I received the nicest invitation back in the beginning of June, to create a recipe for JSL Foods using Fortune Noodles! Sounded super fun to me, so I was in! They were looking for bloggers to create “Asian fusion” stir-fry’s and cold noodle salads using one of their products of the bloggers’ choice. Well, I chose their Yakisoba Spicy Hot Stir Fry Noodles, (but I was already thinking that they’d make a pretty cool salad, actually!)  So that’s what I went with, but they have lots of fun ones to try! And they’re so easy to use, that I’ll definitely be trying many more! No more “Ramen” for me, those days are over. These are actually even easier, and much, much better! (“Real noodles”, if that makes any sense). You can check them out {here and here}.  Plus, they also have other goodies like wrappers, rices, and even Asian cookies, too! 😉  And, the best part is, you can now get everything at your local Stop ‘n Shop, Giant, Price Rite and Shop Rite stores! I think that you’re really going to like these, too! (*And if you don’t see them at your stores, simply ask your grocer to get some in!)

So, …..what to make what to make. I instantly thought that a nice Asian-Mexican fusion would be fun. But I got bored with every idea that I came up with, (been there done it), and figured that you probably would, too. So there I sat….

…then on came the news. Texas flags at half staff. 5 Police officers dead. Another dark day in America for sure.

It seems like our entire world is coming to a boiling point.

Worldwide terrorist attacks, out of control gun violence, racism and hate, corrupt governments and leaders, corporate greed creating poverty, more walls threatening to be built instead of torn down, (remember East and West Germany when we watched on the news, LIVE, the people break down the wall to make Germany ONE again?!), unnecessary starvation and hunger, and unspeakable crimes against women, children and humanity has my heart broken these days. It seems there isn’t a day that goes by, that you can turn on the news and not hear of horrific crimes against each other. Timeless wars that seem to have no end or solution, and new ones being threatened every day. Innocent people being murdered. Even by those who are supposed to be there “to serve and protect the public”. So much wrong. So much, that you don’t even know where to start to fix it.

So that got me thinking. Why just fuse two countries’ cuisines together. Or even three for that matter. Why not try to involve as many different countries as I possibly could to ALL come together, peacefully, playing nicely with each other, into one, big, towering, bursting umami of flavors.

I know that this probably isn’t what the judges are looking for to win any of their prizes. But I never win contests anyways. So I figured. Why not just go for it. Not make it difficult, so that anyone can make it. But make something special in honor of hope for a more kind and peaceful world. So. That’s what I did. And it was one beautiful, umami of an experience to eat. We think it’s a winner, anyways.

Before we start, just keep this in mind. I don’t take food lightly, from simple to complicated, food comes from the heart and soul and sometimes becomes a work of art. Just like a painting, though, it should be appreciated each time as an individual piece. As sometimes, it can never be replicated exactly the same. And maybe it shouldn’t be, because those are the ones that you remember and appreciate the most. 😉 So I don’t expect you to make this exactly as I have. No two sets of tastebuds are exactly alike, anyways. Choose your own favorite vegetables, and ones that are available to you. Serve the noodle salad on the side if that’s the way you prefer, or just make the salad and skip the burger altogether, as the salad truly is the shining star of this!! Recipes are just a guide. So, follow your own heart. (*But please don’t skip out on the jicama. This Mexican veggie is one of my favorites. To describe? I would say, that if a turnip and a sweet apple got together…this would be their “love child”!)

*But I can certainly tell you this. Though it may at first appear complicated and “too many ingredients”, it’s actually super simple-easy, and WOWza was it ever good! I would do it again in a HEARTBEAT! (Even “Mr. Picky Pants” loved it!! Shocker, shocker, I know!!) So please don’t let the list of ingredients shy you away. Life is short. LIVE IT.

So. To get started, you simply add the water and seasoning packet to a large mixing bowl, whisk to mix, add the noodles, cover the top of the bowl with a wet paper towel, and cook the noodles in the microwave for 3-4 minutes. Add the quick, homemade vinaigrette, then toss to mix, and chill. Chop up the raw veggies and toss into the bowl, and pop back into the fridge.

