Yaki Udon

These yaki udon noodles will make a delicious and simple weeknight meal for the whole family! The recipe is easy to prepare and it’s packed with fresh vegetables and Japanese flavors. 25 minutes is all you need for this easy stir-fry! 

What Is Yaki Udon? 

Yaki udon is a Japanese dish that consists of thick and chewy udon noodles, vegetables, and a soy-based sauce. Besides, it often contains pork or other meat. However, it’s also great with tofu. 

There are stories that the popular Japanese stir-fry dish was first made after World War II when food was scare. “Yaki” is Japanese for “grill” or “fry”, so you could loosely translate the name to fried udon noodles. 

Why This Recipe Works

I love that this recipe is fresh, colorful, and comforting at the same time. The crispy tofu takes this easy noodle dish to the next level!

The ingredient list isn’t very long. However, you might not be able to find all of the ingredients in any supermarket. But it shouldn’t be a problem in a well-stored, bigger grocery store or an Asian market. 

The sauce is very easy to make. All you need is a bit of sugar, black pepper, Japanese soy sauce, and mirin.

Mirin is a condiment essential to the Japanese cuisine. It’s a sweet rice wine that is used for cooking. It enhances the flavors of the dish and it is an essential part of yaki udon. 

This recipe is very easy to make and it’s super versatile. You can use many different kinds of vegetables. So it’s a great dish to get rid of leftover vegetables in your fridge. 

Udon noodles are the perfect base for this recipe. They’re thick, white, and chewy noodles made with wheat flour and water. They perfectly soak up the flavors of the dish you’re making. And they’re super comforting and satisfying! 

Udon noodles are very popular in Japan because they’re delicious, cheap, easy to prepare, and very versatile.

All in all, you need only about 25 minutes for this recipe, which makes it perfect for a quick weeknight dinner. 

What Goes Into This Recipe:

• Pak Choi – either use mini pak choi or a larger pak choi like I did. 
• Shiitake Mushrooms – you need fresh shiitake mushrooms. 
• Udon Noodles – I prefer fresh, but you could also use frozen or dried. 
• Green Onions
• Broccoli
• Tofu – make sure to use firm tofu. The recipe doesn’t work with soft or silken tofu because it doesn’t hold its shape. 
• Red Bell Pepper
• Shallot 
• Sesame Oil – don’t replace it with any other kind of oil. It’s essential for the perfect flavor. 
• Soy Sauce – I used Japanese soy sauce. It has a different flavor than Indonesian or Chinese soy sauce and makes this Japanese stir-fry more authentic. 
• Vegan Worcestershire Sauce – Worcestershire sauce is not always vegan, so check the labels. You could also use a homemade vegan version. 
• Brown Sugar
• Mirin – it’s a Japanese sweet rice wine that is used for cooking. You can either find it in the aisle where soy sauce is stocked or in your local Asian market. 

How To Make This Recipe

1. Step : Prepare the udon noodles according to the instructions on the package. Set aside. Wash the vegetables and cut the red bell pepper, the shiitake mushrooms, and the pak choi into thin strips. Divide the broccoli into small florets. 

2. Step: Cut the tofu into cubes.

3. Step: In a small bowl add two teaspoons of soy sauce and 1/3 cup of corn starch. Make sure all of the tofu cubes are covered. 

4. Step: Heat some sesame oil in a large pan and pan-fry the tofu cubes for about 5 minutes on high heat or until they’re golden and crispy. Set aside. 

5. Step: In the same pan, heat some more sesame oil and sauté the shallots for about 3 minutes or until they’re translucent.

6. Step: Then add the red bell pepper, the shiitake mushrooms, the broccoli, and the pak choi.

7. Step: Cook for about 8 minutes until the vegetables are tender. 

8. Step: Then add the cooked udon noodles. 

9. Step: Make the sauce. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, the Worcestershire sauce, the brown sugar, the mirin, and the cayenne pepper.

10. Step: Add the sauce to the vegetables and the udon noodles together with the tofu and stir well. Cook for another 2 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle some sesame seeds and chopped green onions on top. Serve immediately.

Recipe Notes: 

• Make sure to use firm tofu for this recipe. You want the tofu cubes to be really crispy. This does not work with silken tofu or very soft tofu.
• I like to buy pak choi, mirin, and udon noodles at our local Asian market. It’s the best place to buy Asian products. You will have a larger assortment and you will probably pay less than at your regular supermarket. 
• I used a package of pre-cooked udon noodles for this recipe, which works best. Packages of pre-cooked udon noodles are very common to find. Sometimes you can also find frozen udon noodles in Asian markets. Just cook them for a couple of minutes in boiling water. 
• If you use pre-cooked noodles and they stick together, just loosen them under running water. 

FAQs: 

How Long Does This Recipe Last?

Stored in an airtight container in the fridge, this recipe lasts up to 3 days. 

Could I Also Use Dried Udon Noodles? 

If you can’t find pre-cooked udon noodles, you could also use dried udon noodles. However, they are usually lower in quality and are thinner and shorter. Besides, they don’t absorb the flavors as well as fresh udon noodles do. 

Could I Use Other Vegetables? 

This recipe is pretty versatile when it comes to the vegetables. You could also use other vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, green beans, or asparagus. 

Related Recipes: 

• Vegan Fried Rice
• Vegetable Chow Mein
• Peanut Noodles
• Rice Paper Rolls with Peanut Dipping Sauce 
• Vegan Pad Thai 
• Vegan Ramen 
• 50 Amazing Vegan Asian Recipes 
• Vegan Pho 
• Vegan Bibimbap 

I Love to Hear From You!

I hope you like these yaki udon noodles as much as we do around here.

If you give this recipe a try, I’d love to know what you think about it. Just leave me a comment and a star rating below. Your comments really make my day!

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Sina