This recipe is inspired by the wonderful Japanese classic agedashi tofu, but takes it in the direction of a teriyaki dish, coating the lightly fried tofu pieces in our Umi Organic yakisoba sauce. The tofu is not at all greasy—one of the miracles of this cooking technique. This is very easy to make and a textural treat. I like keeping the tofu pieces large so you get to enjoy their contrasting textures after frying. I typically eat this over rice but it would be great over Umi noodles in a miso sesame sauce.
Read moreLola's Gilgeori Toast (a wild version)
The year I lived in Kyoto, Japan, I traveled to Korea over winter break. On Christmas morning, in the freezing cold, I was walking to catch a bus and came upon a street food vendor making breakfast sandwiches. The snow had begun to fall and he let me shelter under his tarp while he made me a very simple cabbage-egg omelet that he served between big fluffy slices of white bread with a delicious sauce that reminded me of Japanese okonomiyaki sauce. I loved the sandwich so much! It felt vaguely healthy but also rich and satisfying. When we made our own yakisoba sauce, with some of those same flavor notes, I knew I wanted to try to recreate this breakfast sandwich.
Read moreVery Juicy "Teriyaki" Chicken
Pan-frying whole chicken thighs briefly, then steaming them with a little sake, and finishing with our Umi yakisoba sauce makes the most succulent and delicious teriyaki-style chicken. It’s also incredibly easy to make and goes with any side dishes you’d like! It’s not a typical teriyaki because our sauce has a more complex, umami-rich sweet-and-sour flavor thanks to Worcestershire, tamarind, and apple puree, but it’s definitely in the same family and scratches the same itch!
Read moreYakisoba with Lots of Mushrooms
I find mushrooms spectacularly delicious and satisfying. This dish highlights shiitake mushrooms—every single bite of noodles is tangled with a few mushrooms, which means every bite is a winner. While this recipe calls for shiitake, any number of mushrooms would work well in their place: oysters, criminis, lobsters, chanterelles—any mushrooms that tastes good sautéed in oil. This is now my favorite way to eat yakisoba noodles!
Read moreBetty's Seasonal Yakisoba
“I love the versatility of yakisoba. When I was growing up, my mom prepared yakisoba using pork, carrots, cabbage, onions, and bean sprouts. Since I live in Portland where we have access to a wide variety of vegetables on a year-round basis, I use whatever seasonal vegetables I have on hand for my yakisoba. I always aim for at least 5 colors in all of my meals and yakisoba makes it easy to achieve my goal.”
Read moreLola's Yakisoba with Brussels
Traditionally, yakisoba would be served with cabbage, but Brussels are a great replacement, offering their own distinct flavor and vivid color. Because you're shredding the Brussels sprouts, there's no need to core them. My secret is to simply use the Cuisinart shredder. I pop the Brussels in one by one and save myself all the work of cutting. This recipe is a riff on one our dear friend Jane Hashimawari of Ippai PDX shared with us. I almost always top with a bit of Kewpie mayonnaise because it takes it to 100.
Read moretonya's Thanksgiving Ramen, Thanks-for-Noodlin'
The main idea here is to use your leftovers from preparing a traditional Thanksgiving meal (Turkey, stuffing, vegetables, cranberry sauce) and make them into bowls of ramen. Using leftovers is a huge timesaver and you can make a few things fresh if necessary to round out the dish. The broth alone will astonish you.
Read more6 Simple Miso + Noodle Dishes that Deeply Satisfy
Miso and noodles belong together. Here are 6 recipes we turn to on the regular for simple weeknight meals that deliver a huge amount of satisfaction while also making us feel great.
Read moreLagman Ramen
Fortified with smoky lapsang souchong tea and blue fenugreek, this savory, traditional Central Asian meat-noodle soup is even heartier with Umi Organic ramen noodles. Though the dish comes from Central Asia, the name “lagman” comes from the same Chinese root word as ramen (lamian), making these two dishes ready for their Mongol-Turkic family reunion.
Read moreTempura Ramen with Tentsuyu Broth
This dish of Umi ramen noodles with tempura'd veggies is really satisfying on a rainy evening. Seasoned with generous amounts of soy sauce and mirin, the broth is rich and sweet like tentsuyu (tempura dipping sauce) but still light enough to eat like soup. Swap mushroom broth for chicken stock and omit the fish to make this vegetarian.
Read moreLola's Favorite Dinner aka Kinda Mapo Tofu
I have often thought to myself, while eating this dinner, 'I could eat this every night!' That's how much I love it. Fried ground pork plays off of the tender tofu. There's spicy chilies and fresh green onion. This recipe came about because I started making mapo tofu, but over time adapted it to what I always have in my kitchen and what I know I love. And so this is kinda mapo tofu, and it is great!
Read moreGingery Cabbage and Bacon Fried Umi Noodles
Here we invert the standard ratio of vegetable to grain, using 7 cups of thinly sliced cabbage with one package of Umi Noodles with Miso Sesame Sauce or Yakisoba. The key is to sauté the cabbage quickly over high heat in two batches, unless you have a giant skillet and can do it in one. The entire dish is cooked over high heat, so everything gets golden and irrisistible.
Read moreRoasted Mushroom Ramen
Roasting mushrooms and vegetables kick starts a flavorful mushroom broth. The addition of a simple soy sauce or tamari flavor base, called a tare (pronounced tar-eh), transforms an already delicious broth into robust ramen soup.
Read moreWeekday Vegetarian Miso Ramen
This vegetarian miso ramen is extremely flexible. The basic idea is to make a quick 5-minute miso flavor base that transforms good stock into lip-smacking ramen broth. Store-bought stock is also a good substitute, and all toppings and garnishes are up to you.
Read moreElan's Mushroom Stroganoff
"It was cold, wet and rainy growing up in the Pacific Northwest. This belly warmer has brought my spirits back after cold days in the outdoors. It is pure comfort."
Read moreVeronica's East-Meets-West Cacio e Pepe
Buttery, cheesy noodles with Sichuan, white, and black peppercorns. This is easy, satisfying comfort food.
Read moreChris' Nam Prik Ong
This Thai pork sauce is out of this world. The flavors are so punchy, and it has the perfect amount of heat and funk. It's reminiscent of a bolognese, built on a base of ground pork, shallot, and tomatoes, with an addictive shrimp paste and fish sauce underbelly.
Read moreAnnie's Crimson Fried Noodles with Ginger Salsa Verde and Sprouted Grains
Annie made a wild discovery: Pan-fry our noodles with turmeric and they turn red! Why? Turmeric is a natural pH indicator. In contact with alkaline substances like our noodles, the orange-red carotene present in turmeric comes to the fore. Try it for yourself!
Read moreChris' Thai Coconut-Lime Broth
This recipe makes an extremely flavorful coconut broth infused with lemongrass, galangal, garlic, Thai chiles, and lime leaves. You may have to shop out of your way, but you'll love how easy this is to make: Chop everything in big hunks, drop into coconut milk, simmer, and strain.
Read moreJim's Black Bean Sauce Noodles
"I adapted this recipe from a dish served at Eddie Lee's, a Portland restaurant that once occupied the space that's now Mother's. It features Chinese fermented, salted black soy beans aka douchi, often sold as 'preserved beans.' "
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