Thai Noodles with Tempeh and Vegetables, Thai Cucumber Salad

My wife's sitar teacher returned to town just for one night (I'm almost done with posting the pictures from the concert!), and I had the pleasure of cooking for him. He expressed an interest in spicy Thai food, so I came up with this dinner.

I was excited today in the grocery store to see wild leeks. I'd never seen these before; also called ramps, they are apparently a rare Southern US speciality. I hope to get more and try them next week again.

I chopped most of a package of tempeh into thin rectangles and started sauteeing them along with a large Yukon Gold potato that I had cut into small 1/4" cubes. After 7 or 8 minutes as the tempeh was reasonably brown and the potato cooked, I added a number of vegetables: half a dozen wild leeks, sliced, greens and bulbous root both, into maybe 1/2" pieces; asparagus; summer squash; bell pepper; and broccoli pieces. I also put in a few pinches of diced jalapeno pepper and diced ginger. I cooked just for a few minutes more, then added drained broad Thai rice noodles that I had soaked in very hot tap water till soft, and stir fried the noodles for a minute or so. Finally, I then added the rest of the jalapeno pepper and maybe 2 teaspoons of ginger, along with a few tablespoons of finely chopped onion, a little salt, a little vinegar-based hot sauce, and about 2/3 of a can of light coconut milk.

I also made a Thai cucumber salad. I mixed a little ume plum vinegar and fresh lime juice with a little bit of diced jalapeno, salt, pepper, and a bit of red chile powder, and let it marinate for an hour or so while I prepared the main course. I served the salad after draining the liquid. We all enjoyed the meal outside on the deck!