Quick Stir-Fry Noodles Recipe

We make a stir-fry every week without fail. Mainly because this vegan dinner recipe so quick and easy. Plus, it can be thrown together with whatever ingredients you have in the refrigerator, making it ideal if you need to use some vegetables, or haven’t been shopping recently.

It can be as simple as you like, and adapted in so many ways to match what you have to hand, or what you’re craving that day. I’ve added some lazy and time-friendly hacks to make this recipe even simpler.

Serves: 2

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 15–20 mins

Ingredients

400g block of extra-firm tofu
200 g mushrooms (any work, but my favourite are chestnut, shiitake, oyster or Portobello)
300 g kale, broccoli, pak choi (bok choi) or cabbage
1 red chilli
3 garlic cloves
thumb-sized piece (about 5 cm) of fresh ginger root
2 bunches of noodles (my favourite are udon or soba for a gluten-free option)
1 tablespoon olive or coconut oil
1 tablespoon maple syrup or use agave syrup, brown sugar or other sweetener
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce (or tamari for a gluten-free option)
1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or tamari for a gluten-free option)
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon or lime
Optional: sesame seeds, to serve toasted sesame oil, to serve handful of chopped coriander leaves, to serve

Method

Cube the tofu into bite-sized chunks, chop all the veg, finely chop the chilli and mince the garlic and ginger. I use a garlic press to mince garlic straight into the pan to make it extra quick.
Put the noodles in a saucepan of boiling water to cook, bring back to a boil and reduce to a simmer (about 5–8 minutes depending on the noodles). When the noodles are ready, set aside a ladleful of noodle water, then rinse the noodles under cold running water.
Meanwhile, in a large frying pan or wok, add the oil, garlic, ginger and chilli and fry over a high heat for a couple of minutes (adding the oil and garlic at the same time stops it from burning as easily).
Then add the tofu and vegetables and fry for another 5 minutes. Now everything’s cooked, pour in the maple syrup (or sweetener of your choice), soy sauces, lemon or lime zest and juice, and stir together.
Add the noodles to the pan, along with the reserved noodle water and toss everything together. Serve with an optional topping of sesame seeds, a drizzle of sesame oil and a sprinkling of coriander.

Tip: If you have time, I would recommend pressing the tofu in a tofu press (which can be bought online) or between a dish towel and two plates topped with some heavy cookbooks to remove excess moisture, chopping into bite-sized cubes, then frying in a large pan for 10 minutes until browned. I regularly skip this step because I just want to eat everything immediately, but it does make a difference if you like your tofu to be extra golden and have a crisp exterior.

This is an edited extract from Make It Vegan by Madeleine Olivia, published by Hardie Grant, $45. Photography by Ali Green and Clare Winfield.