Gai Lan Pad See Ew

From the garden

• 1 lb gai lan (Chinese broccoli), cut into 2-inch lengths, thick stems split lengthwise
• 4 cloves garlic, minced

From the pantry

• 1 lb wide rice noodles · fresh if you can get them, or 8 oz dried, soaked until pliable
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, sliced thin across the grain
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp soy sauce · make one of the three dark soy if you have it, for color
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 3 tbsp neutral oil · divided
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar · for the chili vinegar at the table
• ½ tsp red pepper flakes · stirred into the vinegar
• black pepper · white pepper is the traditional grind

1. Trim the base of each gai lan stem where it stops snapping cleanly, cut the rest into 2-inch lengths, and split anything thumb-thick down its length so a stem finishes at the same moment as the leaf attached to it. Keep the stems and the leaves in separate piles.
2. Loosen fresh rice noodles into single sheets with oiled hands, or soak dried wide noodles in hot water until bendy but still firm, then drain them thoroughly. Wet noodles steam in the pan instead of charring.
3. Stir the soy sauce, fish sauce, and sugar together with 2 tablespoons of water and set the bowl by the stove. Stir the pepper flakes into the rice vinegar in a small dish for the table.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok or the widest skillet you own over the highest heat until it just begins to smoke, then spread the chicken in one layer and leave it alone for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and the gai lan stems and toss 2 minutes, until the stems turn glossy and deep green.
5. Push everything to one side, add the last of the oil and the eggs, scramble them for 20 seconds, then tip in the noodles and the sauce. Toss with a spatula, letting the noodles sit still for 30 seconds between turns so they catch and char in patches.
6. Fold in the gai lan leaves for a final 30 seconds, just until they collapse. Grind over pepper and serve at once, with the chili vinegar spooned on at the table.