap manis (or the mixture of dark soy sauce with soft brown sugar), stir until everything's well combined and bring to the boil.
Now add the king prawns, immersing them in the liquid. Simmer until the prawns are cooked through.
Finally, add the drained noodles and stir well - I find a couple of pasta forks, one in each hand, best for this - so that everything is combined, and most of the dark liquid is absorbed. Add the pinches of ground cinnamon and cloves, stir again, and if you're not serving straight from the wok, decant into a serving bowl, and sprinkle with the reserved chopped celery leaves.
Store Note:
Cool leftovers, then cover and refrigerate within 2 hours of making. Will keep for up to 2 days. Delicious cold.