Vegetable Lo Mein

It’s been ages and ages since we’ve eaten any Chinese food what with the pandemic and the fact that we haven’t found any great places since our move, so when certain people had a certain craving, I decided to make my own and let me tell you, never have I seen these certain people slurp up veggie lo mein with such passion and gusto! Something tells me I should be attempting take-in a whole lot more!

Guys, this is truly terrific and so much better for you than traditional take-out—much less salty and gloppy and much more heavy on the healthier veggies!

And while it does take a bit of time to chop up all those veggies, the actual cooking part comes together quickly and easily.

Here, I used carrots, red bell pepper, mushrooms, snow peas, zucchini and scallions but the truth is that you could pretty much use any veggies you prefer or have on hand. It’s a great way to empty out the vegetable bin!

And even though it’s vegetarian, this is total comfort food. Chewy noodles, crisp veggies all covered in a light and flavorful soy-based sauce—it’s a classic for a reason.

Yup, this is going into my regular rotation and I can pretty much guarantee that there won’t be any complaints!!

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Vegetable Lo Mein

Makes 8-10 servings

Prep Time: 40 minutes; Cook Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound lo mein noodles

• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

• 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, you may need more

• 1 teaspoon sesame oil

• 1 teaspoon sugar dissolved in 1 teaspoon hot water

• 2 tablespoons canola oil

• 1 garlic clove, minced

• 8 ounces mushrooms (any kind) cleaned and sliced, not too thinly

• 2 scallions, chopped, white and green parts separated

• 1 red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, sliced thinly

• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks

• 1 zucchini, cut into matchsticks

• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

• About a pound of snow pea pods, ends trimmed

The Recipe

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the lo mein noodles according the the package directions, until al dente. Drain and run cold water over them. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine both of the soy sauces, the sesame oil and the sugar dissolved in the water. Set aside.

3. Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large deep skillet or wok if you have one (I don’t). When it’s very hot, add the garlic, mushrooms and white parts of the scallions and sauté for about 1 minute. Add the red pepper, carrot and zucchini and sauté for a couple of minutes, until veggies start to soften a little. Stir in the rice wine vinegar and cook for another minute or so. Add in the snow peas and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring often, until the peas soften and wilt a little but are not mushy.

4. Now add in the noodles, separating them a little if they seem clumpy. The skillet will seem very full, but it will be ok. Give the sauce mixture a little stir and pour it over the mixture in the skillet. Using your spoon, sort of fold the noodles into the mixture so that they get uniformly coated with the sauce and take on that nice brown color. Taste and add more soy sauce if needed. Top with the remaining green scallions and serve.

5. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days and are delicious cold or reheated.

Enjoy!

Note: Recipe loosely based on this one from the Woks of Life. I tinkered a lot and you should feel free to also. This would be great with so many other kinds of veggies.