3, 2, 1 Vegetarian Noodles!

So, after my Cupcake Smorgashborg and after my trip to AZ , I was ready for something on the lighter side. I basically had a bit of a Tofu Smorgashborg, starting with Friday’s dinner. I was so inspired by my dinner at True Food in AZ that I decided to try to re-create one of the dishes I had there: Green Tea Soba Noodles with Bok Choy and Peas (sans the Green Tea).

I decided to mix up my main ingredients but keep the general concept the same – lotsa noodles and lotsa veggies. I’d been enjoying adding vegetarian meals to my eating habits that I decided to keep this dish vegetarian.

I started with some Nasoya Firm Tofu.

I picked up some Farmer’s Market Green Snap Peas and Broccoli.

I also picked out some lovely kale.

First things first,  got some water boiling.

Next, I started pulling the moisture from my tofu. I cut the tofu into a couple 1/2 inch slices, placed it over a paper-towel-lined plate, covered with paper towel, topped with a flat-bottomed-pot, and added a can of veggies to help add some weight.

Then, I prepped my veggies and triple-washed my kale.

I decided to crack open my first of 2 bottles of wine I picked up during my trip to Sonoma Wine Country in Cali earlier this year. This bottle is Old Patch Red from the Trentadue Winery. Ahh…I wish I could go back!

Anywho, I tend to hoard things that are expensive, or nice, or hard to replace, but I’m working on trying to enjoy things more in the present. Afterall…it’s just a bottle of wine! Nothing better than sipping on a lil wine while cooking some yummy food!

So, now you must be wondering why I call this “3, 2, 1”. It’s because, when I researched the cooking times, I found that the noodles and beans cooked in 3 minutes, the broccoli in 2, and the kale in 1. Neat, huh?

I set the timer for 3 minutes and dropped in the soba noodles and cut peas.

Meanwhile, I sauteed some chopped onion.

At 2 minutes, I added the broccoli.

At 1 minute, I added the kale.

While the veggies and noodles cooked…

…I added the tofu to the onions and continued sauteing.

Once the timer went off, I drained the noodles and veggies and added them to the pan with the tofu and onion. I seasoned lightly with some soy sauce and a drop of sesame oil, cooked the flavors together for a minute or so and dinner was ready!

I was really pleased with the final result. It tasted great and was super nutritious! The bowl was so stuffed, I didn’t quite finish it, but it made for awesome leftovers for lunch the next day!

3, 2, 1 Vegetarian Noodles!
by me
Serves 1-2

Ingredients:

• Firm tofu – 2-3 1/2 slices
• 3 ounces soba noodles, dry (cook time for noodles should be 3-4 minutes)
• 1 small crown broccoli, rinsed, chopped
• 1 small handful green beas or green snap peas, rinsed, chopped
• 5-6 leaves of kale, triple washed
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/8-1/4 cup soy sauce
• drop of sesame oil
• sesame seeds, for garnish

Directions:

• Start a medium to large pot of water boiling (large enough to cook green veggies and noodles)
• Meanwhile, place tofu on a paper-towel-lined plate, top with another paper towel, place flat-bottomed pot or pan on top of tofu and weigh with a canned good, if necessary.
• When water is nearly boiling, heat a pan over medium heat with the olive oil. Once ready, saute onions in the pan (pan should be large enough to fit all veggies and noodles)
• Meanwhile, set timer for 3 minutes and drop noodles and beans into water and stir. Also chop tofu into cubes and add to the pan of sauteing onions.
• At 2 minutes drop broccoli into water and stir.
• At 1 minute drop kale into water and stir.
• Once veggies and noodles done cooking, drain and add to the pan with tofu and onion. Add soy sauce to taste and sesame oil. Toss to coat for about 1 minute and serve.
• Top with sesame seeds. Enjoy! Makes great leftovers!