Noodles

Asian Food, Beans, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, Plant Based, Sides, Vegan

Vegan Asian Fusion Takeout At Home!

Posted on March. 2024March. 2024 by writinstuff

Have I ever told y’all just how much I love food from the Asian continent? Because I really, really do. Whether we’re talking Indian or Thai curry dishes, Mujaddara from Iran, vegan sushi, vegan char siu, fried rice and noodles galore. I love all that I know (minus the animal products) and I can’t wait to learn more.

So last week I did the thing that I’ve been working on for months now…I finished Emerald Creek book 2! I’m still not sold on the title so maybe a better one will come to me while I dive into editing this, the roughest of drafts! If you’re interested in my non-food writing, check out Emerald Creek book 1, Best Of My Love!

Okay so, I finished this wonderful romance, which was a huge milestone because writing for other people all day and then myself after that means I have get my words in when I can and when I can…yay! I decided to reward myself with a bit of vegan takeout, Asian fusion edition.

I’ve said before that there aren’t a lot of vegan options here in Ploiești and the last thing I wanted to do to reward myself was drive to Bucharest even though there are plenty of delicious vegan options there. So, I popped on a an episode of That Chapter (true crime podcast) and I whipped up a vegan takeout meal that I could eat at home, in my pajamas while watching television.

I know, I know…time to change the tablecloth!

It was pretty easy in terms of vegan dinners even though there were multiple components, and there aren’t a ton of ingredients so you can do this at home for a weeknight or to impress a crowd.

What’s your go to takeout? What’s your favorite Asian cuisine?

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Asian Food, Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Vegan

Vegan Noodle Recipes ~ Eggplant & Chickpea Udon Recipe

Posted on December. 2023December. 2023 by writinstuff

Hey Peeps!

I hope you’re doing well and this Monday finds you better than it finds me. Okay, there’s nothing wrong…not really. Mondays are my day to hit the grocery store and run other errands which means I’m always a little bit cranky because people tend to exhaust me. Anyway, I’m good and busy. How are you?

Today’s vegan noodle recipe is a simple vegan recipe that anyone can make. The ingredient list is minimal and it takes about 30 minutes–give or take–from start to finish.

I can’t even say what made me think to combine eggplant and chickpeas other than the fact that I bought an eggplant (on purpose) and I didn’t really have a plan for it. That combined with the fact that I saw a bunch of eggplant and noodle recipes on Pinterest and figured eggplant would go with it. Now, whether or not it was going taste good was a matter of opinion but, let’s see what happens.

The combination of these two foods isn’t new, I’m sure, but it’s not one that I’ve tasted or experienced because eggplant is a tricky food. It can go from tough and raw-ish to soggy and overcooked in a flash, which is why I’m determined not to let it defeat me.

Let’s see if it did.

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Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Vegan

Easy Vegan Dinner Recipe – Mushroom Lo Mein Recipe

Posted on September. 2023September. 2023 by writinstuff

One of my favorite things to eat is noodles, which is not to be confused with pasta which I do like a lot but not more than I love noodles, specifically Asian style noodles. I’ve made plenty of vegan noodle dishes whether you want some type of Ramen Noodle Salad, Hong Kong style noodles or a noodle fusion dish like Bulgogi Ramen Bolognese, so this should come as no secret to you.

But often I find it difficult to find Lo Mein noodles that don’t have egg in them or the one ingredient that often thwarts many vegan recipes: milk powder. But the Vitasia brand isn’t marketed as vegan but according to the ingredients list it is accidentally vegan, which I’m totally on board with.

Anyway I was so excited to find them that I grabbed two packages (Thank you, Lidl) and didn’t really come up with a plan for them. Enter one of my favorite foods, mushrooms. One thing you will almost always find in my fridge is a package of mushrooms. It could be white button but most often it’s crimini or pleurotus (what a cool name, right?) also known as oyster mushrooms. When the season hits I’ll go a little overboard with chanterelle mushrooms and if the price is right, King Oyster mushrooms.

But for today I wanted a simple vegan recipe for my lo mein noodles so I skipped vegan meat alternatives and let my veggie crisper provide this meal. If you’re looking for ways to make your vegan dinners without meat alternatives, take this one and shuffle around using different vegetables and spices.

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Asian Food, Bowls, Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

Simple Vegan Salads ~ Spicy Noodle Salad

Posted on July. 2023July. 2023 by writinstuff

Hello, fellow vegans!

Do you eat breakfast? I rarely eat breakfast because I’m just not hungry in the morning but if I am, then I will but it’s not a hard and fast rule for me.

But I try to have a salad for lunch more days of the week than I don’t because fresh, raw, high fiber veggies are always a good choice for a meal. Lots of nutrients but not a lot of calories. Sounds perfect, right?

This isn’t the first vegan noodle salad I’ve posted as I’m sure you know, and this one is just as delicious but twice as spicy, but only if that’s how you like your vegan noodle salads.

Grab your favorite salad ingredients, your preferred type of noodles and get to chopping. For vegan protein you can add beans, meat alternative, tofu or tempeh or…nothing at all. The choice is yours.

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Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, Italian, Noodles, Pizza, Plant Based, Travel, Vegan

Vegan in Roma: Day FOUR

Posted on June. 2023June. 2023 by writinstuff

These feel a bit never ending, don’t they? I don’t know so you tell me, should I consolidate the last two days or are you here for my eating vegan all around Rome? Tell me in the comments below!

