Vegan Lo Mein
These vegan noodles are inspired by classic vegetable lo mein. Try this quick and easy veggie-packed dish for a tasty, satisfying meal any night of the week.
Features
- Quick and Easy! This recipe is perfect for a tasty weeknight meal that’s ready in 30 minutes.
- Enjoy stir fried noodles and veggies in a delicious sauce.
- Dietary Features: Vegan, can be made gluten-free (use tamari instead of soy sauce).
- Versatile. Use a variety of different noodles, mix-and-match veggies like broccoli, bok choy, carrot, bell peppers, snap peas and mushrooms or add your choice of protein like crispy tofu.
What is lo mein?
Lo mein is a classic Chinese egg noodle dish. It’s similar to chow mein but instead of “stir-fried noodles”, lo mein translates as “tossed noodles” and the preparation method is different.
For lo mein, cooked noodles are tossed with already stir fried veggies and sauce whereas with chow mein the noodles are fried for a drier, crispier texture.
Lo mein is usually with egg-based noodles. You can purchase yellow egg noodles or cooked lo mein noodles in the fridge section of well-stocked or Asian grocery stores. However, this recipe is vegan, so it uses rice noodles.
Ingredient Notes
This list is not complete. Please see the recipe card at the end of the post for the complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed instructions.
- Soy Sauce: Suggested to use a low-sodium soy sauce. For a gluten-free recipe, make sure you use gluten-free tamari or coconut aminos.
- Sugar: You can use brown rice, coconut sugar or cane sugar.
- Sesame Oil: Sesame oil provides the best flavour for Asian-inspired dishes like this.
- Sambal Oelek: You can use sambal oelek fresh chili paste or chili garlic sauce. Adds heat and sweetness to the recipe. This is a common ingredient in Asian grocery stores or well-stocked grocery stores in the Asian food section. It’s also readily available online. Sometimes store-bought sambal contains shrimp paste so be sure read the ingredients if you’re vegan or have a shellfish allergy.
- Rice Noodles: May be labelled stir fry noodles. Look for a medium thickness like you might find in Pad Thai.
- Veggies: I used red bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, carrot and snap peas. These are easy to customize. You can use an colour of bell pepper, snow or snap peas and feel free to omit the mushrooms if you don’t like them.
Step-by-Step with Photos
Before You Start: Put a pot of water on to boil for the noodles and wash and chop all the veggies so you’re ready to go.
Step 1: Whisk the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and set aside for later.
Step 2: Cook the noodles according to the package instructions. After cooking, rinse under cold water and set aside.
Step 3: Heat the sesame oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. Add the onions and cook for about 3 minutes.
Step 4: Add the bell peppers, mushrooms and carrots and cook for another 4-5 minutes.
Step 5: Add the snap peas and the sauce you prepared and bring to a boil.
Step 6: Add the noodles and toss to heat through.
Serve right away with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.
FAQs
No problem! You can use spaghetti noodles or angle hair pasta in this recipe. Just cook the pasta al dente according to the pacakage instructions and then add to the recipe as you would the rice noodles.
Well, it depends. I think the only downside of this recipe is it can be high in sodium. I would recommend using a low-sodium soy sauce for sure!
As for nutrition, rice noodles are don’t contain much in the way of nutrients but they do make a good option for anyone with gluten sensitives or celiac disease. The veggies add fibre and nutrients and the dish is moderate in calories at under 300 calories per serving with 8 g of protein and 4 g of fat. Feel free to add more veggies like broccoli or bok choy for extra nutrition and volume.
Classic lo mein is made with egg noodles so no, it would not be vegan. This recipe uses rice noodles or you can use any wheat noodles
Storing
- Let cool somewhat before storing.
- Fridge: Store in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Store in an airtight container or in individual freezer-safe bags for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Reheating: Can be enjoyed cold or reheated as needed in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop until heated through. Note that it will be a bit drier after storing as the noodles absorb more of the sauce.
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to the comment section to leave a star rating and review.
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Vegan Lo Mein
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6
- Category: Main Dish
- Cuisine: Asian
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Saucy and delicious veggie lo mein that’s perfect for a quick and easy 30-minute dinner any night of the week.
Ingredients
For the Sauce:
- 1 cup low-sodium soy sauce or gluten-free tamari (250 ml)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar (30 g)
- 2 tsp sesame oil (10 ml)
- 2 clove garlic, grated (10 g)
- 1” nub fresh ginger, grated (10 g)
- 2 tsp sambal (10 g, adjust to suit spice preference)
For the Noodles:
- 1 package rice noodles, medium thickness (455 g)
- 1 tsp sesame oil (5 ml)
- 1 small onion, sliced (150 g)
- 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced (165 g)
- 1 cup shitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced thin (50 g)
- 1 cup thinly sliced carrots or store-bought julienned carrots (100 g)
- 1 cup snap peas or snow peas, sliced thin (100 g)
For Serving:
- sliced green onions
- sesame seeds
Instructions
- Start boiling water for the noodles and wash and chop all of the vegetables so you’re prepared.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients and set aside for later.
- Cook noodles as per package instructions. Rinse thoroughly with cold water once cooked and reserve for later.
- Heat the sesame oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for about 3 minutes until softened.
- Add the bell peppers, mushrooms and carrots and continue to cook for an additional 4-5 minutes.
- Add the snap peas. Give the sauce another quick stir then pour it into the pan and bring to a boil.
- Add the cooked noodles and toss to coat in the sauce and mix the vegetables throughout.
- Serve immediately topped with green onions and sesame seeds.
Notes
Storing: Let cool then store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Enjoy leftovers cold or reheat as needed in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop. Lo mein can be frozen in an airtight container or individual freezer-safe bags for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat as needed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/6th of recipe
- Calories: 295
- Fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 73 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 8 g
Very delicious dish. The whole family loved it. Definitely need low sodium soy sauce as very salty with regular soy sauce.