Yakisoba Noodles

I love a good noodle recipe. If I had to guess how many noodle recipes I'd shared, without cheating, I'd say at least 30. A friend of mine always seems to call and chat around dinnertime, particularly on nights where I'm having pasta. He swears it's all I eat. It's coincidence! Noods, man. 

Though cabbage was called for, I decided to use brussel sprouts instead. I'm a big fan on the reg, but also think that brussels are a veggie-packed delight.

The veggies were the starting point here, with the brussels, sweet pepper (I just chopped up a yellow one, hence the brightness of the sun in the photo below), and a medium onion. I used a grater to shred some carrots. Veg city.

After about 5 minutes, I scooped the veggies out of the pan and into a medium bowl, then added a small amount of cooking oil and some sliced chicken breast. I cooked it for about 10 minutes, until cooked throughout.

For the pasta, I used some dried ramen noodles. There are a lot of options when it comes to ramen noodles, any I think any would do. I went with a block, but not the kind in a pack of Maruchen ramen; these were a dried square that were almost clear. White rice ramen noodles courtesy of Aldi. I also have some straight ramen noodles as well (the same kind used in my ramen post), but I love the lightness of rice noodles, so went this route.

I boiled them for about 6 minutes in a separate pan, then worked on the sauce in the meantime. It's a very basic sauce; a combination of soy sauce, Worcestershire, brown sugar, tomato paste, and oyster sauce.

I skipped out on ketchup in the sauce to avoid this being too sweet. Ketchup is a corn syrup-filled condiment, and that's why I went with tomato paste (an item I keep a tube of around for curries and the like). But, if you don't have tomato paste, ketchup will do just fine.

It checked some important boxes. It was quick, it was simple, and it was filling. 

Okay, I'm going to come clean. I ate all of it. By myself. Not in one sitting! No, no. This was dinner. and then lunch. And then dinner. And then lunch. You get the drift. A light but filling dish, it hit the spot. Those noodles are lighter than flour noodles, so they don't make me feel like I've eaten an entire bag of flour.

The simple sauce was a breeze to throw together, and had a solid flavor. I'd personally add some extra spice next time; probably some crushed red pepper or sriracha. This was a lightly sweet dish but not overpoweringly so. It was a filling, savory meal; one that can be adjusted and adapted to find a regular meal planning occurrence.

Yakisoba Noodles Recipe

Ingredients:

1-2 tablespoons cooking oil

1 sweet pepper

1 carrot

1 pound chicken breast or thighs, sliced

1/2 small cabbage head (or 1 cup brussels sprouts)

1 medium yellow onion

2-3 green onions (optional)

2 teaspoons brown sugar

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons tomato paste (or ketchup)

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

4 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

16 ounces yakisoba noodles

Instructions:

Dice sweet peppers, carrots, cabbage or brussels, and onion, then add to a large wok or skillet with cooking oil. Cook for 5-7 minutes over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until vegetables are slightly tender. Remove from pan and add to a large bowl. Add additional cooking oil to the pan, then add chicken. Cook for 7-10 minutes, until cooked throughout. Separately, prepare pasta according to package directions. Add sauce ingredients, mixing well, then stir in vegetables and drained pasta. Chop green onions, then stir in.

adapted from simple yakisoba noodles recipe