Spicy Vegan Korean Noodles – a Real Taste Bomb

What’s in a noodle and what is pasta – is there really any difference?

I’ve often pondered on this aspect & finally looked  it up whilst working on this spicy vegan Korean noodles recipe. But everyone knows what’s a noodle & what’s pasta surely? Maybe. On investigation, it seems it’s partly cultural, partly ingredients and partly manufacture or production methods. In brief: pasta is usually a durum wheat semolina paste, extruded into shapes then dried to 12% water content. Whilst oriental noodles contain salt, use various flours (rice, buckwheat or wheat) but are usually rolled out & cut, and with a softer texture. That’s quite enough of that techy stuff (the editor)!

What tasty ingredients should go in this gochujang noodles dish & why?

Red or orange peppers are always good, small pieces of green bean, flavoured tofu, chillies, short batton carrrots, bok choy etc. Of course the sauce is key & the primary ingredients are fermented gochugang paste & gochugaru chilli flakes. Also essential are soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, mirin, maple syrup, not to be forgotten – garlic & ginger!

Vegans always get asked “but where’s the protein” – duh!

Wheat and veggies all contain protein & when mixed & aggregated or assessed over 48 hours amino acids mostly balance out. Still it’s nice to include at least one complete protein or a protein pair that when combined balances it out. So in this dish I’m going to use crumbled or squidged firm tofu. I’ve made it into a ” fried eggy” style with nutritional yeast, turmeric  & veg stock powder. It’s very similar to the tofu used in my spicy savoury tofu fried rice.

One of the most popular products in the oriental shop is “instant noodles”!

I’m going to have loadsa fun making this real life much more wholesome competitor to those chemical laden, white, refined, nutrition free, products! There’s Wholegrain noodles, real veggies, proper gochugang paste and gochugaru chilli flakes, plus the already mentioned mirin, soy sauce, fresh ginger & garlic. This spicy vegan Korean noodle dish should really hit the target. I’m hoping my boys will agree & won’t complain too much if I ban them buying those awful industrial noodle packs!

Spicy Vegan Korean Noodles

a wholesome protein dish made with a "fried egg" style tofu lookalike, combined with wholewheat noodles, Korean chilli paste & chilli flakes and a variety of sympathetic veggies and sauce elements, including vegan oyster sauce, mirin and soya sauce. Part of the flavour dynamic is from the sesame oil which is a pretty essential ingredient.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Servings: 6 people

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Chinese, Asian, oriental, korean

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

For the tofu egg substitute

• 400 g firm tofu -½ of a large tofu box 1 ½ of the tofu blocks don't use medium firm it's too soft
• 3 ½ heap tbsp nutritional yeast available in Sainsbury's or Waitrose
• 1¼ teasps turmeric helps with the eggy colour.....
• 1¼ teasps kala namak it's a kind of sulphurous volcanic salt - helps with that eggy taste.....
• 1¼ tbsp any cold pressed vegetable oil - rapeseed is my favourite. just for this - sesame for the rest
• 2½ teasps white miso adds umami

The noodles and veggies part

• 250 g wholewheat or brown rice noodles - dry weigh brown rice can be slightly trickier to cook and handle in the wok, but is gluten free.
• 2 tbsps toasted sesame oil gives it an extra wedge of taste - use more if necessary
• 8 whole spring onions - can use red onion but not as good. just use a whole standard bunch to avoid waste - it's generally 7 or 8 in total
• 15 g garlic - crushed or blitzed roughly 4 to 5 cloves
• 12 g ginger chopped or minced no paste
• 1 teasp gochugaru chilli flakes Korean chilli flakes - add now near the beginning - can add more but be careful!
• 100 g carrot 1 medium carrot (80-100g)
• 130 g bell peppers - finely sliced med red pepper (120-150g)
• 150 g green beans or courgette finely sliced into 1cm lengths small (or half med) courgette
• 80 g sweet corn optional but nice - quantity is variable.
• 50 g snow peas or petit pois optional instead of the sweet-corn

The sauces to add for the final effect

• 2 teasps vegan oyster sauce - add more if you like strong flavours. yes it exists - many chinese or wholefood stores sell it and it's available online too or Waitrose have a version online - I got mine at Harvest.
• 1½ tbsps gochugang fermented chilli paste made by fermenting ground chilli flakes
• ½ teasp gochugaru chilli flakes
• 1 tbsp mirin helps balance the tanginess
• 1 tbsp soy sauce add more if you like strong flavours.
• 1 tbsp white miso optional but adds extra oomph!
• 1 teasp maple syrup
• 2 - 3 tbsps water

Equipment

• 1 large wok Well seasoned carbon steel is best as opposed to teflon (toxic) or stainless steel (sticks badly). I guess a cast iron one would be best but they heat up too slowly and are very heavy - if you can even buy them!
• 1 large pan or a stainless steel pasta pot for the noodles. See picture. depending on the cooking style recommended, a covered pyrex bowl could work.

