My first book Noodle! (100 Great Recipes) is out today

NOODLE! by MiMi Aye

A while ago, I was asked to write a book about noodles as part of a wonderful series called 100 Great Recipes published by Absolute Press. 

I'm a bit of a noodle geek (though by no means an expert), and there's nothing I like more than sticking my face into a big bowl of the stuff, so my first thought was, "Amazing! I'd love to do this".

However, I have a full-time job, so I ummed and ahhed for a while, thinking I wouldn't have the chance to work on it. 

Then I decided that, as I was pregnant, I could just write the thing whilst I was on maternity leave. 

This was a mistake.

She tried to stop me writing this book, but failed.

Roll forward a year, and after blood, sweat, tears and many, many sleepless nights, here we are - Noodle!* by me is out today.

The dishes were styled by the wonderful Genevieve Taylor and stunning photos taken by Mike Cooper.

Forgive me for quoting the official press release, but:

Popular food blogger and veteran noodle eater MiMi Aye celebrates 100 wonderful noodle recipes for every occasion in this practical book. 

All types of the slender staple are explored, from wheat, rice and egg noodles to buckwheat noodles and beyond. 

In this essential guide, discover different noodle stir-fries, soups, sauces, salads and snacks with flavours from across the world. 

Here are 100 recipes in a fantastic collection that you'll return to all year round. 

Noodle! is the fifth book in a series that began with the bestselling Mince! (World Gourmand Award for 'Best UK Single Subject Cookbook') and continued with the brilliant titles Stew!, Soup! and Pie!. 

Tonkotsu Ramen (Japan) p 48

What I'd also like you to know is this -  

• Noodle! is in no way intended to be authoritative, but it's an easy-to-use primer for those that want to know more and understand where these dishes came from as well as for those who love to eat;

• Recipes range from hand-made noodles for those that want to make a dish from scratch to quick fixes for pimping instant noodles;

• Apart from the fusion dishes, all the dishes are relatively faithful ie they would be recognised by someone who was already familiar with the dish;

Saucy Chicken and Peanut Noodles (Burma) - p 116

• Recipes are categorised by type of dish (snack, salad, stir-fry etc) so you can pick what you want to cook according to what mood you're in;

• There's a whole section devoted to Secret Weapons which can turn any meal into a masterpiece – eg pickled chillies, fried shallots, garlic oil;

• If you want a theme to your dinner ("I fancy Korean food tonight"), the recipes are labelled by country origin; 

Cha Gio - Vermicelli-stuffed Spring Rolls (Vietnam) - p 142

• For those interested in learning more about the countries, I've used the native names for each dish, as well as English translations. This means people can order the dishes in restaurants or when they're visiting those countries as well; 

• For those interested in authenticity, I've used the original ingredients and techniques as much as possible or explained what these would be where I've suggested alternatives instead;

• For those interested in culture, I've also explained how each dish should traditionally be eaten – what type of cutlery and crockery, so people can do the same if they like; 

• I managed to get the word "test*cles" into the book - see if you can spot it; and

• For me, the most important thing is I've been able to include a fair few Burmese recipes. These were taught to me by my mother and the fact that I have this opportunity to share my heritage and spread the Burmese food love has been amazing.

Liang Fen - Spiced Jelly Noodles (China) - p 128

Noodle! is available right now in all good bookshops eg WH Smith, Waterstones, Foyles and also online at all those stores, as well as on Amazon, and the Guardian Bookshop. Randomly, it's even available on eBay.

Wherever you like to purchase your cookbooks from, please do buy it :)

Here endeth the plug.

"Please buy my mother's book so she can buy me a new jumper."

And keep your eyes right here on the blog as I'll be adding companion pieces to the book - eg guides on how to cook dried soba and udon, how to stop your rice noodles clumping together, as well as recipes that I couldn't quite fit in. 

Plus a giveaway - and who doesn't love those, right?

*Part of me is slightly rueful that my first book contains an exclamation mark in the title.