Ingredients

• Ingredients
  1. 1/4 pound vermicelli
  2. 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
  3. 3 scallions including green tops, cut into 1/4-inch slices
  4. 1/4 teaspoon salt
  5. 1 1/3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 4 )
  6. 1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
  7. 4 cloves garlic, chopped
  8. 2 tablespoons tahini (sesame-seed paste)
  9. 1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
  10. 2 teaspoons sugar
  11. 2 1/2 tablespoons cooking oil
  12. 1/8 teaspoon dried red-pepper flakes
  13. 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  14. 1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
  15. 2 cucumbers, halved lengthwise, peeled, and seeded

Directions

1. In a pot of boiling, salted water, cook the vermicelli until just done, about 9 minutes. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain thoroughly.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine the 1 cup broth, one third of the scallions, and the salt. Bring to a simmer, add the chicken, stir, and cover the pan. Simmer for 5 minutes. Turn the heat off and let the chicken steam for 5 minutes. Remove the chicken from the saucepan and shred it.
3. In a blender, puree the remaining 3 tablespoons broth, the ginger, garlic, tahini, sesame oil, sugar, cooking oil, red-pepper flakes, soy sauce, and pepper. Put the cucumber halves cut-side down and slice them lengthwise into thin strips.
4. To serve, put the vermicelli on plates or in bowls. Scatter each serving with a layer of cucumber strips and then top with the shredded chicken. Pour the sesame sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with the remaining scallions.