The noodles, cooked with the seasoning packet and water,
then tossed with the homemade dressing!

The simple, easy, tasty dressing!

The fresh garden veggies!!

The raw veggies for crunch!

Already looking fantastic!

In a small bowl, stir together the easy crab rangoon filling, and set aside. Form “burger bowls” out of the seasoned ground beef around the bottom of a soda can and place onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Fill bottoms of bowl with crab rangoon filling, and top with shredded pepperjack cheese. Cover with small mixing bowls or plastic wrap, and chill.

Toss the rest of the veggies, the “Gill Veggies”, with oil, salt and pepper, and grill in a perforated flat pan made for an outdoor grill. Grill until your liking, and toss into the noodle salad. (*Just like stir frying, but on a grill for extra flavor!)

The veggies to be sautéed on the grill!
*Don’t forget the red onion like I almost did!

Use a perforated grill pan and “stir fry”!
*If you don’t have one, you can do this on the stovetop in a wok or skillet.

And the noodle salad is done in about 30 – 45 minutes!!
Just garnish with feta and some snipped green onions,
and you can enjoy this all by itself if you wish!
(*You can even add the rest of the crab to the extra salad!)

When your filled burger bowls are chilled and firm, place carefully onto a hot grill, close the lid, turn down heat until maintaing 375º, and grill until done! Toast inside of buns or rolls onto hot grill, top bottoms with handfuls of fresh baby spinach leaves, and place burgers on top.

Top burgers with 2 strips of candied peanut butter bacon each, pile on some noodle salad, and finish this masterpiece with a garnish of crumbled feta cheese, snipped green onions, and place a “tiara” of fanned radish on top! (The Queen of All Burgers, of course, needs a tiara! 😉 )

Spread the insides of the top buns with roasted garlic hummus and…..

…..TADAAAAAA! Pretty as a picture, LOADED with vitamins, minerals and protein, but most importantly, it’s the burger experience of a LIFETIME.

Here’s the master list of just about all of the ingredients I used, (unless I’ve missed one!)

*Note: Not all of these references to original and ancient origin may be perfectly correct. We don’t live in a perfect world, and we certainly weren’t around when a lot of these amazing ingredients first began growing wild. But my best guesses, after researching the ingredients that I used to make this recipe to try to bring many corners of our world together, are as follows…quite interesting, actually!

Noodles (in general): China, Syria & Italy. (*Oldest): Ancient Asian Bread Noodles: China. Cheeseburgers: America. Rice Vinegar: Japan. Dried Red Chile Peppers: Mexico. Sriracha: Burma & Myanmar. Chives: America & Europe. Parsley: Southern Italy & Tunisia. Garlic: Central Asia (by 3000 BC: Persia & Northern Africa) . Sesame Oil: India & Bangladesh. Zucchini: America. Jicama: Mexico. Cabbage: Ireland & Russia. Cucumbers: India. Radishes: Ancient Egypt. Neufchâtel: French Normandy. Crabs: North Sea, North Atlantic & Mediterranean Sea (Oldest Crabs: “Horseshoe”: Fossils dating over 200 million years ago). Pepper Jack Cheese: Invented by Mexican Franciscan friars of Monterey, California. Cubanelle Chile Peppers: Cuba. Mini “Baby” Corns: Mexico. Grape Tomatoes: The Andes: Peru, Bolivia, Chile & Ecuador. “Baby Bella” Portobello Mushrooms: Italy. Sugar Snap Peas: Thailand & Burma (*found in a cave dating back to 9750 B.C.). Green Beans: Peru. Kaiser Rolls: Germany. Poppy Seeds: Ancient Mesopotamia Region & Egypt. Baby Spinach: Ancient Persia. Bacon: Germany. Peanuts: Peru & Brazil. (Peanut Butter: 1904: C.H. Sumner introduced peanut butter to the world at the Universal Exposition (World’s Fair) in St. Louis, America). Feta Cheese: Greece. Hummus: Egypt & Eastern Mediterranean.

