Do you ever just crave greasy takeout noodles, but with rainbow veggies? That’s basically what we’ve got here, with a mild, Southeast Asian inspired coconut curry punched up with a bit of lime and sriracha. I’ve suggested some veggies here, but this is an easy adaptable, clean out your produce drawer sort of meal that can be made with whatever you have on hand. Just be sure to keep in mind the different cooking times of your veggies and put the longer cooking ones in first. Some substitutions I like here are fresh spinach (fold in at the end after the noodles), broccoli, and edamame beans (great for protein if you don’t want to bother with fried tofu)
As with any quick cooking, high heat stir fry you’re going to want to mis en place, which is a fancy way of saying, “chop up everything up and measure it out before you start cooking”. Trust me on this, I pride myself on my multitasking and speed cooking but you aren’t going to get perfectly cooked vegetables here if you’re trying to stir and mince garlic and look for the curry powder at the same time.
A note on scaling: I usually plan 1 block of udon per person, which leaves a serving or two leftover.
PrintCurry Noodles
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
Ingredients
1 block fresh tofu, drained, or equivalent amount of fried or baked tofu
3 blocks fresh or frozen, defrosted udon noodles
4 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 medium or half large onion, sliced
2 cups red cabbage, slivered
1 bell pepper (not green)
2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp grated ginger
Sauce:
1 Tbs curry powder
1/2 can coconut milk (not light, use less if you want it to be lower fat)
2 Tbs mushroom or regular soy sauce
3 Tbs Sriracha
Juice of one lime
Optional Garnish:
Chopped cilantro and / or green onion
Instructions
1. Slice tofu into half inch thick planks and press between a double layer of paper towels. Cut tofu into batons, cubes, or triangles.
2. Heat wok or large saute pan over high heat, then add a generous splash of neutral cooking oil. Add tofu cubes, stir often until they are golden brown on all sides. Remove tofu cubes and drain on paper towels.
3. Add another splash of oil followed by mushrooms and onions. Cook over high heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes or until mushrooms are starting to brown.
4. Add cabbage and peppers, salt to taste, and cook for another 2 minutes.
5. Add garlic, ginger, and curry powder, and cook for 30 seconds, then add coconut milk and soy sauce
6. Add noodles, tomatoes and tofu and toss to coat, add sriracha and lime juice and adjust sauce to taste if necessary. Garnish with green onions and cilantro, if desired.
Notes
I use a separate deep fryer for the tofu, which makes it extra crispy. You can shallow fry in an inch or so of oil to achieve the same result, but the wok approach will produce good results without dirtying an extra pan. You can also use pre-fried or baked tofu, commonly found at Asian grocers.