To make the Spicy Peanut Sauce : In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients – peanut butter, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, rice vinegar, red pepper flakes, ginger ale (or water). Blend well. Keep refrigerated in a covered container (for up to 1 week) till ready to use. This recipe makes about 1 cup of sauce for the salad.
Prepare the lo mein noodles : Add the noodles to a medium pot filled with boiling water. Cook for about 40 seconds in the rapidly bubbling water. Remove the noodles and drain to remove excess water. Set the noodles aside.
Using the same boiling water and medium pot, add the spinach leaves. Blanch for 10 seconds, remove from water and drain. Set them aside to dry.
To assemble salad: When noodles have cooled down, pour half a cup first of the Spicy Peanut Sauce. Blend sauce well to incorporate within the noodles. Add a little more and keep blending within the noodles, being careful not to break the noodles in half.
To the salad, add the cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach. Pour the rest of the spicy peanut sauce to the salad. Top with grilled rib pieces if desired. Garnish with scallions and red bell peppers all over. Chill salad in refrigerator till ready to eat.
Cook’s comments: I buy the pre-boiled, soft, yellow Chinese egg noodles from the Asian supermarket for soups, stir-fry dishes or salads like this one. It comes in a 16 oz pack and it lasts for a week or 2 refrigerated. If lo mein noodles are not available, use cooked spaghetti noodles, the same amount for this recipe. You can be creative and add other chilled vegetables to the salad.
Recipe Notes: The original recipe for the peanut dressing in the cookbook used regular soy sauce. I opted to use the low-sodium variety because the peanut butter was salty to begin with. Feel free to use regular soy sauce if that is what is convenient.