I cannot even tell you how much, (much needed), fun I had creating this masterpiece of a burger! Though the burger itself was incredible, (understatement!!), that noodle salad was absolutely phenomenal!! I urge you to use as many of the veggies that I did as you possibly, possibly can, because everything played SO WELL together, it was quite an AMAZING flavor experience!! Honestly, THE BEST noodle salad I’ve ever made or tasted! And I added the last of the crab to the leftover salad for the hubs, and he agreed, it was a SERIOUSLY good noodle salad!! (He kept saying, “WOW!!”, with not only every bite of the burger, but over the leftover salad the next day, as well!!! No better compliment than that!!)

Thank you so much JSL Foods and Fortune Noodles! If it hadn’t been for you contacting me, and the challenge/contest, I never would’ve had one of the most fun, food experiences that I’ve ever had! I truly had a BLAST, (and learned so much about the history of the ingredients to boot!!)

To my followers, you’re going to LOVE these noodles!! OMG are they good, and so easy to make!! They only take 3 minutes in the microwave, (no boiling and draining), and WA-LAH. Think of all the “pastabilities”!!!!! (Sorry, couldn’t resist! 😉 )

*Here are the links to check out their products and follow them!
You’re going to want these:
JSL Foods/Fortune (website)
Follow on Facebook
Follow on Twitter

♥

Lastly…

Earth is a beautiful, but complicated, planet.
With hard work, we can all live in peace.
We just have to make the effort.

Let’s tear down the walls. Not build them.

Together. We got this.

♥

*If you have any questions about making this recipe, please feel free to ask. I’m always here to help!

Yield: 3 Burgers

Asian Fusion "World Peace Burger Bowls" Featuring International Yakisoba Noodle Salad

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Ingredients

For Noodle Salad:

• 1 (7.7 oz.) bag Fortune Yakisoba Spicy Hot Stir fry Noodles, cooked with seasoning packet and 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup fresh zucchini, halved and cut into 1 inch long matchsticks, *choose a small one for tenderness and almost seedless
• fresh jicama, peeled and cut into 1 inch long matchsticks (1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup finely shredded cabbage, ok to sub "cole slaw mix with carrots"
• 1/2 cup cucumber, cut into 1 inch long matchsticks
• 3 nice sized radishes, quartered and sliced 1/8 inch thick into fans

Spicy Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup salad oil such as canola (or vegetable)
• 1 tsp. regular sesame oil (or dark if you prefer)
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. sriracha
• 1 (5 inch long) dried red chili pepper, thinly snipped with kitchen scissor, or to heat preference
• 1 clove garlic, very finely minced
• 1/2 Tbl. fresh parsley
• 1/8 tsp. each regular salt and coarse ground black pepper, or to taste
• (*[i]plus grilled veggies to be added later, see below[/i])

Crab Rangoon Filling:

• 4 oz. neufchâtel, softened (can sub cream cheese)
• cooked imitation crab leg meat, coarse chopped or sliced on the bias 1/2 inch wide, (1 1/2 - 2 oz., as you like)
• 1/2 Tbl. snipped green onions
• 1 cup shredded pepperjack cheese

Burger Bowl/Grilled Veggies:

• [i]Burger Bowl:[/i]
• 1 lb. ground beef, 85% lean works well, seasoned with salt and pepper to taste (I like a 1/2 tsp. each)
• [i]Grilled Veggies to be added to Noodle Salad:[/i]
• 1 small sweet red cubanelle pepper, cleaned of seeds and membrane, sliced 1/8 inch crossways
• 4 (4 inch long) mini baby corns packed in water, drained well, sliced on the bias into 6ths
• 10 fresh grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• 8 medium-sized baby bella whole mushrooms, quartered
• 1/2 cup fresh pea pods, cut into thirds
• 1/2 cup fresh green beans, slice on the bias into 1 inch pieces
• fresh red onion, halved and sliced 1/4 inch, 1/2 cup
• 1/8 cup (2 Tbl.) salad oil such as canola
• pinch each salt (regular or kosher) and coarse ground black pepper, to taste

