Vegetarian Udon Noodle Soup

I love many cuisines from Mexican to Italian to Spanish to good old fashioned American, but if I were really honest with myself I’d have to confess that my absolute favorite is Asian. I say “Asian” because I cannot commit to any particular aspect of the breadth of Asian foods. I’m in love with Indian breads, samosas, and papadum, I salivate over Korean kimchi and bibimbap, and I crave Japanese sushi rolls and inari for weeks at a time – and that’s just scratching the surface.

While I do prepare some Asian foods at home on occasion, I admit that I am still a little wary that I don’t understand how to cook it well enough. That said, I am really fortunate to live so close to multiple Asian markets, and I feel that I am slowly stretching my culinary wings. It’s easy to go into one of these stores, discover an ingredient remembered from a restaurant and have the impulse to buy it and try replicating the dish at home. This is what happened last week as I was wandering down the pasta aisle and came upon some Japanese style udon noodles. As soon as I saw them, I realized that I needed to learn how to make udon noodle soup.

After researching various recipes I have come to realize that udon noodle soup is less about recipe and more about what you have on hand. In many ways, it is very similar to how I am used to throwing together a hearty vegetable soup without wondering if I have added too many or not enough potatoes or carrots, or worrying if I have a specific ingredient on hand or not. It doesn’t really matter, because the end result will still be delicious. What I found is that most udon noodle recipes call for a broth, noodles, some vegetables and mushrooms, and a protein. It’s my opinion that the key is to get the broth down, and then experiment, experiment and experiment. Luckily my first try had me wanting to recreate it the next day, so this recipe I’m sharing with you is a winner in my book.

Vegetarian Udon Noodle Soup
Roughly based upon the Easy Udon Noodle Snack Recipe found on The Messy Vegetarian Cook
Makes 2 servings

• 3 cups water
• 1/2 to 1 cup mushrooms (you can use most any mushroom you like, but I used king oyster and the original recipe calls for shiitake)
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 2 teaspoons mirin or rice vinegar
• 4 teaspoons tamari, soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos (if you do not have any of these on hand, you may also substitute 2 heaping teaspoons miso)
• 1/2 teaspoon vegan sugar
• 1 sheet nori, cut into small pieces or strips
• 2 dry red chili peppers, optional
• 1/4 cup tofu or another vegetable or wheat protein, optional
• 1/4 cup carrots, julienned
• Dry udon noodles (enough for two servings – this is usually one or two individually separated bunches of noodles)
• Salt
• Sesame oil (optional, but so divine – I highly recommend not skipping this ingredient)
• Green onions or chives (optional)

First prepare your broth. I used about half of a king oyster mushroom, and diced it into bite-sized pieces.

King oyster mushrooms are said to taste similar to abalone

Mince your ginger by first cutting off a small amount from the main part of the root, then peeling away the outer skin. You can also crush it like garlic.

Dicing fresh ginger

Julienne your carrots. “Julienne” just means that you’re cutting your veggie into little strips.

Julienned carrots

Place the water, mushrooms, ginger, carrots, mirin, tamari (or soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos), sugar and nori into the broth. If you are using chili peppers, you can add those in now, too.

Tip: If you are going to use miso as a substitute for the tamari, you will need to add that at the end after the broth has finished cooking.

Dried red chili peppers

If you don’t want your carrots to overcook, add them after the broth has boiled.

Bring your pan of ingredients to boil, stirring occasionally, then turn the heat down to medium low or low.

Udon noodle soup broth

Add in your protein now so it will warm up.

Vegetarian Mock Abalone a.k.a. wheat gluten (and oops - this had MSG in it!)

Allow the broth to steep for about twenty minutes.

If you are using miso, you may add it after the broth has finished cooking and has been removed from the heat. Miso takes a few moments to dissolve, so be sure to stir the broth a few times.

Adding the miso to the broth

Cook the noodles as instructed with a little salt. These cook fast, so be sure you are giving these guys your full attention. Once they are done cooking, drain and rinse under cold water.

Japanese style udon noodles

Once the broth is done, add some noodles to a bowl, then ladle the broth over the noodles.

Almost ready!

