Sesame Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

Summary
Prep time	30 min
Cook time	15 min
Source	The New Basics Cookbook (page 141)
Yield / serves	6 servings
Rating	Excellent!

Ingredients

• 8 oz linguine or bow-tie pasta
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 T red wine vinegar
• 1 T brown sugar
• 6 T chunky peanut butter
• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 6 T sesame oil
• 1 T hot chile oil
• 2 boneless and skinless cooked chicken breast halves
• 5 T sesame seeds, toasted
• 1 lb asparagus, trimmed
• 3 scallions (green onions) white bulb and 3 inches green, cut into 2-inch julienne
• 1 small cucumber, halved, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch dice

Preparation

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook at a rolling boil until just tender. Drain, rinse under cold water, drain again, and set aside in a large mixing bowl.

Place the garlic, vinegar, brown sugar, peanut butter, and soy sauce in a food processor. Process for 1 minute. With the motor running, slowly add the sesame and hot chili oils through the feed tube, and process until well blended.

Shred the chicken into 2-inch julienne, and toss with the linguine. Add the sauce and 4 tablespoons of the sesame seeds, and toss to coat well.

Cut the asparagus on the diagonal into 1-inch lengths. Blanch in a saucepan of boiling water for 1 minute. Drain, rinse under cold water, and pat dry.

Place the linguine and chicken in a large flat serving bowl, and arrange the asparagus on top. Sprinkle with the scallions, cucumber, and remaining 1 tablespoon sesame seeds. Serve at room temperature.