Vegetable Yaki Udon (Vegan) - Easy Japanese Recipe

Vegetable Yaki Udon is a great, easy dinner idea for busy weeknights. It's delicious and healthy, and the cooking process can be completed in under 15 minutes from start to finish!

Yaki Udon is a quick dish made from stir-fried chewy noodles.

This recipe is a vegan version of yaki udon and contains many vegetables.

The vegetable flavors are enhanced with Japanese seasonings. Vegetable Udon is a healthy meal that your whole family can enjoy in no time!

This recipe is for you if:
• You love udon noodles.
• You want to make vegetable yaki udon.
• You are looking for a vegan yaki udon recipe

Let me walk you through the ingredients and instructions. If you want to check the recipe, please use the link below. Let's get started!

Jump to:

• About This Recipe
• Yaki Udon is a Simple and Quick Meal!
• 📋 Ingredients
• Udon Noodles
• Where to Buy Japanese Ingredients
• 🔪Instructions
• Helpful Tips
• Ingredients Variations
• Topping Ideas
• What to Serve With
• Thanks For Stopping By!
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

About This Recipe

• Japanese udon noodle dish
• Vegan Yaki Udon recipe
• Ready in under 15 minutes
• Easy weeknight meal
• Topping ideas

Yaki Udon is a Simple and Quick Meal!

Yaki udon is a Japanese noodle dish that contains stir-fried meat, vegetables, and udon noodles seasoned with soy sauce, mirin, and dashi (soup stock).

It's a quick and easy recipe, and the cooking time is less than 15 minutes.

As the standard recipe contains meat, I will substitute it with plant-based proteins and make it meatless.

📋 Ingredients

Here is the full list of ingredients (amounts are in the recipe card below).

• Udon Noodles (See below)
• Cabbage
• Carrot
• Shiitake mushrooms
• Aburaage is Japanese deep-fried tofu pouches, and I use it as protein in this vegan yaki udon. It quickly soaks up the taste and combines well with the noodles.
• Sesame Oil: You can substitute it with vegetable oil, canola oil, olive oil, or any other preferred type of oil.
• Sauce ingredients: Salt, mirin, soy sauce. If you are not vegan and love savory sauce, you can add oyster sauce or Worcestershire sauce at the end.
• Topping of your choice (see the following section)

Udon Noodles

Udon noodles are Japanese noodles made from wheat flour, which is thick and has a chewy texture.

Types of Udon Noodles

Let's talk about the types of udon noodles we can find at the store:

• Dried udon noodles take about six minutes to boil, so they are not suitable when you want your dish quickly. But it's good that these usually don't have any additives!

• Frozen udon noodles are super easy to use, as you can defrost them in the microwave or boil them before cooking. They are chewy and soft. Frozen noodles last long, making them an excellent choice if you want to keep some stock in your freezer.

• Pre-cooked noodles are also a quick and easy option. They are already boiled, so you add them to a pan and cook.

• Fresh udon noodles strike an excellent balance between chewiness and firmness. Since these noodles have not been subjected to drying, they have a short shelf life.

Any udon noodles work great for this yaki udon. I use pre-cooked udon noodles in this recipe.

By the way, we have a variety of different noodles besides udon noodles, including ramen noodles and soba noodles in Japan.

You can find more information about them in this article: Japanese noodles.

Where to Buy Japanese Ingredients

If you live in the US, you can find Japanese ingredients in the list below.

• Japanese market: Mitsuwa Marketplace, Marukai
• Asian market
• Whole Foods Market
• Health food stores
• Online stores: Instacart, Walmart, Amazon

🔪Instructions

Let me show you how to make yaki udon! You can also watch this recipe video.

1. Cut ingredients into thin strips
2. Stir fry the ingredients over medium heat in a large pan
3. Steam until tender
4. Add udon, mirin, and soy sauce
5. Steam for a couple of minutes
6. Stir fry on medium heat until well combined

The vegetable yaki udon is ready to serve!

You can enjoy this noodle dish by itself, but I recommend serving it along with some soup and salad. You will be delighted!

Helpful Tips

• By steaming, we bring out the delicious umami and sweetness of the vegetables. The carrots will be very sweet!
• Add pre-cooked udon noodles to the pan and make them soft and chewy through steaming. If you use frozen noodles or dried noodles, follow the package instructions.
• If the taste is too light for you, please feel free to add soy sauce and tweak your flavors. A mushroom sauce could work as well.

Ingredients Variations

Yaki udon is a versatile dish that can be made with any ingredients. Here are more variation ideas:

• Choice of protein (vegan): Tofu, atsuage, soy chunks, tempeh
• Choice of vegetables: Green onions, onions, spring onions, bell peppers, bok choy (pak choi), spinach, napa cabbage, many mushrooms, moyashi (bean sprouts), eggplant, snow peas

Topping Ideas

Do you want to experience this dish the Japanese way? If yes, then these toppings are for you! We have a variety of topping options here!

For vegan:

• Furikake (Rice seasoning) is a simple and basic Japanese rice seasoning mix used to flavor plain steamed white rice, and it works well for udon noodles. You can find many variations of furikake with fish, seaweed, eggs, and vegetables, so the choice is yours.
• Nori and Aonori are seaweed. We use seaweed a lot in Japanese cuisine, as it makes for great toppings. If you are unfamiliar with seaweed, try Nori first, as Aonori has a stronger flavor (smell from the ocean).
• Green onions

For non-vegan:

• Katsuobushi (Bonito flakes) is bonito flakes, so it's not vegan but the most common topping for yaki udon in Japan.
• Fried egg

What to Serve With

Serve with soup and some veggies, and why not have a healthy lunch? You'll feel more energetic after eating.

• Vegetable Yaki Udon
• Daikon miso soup
• Hiyayakko
• Nori tamagoyaki

Thanks For Stopping By!

This vegetable yaki udon noodle is perfect for a quick lunch or dinner! Enjoy the simple and authentic taste of Japan!

I hope you like the recipe 🙂

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog♡. If you've tried this recipe (or any other recipe on the blog), please give it a star rating below!

Also, feel free to leave comments if you have any questions. I love hearing from you!

Chef JA Cooks is a Japanese food blog that shares healthy and straightforward Japanese home cooking recipes, including vegan and vegetarian. From traditional Japanese recipes to modern recipes with step-by-step instructions.

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• Kake Udon (Hot Udon Soup)
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• 8 Easy Japanese Udon Recipes
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📖 Recipe