Finishing Ingredients:

• 3 split Kaiser Rolls, lightly buttered and grilled on the inside
• 3 small handfuls baby spinach leaves, as you like
• 6 strips bacon candied with 2 Tbl. dark brown sugar and 2 Tbl. peanut butter
• 3 Tbl. feta cheese crumbles
• 3 tsp. thinly snipped green onions, (one large green onion)
• radish fans for garnish, optional
• roasted garlic hummus (spread for top bun), as much as you like, (I used at least a Tbl. per burger)

Instructions

In small to medium bowl whisk Spicy Vinaigrette ingredients. Set aside to make friends.

In large bowl, cook yakisoba noodles in microwave according to package directions, stirring mix and water together and adding the noodles. When noodles are done, stir to mix, add Spicy Vinaigrette and toss. Cover and pop into the fridge to chill out and mingle while you cut your Noodle Salad veggies. Add veggies to chilled noodles and toss.

In medium bowl, stir together with a fork the Crab Rangoon Filling ingredients until combined. Cover and set aside.

In large bowl, break up hamburger adding salt and pepper to taste. (I like 1/2 tsp. each). Divide into thirds and form into balls. Place balls onto a small baking sheet or flat plate. Press an empty soda can into center of each, forming a bowl, and remove the can. Shape better as needed. Fill each with the (room temp) Crab Rangoon Filling, top each with pepper jack cheese, and place into fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes (overnight is fine of you want to make ahead), covering with bowls or plastic wrap.

Preheat gas grill to get very hot. In a grill basket, add Grill Veggies tossed with the oil, salt and pepper. Grill over high heat, stirring now and then, until crisp-tender and lightly blackened in spots, about 10 - 15 minutes. Add veggies into your already prepared Noodle Salad. Leave room temp or chill.

Oil grates with a wad of paper towel using tongs and, with a spatula, carefully place each filled burger bowl onto the grill. Close lid and turn down heat to medium. Grill until done and nicely browned, about 25 minutes depending on your grill. (*I kept mine at 375ºF). Check on it after 15 minutes. If bottom is getting too done, move it carefully to a cooler spot on the grill. Use a sharp spatula, and do NOT move it if it's sticking. *If it's sticking, it isn't ready to be moved. (*I didn't have to move mine at all, but all grills heat differently).

While burger bowls are grilling, mix dark brown sugar and peanut butter together and evenly spread each side of crisply cooked bacon with mixture. (About 1 teaspoon each per side). Place onto a plate or baking dish. Heat on High in microwave until melted and bubbly. 20 - 30 seconds. Turn and repeat. Set aside.

When burgers are done, remove carefully with a sharp spatula, transferring to a plate and cover to rest and keep hot. While grill is hot, toast insides of kaiser rolls.

To Finish and Assemble:

Top each grilled bottom roll with a small handful of baby spinach leaves. Carefully place burgers on top. Top each with 2 candied bacon strips. Pile on chilled or room temp Noodle Salad. Garnish each with a sprinkling of feta cheese crumbles, sliced green onions, (and a radish fan for fun!) Spread inside of tops with roasted garlic hummus. Serve with lid propped to side.

Don't worry. Everything gets along extremely well, and comes together easily and beautifully.

Notes

*You can top your burgers with the noodle salad chilled or natural room temperature. I liked it cold, actually, but I enjoy cold cole slaw on top of a good pulled pork barbecue sandwich or chili dog. My hubby preferred it room temp, though. It's not rocket science. So, just enjoy it however you like it.

*Disclaimer: I was not paid for this post, but did receive free noodles. All comments and opinions about this product are solely my own.

**Photo of Earth taken by Nasa from space.