Drizzle a small amount of sesame oil over the soup, add some sliced green onions as a garnish.

Tip: Be sure to rinse the green onions really well to get rid of any specks of dirt that may have gotten stuck inside the onion as it was growing.

Sliced green onion

Serve.

So so good!

I loved this soup. It was full of flavor, had tons of texture and really hit the spot. Plus it makes me want to come up more variations. Remember, if you don’t have a particular ingredient on hand, don’t fret – you can experiment and discover your own unique soup, too!

What is your favorite Asian cuisine or dish – or can you even decide?

That night, Alex cooked me my Last Supper. My last healthy meal for a month. I looked at that fresh tossed salad, the vegetable tart, the quinoa and red pepper salad, and bid fresh greens and veggies a fond adieu.

-Don’t Eat This Book by Morgan Spurlock

I first saw Supersize Me, a documentary film by Morgan Spurlock, a couple of years ago or so. It was both comedic and disturbing at the same time. On the one hand you had a guy making fun of McDonald’s and himself, but on the other his health was quickly going downhill – all because he was eating a very poor diet which consisted of 100% McDonald’s.

This book picks up where the film left off. It filled in a lot of the blanks, and continued to make the case for not eating a diet of mostly or only (or really any) fast food. His humor still shines through, and I enjoyed his sarcasm. I don’t feel like I truly learned anything new about the food industry, but I was reminded of the reasons why I very infrequently consume fast food.

I had every intention of making a vegetable tart based upon Morgan’s Last Supper (the supper before the self-imposed month-long McDonald’s binge), but as I was rummaging through our cupboards and refrigerator last night I decided to shift gears and make a stir fry. As I was making it I thought – this could do justice as a last meal. I’ve got veggies, tofu, and brown rice – all common staples of a vegan diet. Alex would possibly approve.

Veggie & Tofu Stir Fry

• 2 cups brown rice
• 1 Tbsp. white sugar
• 2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 package firm or extra firm tofu, drained
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup edamame, shelled
• 1 small can water chestnuts, sliced
• 1/2 cup cashews, rinsed
• 1-2 sheets nori, cut into narrow strips
• oil for frying
• Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or soy sauce

Cook the brown rice according to package directions. I use a rice cooker, which makes the process easier in my opinion.

While the rice is cooking, heat a few tablespoons of oil in a large skillet. Slice the tofu into cubes, and put into the skillet. If the tofu is still moist/wet you will need to be careful to not burn yourself. Cook the tofu on medium to high heat. You will want to make sure that the tofu gets a little brown on most sides, which may take up to 10 or 15 minutes.

Once the tofu is at a good stage, lower the heat to medium and add the chopped onion, sliced water chestnuts, and edamame (if it is frozen edamame you may want to boil it first, drain, and then add it to the skillet). You can also add in the cashews now, or you can toast them first (either by toasting them carefully in a skillet or for a few minutes in a toaster oven). Stir every few minutes to make sure that nothing is sticking or burning. Stir in the nori strips at the very end of the cooking process, when you feel that everything is cooked to the amount you like (I like my onions to still be a little firm so I tend to stop cooking sooner rather than later).

When the rice is done, you can either choose to eat your stir fry with rice now, or you can make your rice a little sticky. To make your rice sticky you can sprinkle the sugar and vinegar on top and then using a regular or rice spatula work the rice around for a couple of minutes until it gets to the sticky-stage you like best. There are better ways to make sticky rice, and many people will tell you that brown rice is not the best to use for true sticky rice – but we like our lazy and easy method pretty well.

Serve the stir fry on the brown rice. You can add your Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or soy sauce either during cooking or later while you are eating it. To reduce the sodium intake it is probably best to add it to your food at the table. We also like to put a bit of asian red pepper paste on it as well for a little bit of a kick.

We make stir fry probably once every few weeks. We used to make it a lot more often, but lately we’ve been getting into the habit of eating other things instead. Last night’s stir fry was inspired by other blogs as well as meals I’ve had at restaurants. It really depends on what we have on hand, and what we like. My enjoyment of this meal was no different than other stir fry meals, and I can’t imagine having to give up good homemade food like this for a month.