One of the things I love most about traveling is spending all day outside, or inside of a museum, sightseeing and just soaking up simply being in a new place, surrounded by new people. It’s strange because when I’m at home, wherever home is, I’m more of a homebody. I mean I’ll go out hiking or skiing or something, but more often than not I am at home, usually behind my laptop and listening to true crime.

Not in Italy though!

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Asian Food, Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, Vegan

Ginger Broccoli & Vegan Beef Noodle Recipe

Posted on April. 2023April. 2023 by writinstuff

Just in case you guys thought I was joking about my noodle addiction, here is another example of one of my favorite go-to vegan lunch recipes.

I don’t post them often because they don’t photograph well, or maybe I’m still just a very average photographer, either way that’s why you hear about them more than you see them.

I use TVP, rehydrated, seasoned and cooked to mimic traditional beef and broccoli. To accomplish that I used regular soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Chinese black vinegar, wok sauce and sesame oil. The sauce is the key here, but it’s worth the time and the effort.

At least my belly thinks so!

What is your go-to lazy vegan meal? One that you make often instead of eating out or ordering in?

Make Every Bite Count & Count Every Bite

Asian Food, Bowls, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, Plant Based, Vegan

Loaded Vegan Ramen Salad Recipe

Posted on April. 2023April. 2023 by writinstuff

Is there anything better than a noodle salad? I mean, it feeds my body’s need to have lots of fresh, raw veggies in a variety of colors while also feeding my belly’s desire for Asian noodles. To me, it is the perfect healthy splurge salad.

Healthy splurge. It’s kind of an oxymoron isn’t it? Yes and no.

A healthy splurge meal is when you’re doing your best to eat healthy and feed your body the fuel it needs to get through each day without malfunctioning or succumbing to exhaustion or other crap diet related feelings. But you get to have a bit of a splurge in something you love, like Ramen noodles. And to be fair, ramen are fairly calorie friendly depending on which ones you use. For example, the ones I have are 60 calories per 100 grams of cooked noodles. And since I toss the seasoning packets I don’t have to worry about what’s in there.

But I’m not deluding myself that these noodles are actually ‘healthy’ but you could do a lot worse.

Still this is one of my favorite ways to have a salad and I have salads a lot. So let’s get into what ‘s in this baby and how to assemble it.

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Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Soup, Vegan

Cauliflower & Hokkaido Squash Ramen Stew

Posted on March. 2023March. 2023 by writinstuff

Happy Friday & DOUBLE Happy St. Patrick’s Day, folks!

Today’s post isn’t so much a recipe just me sharing a delicious recipe I made recently and I wanted to share. This was one of those off the cuff recipes that could have gone either way and though it might not look great, it was hearty and delicious and oh so satisfying.

I love to experiment with soups and this one turned out better than I expected which means we can ALL expect a repeat recipe sometime soon.

If you’re curious about how to make this soup, think of it like this: hokkaido squash soup with Ramen noodles and oven roasted curry cauliflower.

This week has been crazy hectic for me and I hope my weekend includes writing and relaxing, and of course a delicious celebratory St. Patrick’s day vegan feast!

Asian Food, International vegan cuisine, Noodles, Plant Based, Salads, Vegan

New Vegan Product + Vegan Fish Filets & Noodle Salad Recipe

Posted on November. 2022November. 2022 by writinstuff

Hello folks out there in vegan recipe land! How are you?

Today I’m doing a combo post featuring a new vegan food product find and a recipe with said food. Usually my new products are vegan snacks or random vegan ingredients, but today we’ve got the best of both worlds.

As you might recall, I’ve used the vegan brand Unfished a few times here and there, in my Vegan Tuna Orecchiette with Lemon & Capers recipe or my Mediterranean Vegan Tuna & Potato Cakes w/ Oven Roasted Asparagus. You can find more tuna recipes here on the blog. So, imagine my surprise when I’m pushing my cart through my local Kaufland and I spot a refrigerated shelf featuring non-canned Unfished vegan products. If ever given the choice between vegan fish filets and vegan fish fingers/sticks, I will never choose vegan fish sticks.

Not ever.

Never!

So what’s a vegan girl to do when she’s got a package of vegan fish steaks and no idea what to do with them?

Something? Anything?

I decided to do something off the beaten path but it turned out super delicious and healthy-ish, so let’s see what we can do with vegan fish filets!

What is your favorite vegan fish alternative?

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Noodles, oil free vegan recipes, Plant Based, Soup, Vegan

Easy Vegan Soups ~ Turnip Greens & Veggie Noodle Soup

Posted on October. 2022October. 2022 by writinstuff

It’s that time of year again when every home cook, recipe blogger and pretty much everyone else you know is touting their favorite soup recipe. Right?

If you’re sick of it, I’m sorry, because I am now that cook, that blogger and even that friend. It’s soup season y’all and you know that means I have another vegan soup recipe for you today.

Why?

Because soup is good for your body and your mind. The right soup (ahem, a vegan soup) is packed with colorful vegetables that are rich in necessary vitamins and minerals. Deficient on a particular nutrients? Add a handful of a particular vegetable to the pot. And you don’t have to get fancy about it, start with your basics: onion, garlic and celery. Build from there.

This recipe came about because I had a couple handfuls of turnip greens, three small turnips and I really wanted a hot bowl of soup. So instead of making regular turnip greens, (check out my other greens recipes here, here and here), I decided to drop them into a soup. With noodles, because of course with noodles.