Food Obsessed

This one takes the sweet-spicy gochujang turkey noodles you know and love and builds them on top of a creamy whipped cottage cheese base instead of a straight broth or oil sauce. The cottage cheese melts slightly into the hot noodles and turkey, adding a rich, almost carbonara-like creaminess while sneaking in a big extra hit of protein. Sounds unexpected, tastes incredible.

Ingredients

For the cottage cheese base:

• 1 cup full-fat or 2% cottage cheese
• 2 tablespoons milk or reserved pasta water
• Pinch of salt

For the noodles and turkey:

• 12 oz noodles (udon, ramen, or spaghetti all work)
• 1 lb lean ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil (avocado or vegetable)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 3 scallions, sliced (whites and greens separated)

For the sauce:

• 3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey or brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon chili crisp

Instructions

1. Blend the cottage cheese base. Add the cottage cheese, milk, and salt to a blender and blend until completely smooth, about 1 minute. Set aside.
2. Cook the noodles. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook noodles according to package directions. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup of the cooking water, and set aside.
3. Make the sauce. Whisk together the gochujang, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, and sesame oil in a small bowl until smooth.
4. Brown the turkey. Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the ground turkey, breaking it up with a spatula, and cook until browned and mostly cooked through, about 5–6 minutes.
5. Add aromatics. Stir in the garlic, ginger, and scallion whites. Cook for another 30–60 seconds, until fragrant.
6. Add the sauce. Pour the gochujang sauce over the turkey and simmer for 1–2 minutes until glossy and slightly thickened. Stir in the carrots or pepper if using.
7. Bring it all together off heat. Remove the skillet from the heat and add the drained noodles along with the whipped cottage cheese base. Toss quickly and thoroughly — the residual heat will warm the cottage cheese into a creamy coating without curdling it. Add a splash of reserved pasta water as needed to loosen the sauce to a silky consistency.
8. Serve. Divide between bowls and top with sesame seeds, scallion greens, and a soft-boiled egg if you like and use leftover blended cottage cheese to drizzle over top