Chinese Spaghetti

This is a recipe I got in high school from an awesome teacher- Mrs. Griffis- and I altered some. It's pretty simple and quick to make and is a nice twist on traditional spaghetti.  In fact, chinese spaghetti is nothing like regular spaghetti, except the noodles and ground beef!

Ingredients:

1 pound extra lean ground beef (or turkey if you prefer) 

2 Tablespoons vegetable, peanut, or sesame oil

2 to 3 cups of carrots, julienned (think matchsticks!)

2+1 Tablespoons soy sauce, divided

2+2 teaspoons corn starch, divided

1 teaspoon sugar 

Dash of black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 green onions, chopped

1 to 2 teasonpoons of Chinese chili garlic sauce (pictured below- the more, the spicier)

1 cup chicken broth

1/2 pound spaghetti noodles, cooked according to package directions

Directions:

Before you begin gathering your other ingredients, place in a bowl or a ziplock (less clean up) 2 Tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons corn starch, sugar, and black pepper.  Crumble the ground beef or turkey into the mixture and mix together.  (if you do this step earlier in the day it's best, but not necessary!) Gather your ingredients, chop/slice your veggies while this sits.  

Mix the chicken broth, 1 Tablespoon of soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons corn starch in a small bowl (I just use my 2 cup glass measuring cup).  Set aside.

Brown hamburger or turkey in a large skillet or wok.  Drain and set aside.  In the same pan, add your oil and heat over medium high heat. Add garlic, green onion, chili garlic sauce, ginger, and carrots.  Stir fry 2 to 3 minutes.  You want your carrots tender but not mushy!  Throw the browned hamburger back in the pan with the carrots and seasonings.  Stir fry another minute.  Add chicken broth mixture and stir until it begins to thicken.  Drain your spaghetti and add it to the pan.  Mix well and enjoy! 

I also like to add broccoli to this sometimes, or mushrooms or water chestnuts, or whatever veggie we have on hand.  If there isn't enough sauce for you, you can always increase it.  It's an easy recipe to just play around with.  I sometimes will mix up the ground beef with the marinade and cook ahead of time which cuts out some prep work.  I also "cheat" and buy my carrots already julienned :)  

 If you have trouble finding the chili garlic sauce, this is what it looks like! It lasts forever but I add it to a lot of asian inspired dishes to give it a little kick.  Just remember that a little goes a very long ways!