Zoodles or Zero Point Noodles

I have been zoodling for many months now. I have tried quite a few types of vegetables like carrot, zucchini, cucumber, sweet potatoes, etc. Zoodles here means no points noodles. The points here refers to Weight-Watchers smart points. This means that eating this vegetable noodles does not add to your daily points allowance.

I find courgette or zucchini the easiest to handle. It is of a good size and is soft enough to easily turn the spiralizer. I even use broccoli stems and cauliflower stems as zoodles. I normally cut the stem up as well when I make stir fry. Now,I sometimes save them and use them as zoodles. You just remove the tough outer ‘skin’ and spiralize it. Then use it as normal.

Being an ethnic Chinese, of course the natural thing is to make spiralized noodles. My favourite is courgette and carrots. I made zoodles with tamarind prawns before, but that was before I got hold of a spiralizer. I shredded the vegetables thinly and blanched it and served it like noodles. However the zoodles were a bit watery, bearing in mind that vegetables, when mixed with salt or salty ingredients, exude water.

Now, after many attempts, I have perfected a way to reduce the water content. I grill the zoodles before using it!! It is so easy and it doesn’t really take extra time to do it.

This method can be used to prepare the zooodles for pasta, too.

I find that 1 medium courgette and 1/2 a medium carrot is sufficient for a serving of zoodles. Avoid big courgettes as big ones are matured, and contain a lot of seeds and the seeds contain a lot of water.

You can use any toppings or garnishes for the zoodles. I normally use left-over meat from the Sunday roast. Sometimes I use crabsticks or left-over chicken from chicken rice. At times I use fresh chicken meat and add it to the soup.

Here is an example of the Chinese zoodle soup using left-over Sunday roast.

For one serving:
Difficulty: easy
Cost: £
Time: 20 mins

Smart Points: 1, excluding meat and soup base

Zoodles

1 medium courgette
1/2 medium carrot

Toppings

Slices of left-over meat
Garlic crisps and oil – 1/2 tsp
Light soy sauce – a swirl
White pepper powder – a sprinkle
Sesame oil- a few drops
Chinese Preserved cabbage-a pinch, chopped (optional)
Fresh coriander leaves or chopped spring onions

Chicken stock or stock of your choice, ( I usually use stock cube) about 400ml.

Method

To make the zoodles

Trim the ends of the courgette and the carrot so that the ends are flat. Cut the courgette into half to get 2 shorter halves.
Stick one end of the courgette to the spiralizer blade and the other end to the turning handle. Turn the handle while pressing gently towards the blade to give it a little pressure. Turn until all is done.
Give the zoodles 2 to 3 snips with a pair of scissors. This will make it easier to eat so that your zoodles are not a mile long.
Put the zoodles in a tray or heat proof container and place it under the grill at medium to high heat. Let it grill for about 4 to 5 minutes. Turn the zoodles over and grill for another 4 to 5 minutes. Make sure that the zoodles are not burnt. Turn and give it a stir and if need be, grill it longer until the zoodles are dry (that there no juice left in the tray)
You can prepare the other ingredients while you grill the zoodles.
Slice the meat into thin slices
If you are using stock cube, put the cube in a pot of hot water ( about 400ml) and bring it to the boil. Season to taste

To serve