This vegan ramen with shiitake mushrooms and tofu is the perfect vegan comfort food! It’s packed with flavor, really healthy, and ready in less than 30 minutes! It makes a great vegan dinner for cold fall and winter nights!
I can’t get enough of soup right now. Especially when it’s this delicious and comforting!
Why This Recipe Works
I wanted to create an easy recipe for you that is ready in no time. I experimented with this recipe quite a bit until I was 100 % satisfied with the result. This Asian soup will never let you down!
For the broth I used a combination of vegetable broth and dried shiitake mushrooms, which I processed in a blender until they were smooth. They provide the ramen with a lot of flavor without any flavor enhancers like you find in most ramen seasoning packages.
As a base for the broth I used a combination of onion, garlic, and fresh ginger. I decided to use shredded carrots, fresh spinach, and tofu as add-ins. Tofu is a great source of protein! For extra flavor, I pan-fried it with a bit of soy sauce.
In combination with the ramen noodles, you’ve got an easy and filling soup that is incredibly comforting!
What Goes Into This Recipe:
- Tofu – Use firm or extra-firm tofu.
- Soy Sauce – You could also use tamari.
- Vegetable Broth – Make sure to use a high quality broth or make your own.
- Ramen Noodles – They’re made from wheat flour and oil and are usually vegan.
- Dried Shiitake Mushrooms – Don’t replace them with fresh mushrooms. You need them for the broth.
How to Make This Recipe
Making this vegan ramen is pretty easy! All in all, the soup is ready in less than 30 minutes.
1. Step: Cook the dried shiitake in the vegetable broth for 20 minutes. In another pot, cook the vegan ramen noodles according to the instructions on the package. Set aside when done.
2. Step: In the meantime, finely chop the onion, the garlic, and the ginger.
3. Step: Sauté in a large pan (you will need it again for the tofu later). Set aside.
4. Step: When the cooking time of the broth is over, carefully take out about half of the shiitake mushrooms with a ladle. Set aside for later. Let the soup cool down for a few minutes. Add the sautéed onion, garlic, and ginger to the soup as well as the miso paste. Then carefully transfer it into a high speed blender and process until fairly smooth.
5. Step: Transfer it back to the pot and simmer on low heat until you’re done with the remaining steps.
6. Step: Cut the cooked shiitake mushrooms into strips.
7. Step: Cut the tofu into slices. Heat some oil (I used sesame oil) in the same pan that you used for the onions and pan-fry the tofu slices for about 2 minutes on each side on high heat. Add 1-2 teaspoons of soy sauce as well as some salt and pepper.
8. Step: Grate the carrots. Just before serving, add the cooked ramen noodles, the fresh spinach, the cooked tofu, the shiitake mushrooms, and the carrots to the ramen broth.
9. Step: Garnish with green onions and sesame and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes:
- I cooked the vegan ramen broth for 20 minutes. If you want an even more intense flavor and you’ve got more time, you could even double the cooking time.
- I decided to blend about half of the cooked shiitake mushroom with the broth to give the ramen even more flavor. However, you could also skip this step and cut all of the shiitake mushrooms into strips.
- Make sure to use a good vegetable broth for this soup. I usually use a store-bought organic vegetable broth. If you want you could also make it from scratch.
- You need dried shiitake mushrooms for this recipe. Don’t replace them with fresh ones.
FAQs:
Can I Make This Soup Gluten-Free?
Yes, if you want to make this recipe gluten-free, you can use tamari instead of soy sauce and buckwheat or rice noodles instead of the ramen noodles.
Where Can I Buy Dried Shiitake Mushrooms?
Many grocery stores carry dried shiitake mushrooms. Usually they are in the fruit and vegetable section.
However, I prefer to buy them in Asian grocery stores. It’s so much cheaper. Asian grocery stores are also a great place to buy spices and fresh exotic herbs.
How Long Does This Recipe Keep?
I recommend storing the broth, the noodles, and the add-ins in separate containers. Otherwise the noodles will soak up all the broth. This way it will keep up to 3 days in the fridge.
Related Vegan Soup Recipes:
- Creamy Tomato Soup
- Asian Noodle Soup
- Vegan Minestrone Soup
- Easy Tomato Basil Soup
- Vegan Potato Kale Soup
- Italian Garbanzo Bean Soup
- 30 Hearty Vegan Soups and Stews
I Love To Hear From You!
I hope you like this vegan ramen recipe as much as we do around here.
If you give it a try, I’d love to know what you think about them. Just leave me a comment and a star rating below. Your comments really make my day!
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Sina
Vegan Ramen
Ingredients
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 20 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon miso paste
- 4 handful fresh spinach
- 7 oz firm tofu
- 2 carrots
- dried ramen noodles (4 servings)
- 3 green onions, cut into rings
- sesame
Instructions
- Cook the dried shiitake in the vegetable broth for 20 minutes. In another pot, cook the vegan ramen noodles according to the instructions on the package. Set aside when done.
- In the meantime, finely chop the onion, the garlic, and the ginger. Sauté in a large pan (you will need it again for the tofu later). Set aside.
- When the cooking time of the broth is over, carefully take out about half of the shiitake mushrooms with a ladle. Set aside for later. Let the soup cool down for a few minutes. Add the sautéed onion, garlic, and ginger to the soup as well as the miso paste. Then carefully transfer it into a high speed blender and process until fairly smooth. Transfer it back to the pot and simmer on low heat until you're done with the remaining steps.
- Cut the cooked shiitake mushrooms into strips.
- Cut the tofu into slices. Heat some oil (I used sesame oil) in the same pan that you used for the onions and pan-fry the tofu slices for about 2 minutes on each side on high heat. Add 1-2 teaspoons of soy sauce as well as some salt and pepper.
- Grate the carrots. Just before serving, add the cooked ramen noodles, the fresh spinach, the cooked tofu, the shiitake mushrooms, and the carrots to the ramen broth. Garnish with green onions and sesame and serve immediately.
Notes
- I cooked the vegan ramen broth for 20 minutes. If you want an even more intense flavor and you've got more time, you could even double the cooking time.
- I decided to blend about half of the cooked shiitake mushroom with the broth to give the ramen even more flavor. However, you could also skip this step and cut all of the shiitake mushrooms into strips.
- Make sure to use a good vegetable broth for this soup. I usually use a store-bought organic vegetable broth. If you want you could also make it from scratch.
- You need dried shiitake mushrooms for this recipe. Don't replace them with fresh ones.
chris f
You need to be careful. Certain brands like “Top Ramen” have egg in the noodles. I always double check because the one brand I used actually changed and added egg too :(
JOSIE
Excellent. Really filling – a meal in itself. Next time I’ll use more ginger to give it a bit more of a kick.
BTW I had no dried mushrooms so I used fresh & it was fine.
Thanks for the recipe!