Yakisoba is a Japanese noodle dish… made from fried soba (buckwheat) noodles, cabbage, assorted veggies, and a sauce. There are no hard rules. You can use whatever veggies you have available and you can even substitute noodles such as Ramen or Udon, or even spaghetti! The simplest way is to buy pre-made buckwheat yakisoba noodles at the Asian grocery store. If you can get them, use the fresh noodles with the sauce packets. These come in 3 “single serve” sections and for a family of 4 or 5, I cook with all three. The package I used had no egg in it, the noodles are very simple and made with wheat. Alternatively, you can use dried ramen noodles, cook in boiling water, and make your own sauce. The third option is to use pre-made dried soba noodles, similar to how one uses spaghetti noodles. These are readily available from Amazon. Fourth option is to totally just use spaghetti noodles.
Yakisoba is a very versatile dish that can handle many ingredients. Consider adding in mushrooms, tofu, onion, etc. The key is the noodles and cabbage and everything else is optional. This is also a very easy to make but satisfying meal.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Noodles, either Soba noodles or your pasta of choice.
Firm tofu, pressed and drained, sliced about 1/2″ x 3/4″ strips…maybe 2-3″ long. OPTIONAL
2 carrots, sliced thin into small strips
1/2 head cabbage, sliced thinly, core removed
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 green onions (optional) sliced
1 bell pepper, any color (optional) sliced into thin strips Sliced mushrooms (optional)
Vegan Yakisoba sauce (or make your own, see below) About 1 cup or if you bought the noodles with spice packets, you are good to go.
Mirin (or can use sugar)
toasted sesame seeds (optional)
Noriko (seaweed) flakes (optional) peanut oil (can use other oils)
Directions:
1. Prep all things that need slicing including the tofu. Set aside. If you are using tofu, press it first.
2. If you are using tofu, in wok (or large skillet), add some peanut oil, and toss in tofu strips. Salt and pepper tofu. Gently stir to not break up too much the tofu. Cook until outside starts to brown a little. Take out of pan and set into a bowl. Alternately you can marinate the tofu in a bit of sesame oil, soy sauce, pepper and air fry them for 14 minutes.
3. In large wok, saute the veggies over medium heat 5 minutes or until soft and beginning to brown. I like to precook the harder veggies like carrots first so that all the veggies are done at the same time. I add cabbage last. The heat will help break up the cabbage clumps. Add 1/4 cup of water to the wok to help steam cook the cabbage. You want the cabbage to not be too crisp… but to also not be totally limp.
4. Remove veggies from Wok. Add 1 cup of water to wok and add in fresh noodles (if using dry noodles, boil them until soft). Stir until water is absorbed. Add a dash of oil and continue to cook for a few minutes.
5. Add cooked veggies back to the noodles in the wok, turn heat down and add Yakisoba sauce, dash of mirin or pinch of sugar if wanted. Stir with medium low heat. Add enough sauce to taste. Typically about 1 cup. If you are using the seasoning packets, just add all three to the wok and stir well.
6. Add tofu and gently toss all of the ingredients to coat the tofu. Let sit for a few minutes.
7. Serve with some toasted sesame seeds and seaweed flakes on top (optional). Feel free to use Siracha and soy sauce as needed.
