Glas noodles from the wok and Kashmiri winter veg curry

This is a dish my DH and I developed quite early in our relationship but keep coming back to all the time as it is quick and easy, tasty and versatile. You can (and should!) vary the veg according to taste and season!

glas noodles (we find 100g is quite enough for 2)
some spring onions or a chopped regular onion
finely chopped or grated ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
sesame or sunflower oil
some tofu, cubed, if desired
carrots, cabbage, peppers, bean sprouts… finely cut for stir-frying (not the sprouts, of course!)
rice wine
soy sauce
chinese 5-spice mix
sesame seeds

Soften the noodles as per pack instructions. Drain.
Heat oil in wok. Fry (spring) onions, ginger and garlic along with the tofu if using. Add the vegetables one after the other. When they start to soften, pour in a little bit of rice wine and soy sauce. Add about 1/4 tsp of the spice-mix (or to taste - it is quite overpowering if you use too much). Cover for a little, cook until the veg are done the way you like them, but they really should have some bite left to them. Mix in the noodles. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

I adapted this curry recipe from one for Kashmiri shalgam gosht, shalgam meaning turnips and gosht meaning lamb. I didn't use any turnips yesterday, though I have before, and I obviously don‘t use lamb as a vegetarian, but the following makes a hearty curry which almost tastes as if it has been cooked in a meat stock. If using turnips, you might want to salt them first to remove any bitterness

a large onion
about 1 kg winter vegetables, such as turnips, carrots, swedes, potatoes, parsnips cut into medium-sized pieces
2 cloves garlic
a nice piece of fresh ginger
a can of chopped tomatoes (you can use fresh ones, but they wouldn't be in season)
1 bay leaf
oil
1/4-1 tsp chilli powder
1 1/2 tsp paprika powder
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp ground fennel or 1 tsp whole fennel seeds
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 black cardamoms
4-6 green cardamoms
some cinnamon stick or cinnamon bark
salt to taste

Heat oil in a heavy-based pan. Saute the onions, garlic, and ginger until the onion softens. Add the spices, saute for a few minutes. Add the tomatoes. Bring to the boil, add the vegetables and more water to just cover them. Slow cook till down. You can remove the lid near the end to reduce the sauce and intensify the flavours. You can also remove the whole spices before serving, if you prefer. Rice and/or naan bread go well with this.