Method

 

Getting the protein component - tofu - ready so you can add later.

1. Divide into half blocks - then squeeze the tofu through your fingers - chopping just doesn't give the same rough & ragged look. It doesn't work so well, because you need the rough edges to absorb all the flavours. Put it in the microwave for 10 minutes on half power to remove some of the water. Don't over do it though.
   
2. Next up, add the turmeric, kala namak, nutritional yeast & and stir well. You can do this the night before. It's best if you do it that way but not essential.
3. Put the wok on a low gas and and add the cold-pressed oil - as soon as it's hot add the tofu mixture and cook until hot for 5 minute or so and set aside.
   

Cooking the noodles so they are ready to add later.

1. Put a largeish pan on to boil - I like to use my pasta pot as it makes getting the noodles out very easy, and then you can quickly re-heat them in the water later. However it's not at all essential - just easier. Lightly salt the water and bring to the boil. I prefer to use a low sodium salt mix.
2. when the water is boiling add the noodles but make sure to separate them as soon as they soften or they can become a sticky mess. Twiddling them with a chop stick is the easiest way. Depending on the cooking instructions give them 5 minutes on a low simmer or cover and turn the gas off.
3. Once the time is up remove from the water and dunk in room-temp water OR rest over the pan. Room-temp water is best.

I would advise combining the various sauces in a small dish to add in one go

1. so that's the soy sauce, mirin, white miso, gochugarung paste, & oyster sauce. Do that now so you don't have to faff about later. Add more of any if you like. You can always taste the mix and add a bit extra if you feel it needs it.

Veggie prep and cooking them ready for the final assembly

1. Add some more sesame oil on a very low gas - meanwhile start slicing the green part of the spring onions in half lengthways, but leave attached to the white part, so you can wash any dirt out. Chop into shortish lengths. As you near the end of this part, turn the gas up to a low medium.
   
2. Then begin sauteeing the spring onions (called scallions or green onions) in the US. Also add the blitzed or crushed garlic and then the ginger. Stir often so they don't burn or stick and adjust the gas if necessary.
   
3. Meanwhile, you can chop the carrots if using and add to the mix as soon as they're done - you want short baton style lengths (2cm) are best.
4. Next finely chop the peppers into thinnish slivers (2cm) and add to the mix
5. Finally cut the courgette into thin strips and roughly 2cm lengths as you prefer. add to the mix as soon as you've put the peppers in. If you're going for the green beans instead, cut them into short 1cm lengths and add.
6. When the spring onions, peppers & courgettes, carrots, green beans or whatever you've decided, are beginning to soften - quickly re-heat the noodles in the hot water - then add them and carefully fold in - with heat still on low medium. Around this point add extra toasted sesame oil and a touch of water to keep it moist and stop it from sticking and turn the heat up a little to thoroughly
7. Finally add the pre-fried tofu (and the peas if using) & mix to re-heat. Alternatively, you could give the tofu a quick 1 minute in the microwave to bring it up to temperature. You don't want to over mix the tofu as you want it to retain it's colour and it's separate flavour.
8. serve piping hot with some bok choy, wilted spinach and kimchi

Notes

• All the measurements are approximate - if you've got a bit extra or something or not enough - just compensate with a bit more or less of something else.
• If you don't like an ingredient - swap it out for something else.
• The rough overall proportions are what suits me - I think the tofu noodle ratio is propably a good thing to keep to - and the rough overall veggies to noodle/tofu ratio ditto - but don't be afraid to adjust to your liking.
• When scaling from dry weight to cooked with both noodles, pasta & rice the factor is 2.2 times approximately.
• split the sauce into 2 stages 70% with noodles 30% just before the tofu.
• Same with chilli flakes (gochugaru) 2/3rds with garlic & chilli then 1/3 with the sauce so it gets added at the same time.

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was!