Spicy peanut noodles are an easy dinner that's packed with nutrition along with some plant-based protein. The flavorful peanut sauce is a cinch to throw together! Toss it all together and you've got a stellar weeknight dinner!
⅓cuppeanut butterunsalted, unsweetened, no added oil preferred*
1Tablespoongingergrated from fresh
1clovegarlicgrated from fresh
2Tablespoonsrice vinegarunsweetened, or apple cider vinegar
1Tablespoonsesame oiltoasted preferred
2-3Tablespoonstamarior soy sauce
½teaspoonred pepper flakesmore to taste, can sub with Sriracha if desired
2-4Tablespoonswateras needed, to thin sauce
Garnishes:
Green parts of 2-3 green onions from aboveminced
⅓cuppeanutschopped or crushed
1teaspoonblack and white sesame seeds
4lime wedges
Instructions
Prep the Vegetables
Prepare the vegetables: slice the shiitake mushrooms. Mince the garlic, mince the green onions, setting aside the green parts for garnish. Finely cut the carrot using a julienne peeler, mandolin, or shredded. Finely slice the bell pepper. Roughly chop the bok choy.
Chop or crush peanuts and set aside.
Cook the Vegetables
Warm the oil over medium heat in a large skillet or wok. Add the mushrooms in a mostly even layer and stir fry for 3-4 minutes, until they have developed color. (Do NOT add salt here.)
Add the white part of the green onion, the minced garlic, the julienned carrots, and a pinch of salt. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
Add the sliced bell peppers and the chopped bok choy and cook just until slightly soft and wilted, 2-3 minutes.
Make the Sauce
Make the sauce: whisk sauce ingredients, except tamari/soy sauce and water together in a bowl. Add tamari and water as needed for desired consistency and flavor. I use all 3 Tablespoons of tamari and 2-3 Tablespoons of water. It will be very thick before adding the water. Set aside.
Soba Noodles and Edamame
Pour frozen edamame into a heat-safe dish. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Scoop out 1-2 cups of water and pour over the edamame to thaw (drain after 3 minutes).
Then add the soba noodles to the boiling water. Cook for about 1 minute less than the time recommended on the package (about 4-5 minutes) or until cooked but al dente. Immediately drain and rinse with cold water. Optionally, you can drizzle with sesame oil (or other oil) to help prevent it from sticking, but GF soba is very sticky, no matter what you do!
Assemble the Salad
Add all ingredients to a large bowl and stir well to combine, reserving some of the sauce for topping if desired. Feel free to add a little more oil or water to help loosen the sauce and/or the sticky soba noodles as you mix.
Divide among 4 bowls and top with green onion tops, sesame seeds, and chopped peanuts. Serve each with a lime wedge to really brighten the flavor!
Notes
If you have salted peanut butter, start with less tamari/soy sauce and add more little by little to taste. The sauce should be salty and strong when you taste it, but this was tested with unsalted peanut butter.If using gluten-free soy sauce, this tends to be much saltier than regular soy sauce or tamari, so start with just 1 Tablespoon and avoid adding salt to the dish while cooking.Sunflower seed butter can be used in place of peanut butter with very very similar results! I have tried this with almond butter as well, which was good, but I and my tasters much preferred the sunflower seed butter.Note that soba is NOT gluten-free unless otherwise noted. Soba is a traditional Japanese noodle made from a combination of wheat and buckwheat. I usually use the King Soba brand of gluten-free soba as this is readily available in stores and online. Gluten-free soba will be stickier and starchier than regular soba. This dish can also be made with pad thai-style rice noodles!To eat as leftovers: I recommend microwaving the dish for 1 minute before serving. This loosens up the sticky soba and makes it easier to eat. You can drizzle with sesame oil, tamari, or water at serving time to also help loosen the delightfully sticky noodles!