These quick and easy miso noodles come together in just 20 minutes! Perfect for a busy weeknight dinner idea. This Japanese-inspired dish brings together tender noodles (use udon, ramen, soba, or whatever noodles you like!), green onion, and perfectly seared shiitake mushrooms, edamame and bok choy in a deliciously creamy miso-based sauce.
When in need of quick yet flavorful comfort food, I often turn to my favorite noodles dishes for full-on comfort satisfaction. I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in this!
This dish hits both the comfort craving and your love for umami rich Asian flavors. Seriously, nothing beats this slightly spicy miso noodles recipe when you need a noodle fix (spiciness is optional too!). I specialize in 30-minute meal ideas, and can guarantee this quick dinner idea will hit the spot. It’s so unbelievably easy yet super tasty.
Plus these are vegetarian noodles and all ingredients are vegan friendly so it works for anyone and everyone. I’m not either and it still fills me up. Plus it’s perfect for a meatless Monday since it’s still so satisfying! Between this and tossing my quick teriyaki noodles recipe with some edamame, this has been on our regular weekday dish rotation for plant based dinner nights.
If you want to make your meal more hearty, you can serve it with something like these easy teriyaki salmon bites but it’s perfectly delicious on it’s own.
Featured Review
“This is my new go to quick and easy veg meal!! I’m trying to eat more plant based and am absolutely obsessed with this recipe! Thank you!”
-Nikita Johnson
I used white miso (which is more mellow than red miso) and tahini to make the sauce so it’s creamy and flavorful. The miso paste added tons of savory flavor that meshes beautifully with the creaminess of the tahini.
If you’re craving miso specifically, check out my dreamy miso butter recipe and my 20-minute miso butter salmon dinner. They’re both a delightful way to use this flavorful ingredient and would be so good with these noodles.
Ingredients
Aside from being super delicious, this recipe is also simple and customizable. It consists of simple everyday ingredients, all shown in the image below and listed in the recipe card.
You should be able to find all of this at your standard larger grocery store these days without making a trip to the. Just look in the Asian food section and if you can’t find white miso paste or tahini there, everything is available online.
I like garnishing this miso noodle recipe with more veggies like carrots, green onions, and radishes to keep it simple. You can use whatever you prefer though.
How to make miso noodles
This one dish meal is an easy on and easy to ace it on your first try. You can get the noodles ready while cooking the veggies to save time and have bowls of deliciously flavored noodles in no time!
- Make the miso sauce. In a medium bowl, add all the sauce ingredients then mix using a wire whisk. Set aside for later.
- Cook the noodles. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to the package directions. Cook them al dente so they won’t be overcooked and will absorb some of the sauce. Cooking times vary and some noodles take more or less time so read the instructions. Make sure to reserve some of the cooking water just in case you need it later.
- Sear the vegetables. On another burner, start heating a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add a teaspoon of sesame oil and then sear the mushrooms. Add a splash more sesame oil and then the edamame and bok choy to sear the veggies.
- Toss it all together! Add the cooked noodles and sauce mixture to the pan with the veggies. Use tongs to toss until everything is coated in sauce. Add a tablespoon or two of the reserved pasta water to thin out the sauce if needed.
- Garnish and serve! Divide the noodles mixture into 4 serving bowls. Sprinkle with green onion, sesame seeds, chili crisp oil and any other garnishes you are using and enjoy!
The noodles are best served right after cooking, however, they are also tasty when eaten cold as leftovers.
Try these variations!
- Add another protein source. I like topping the miso noodles with soft-boiled, poached, or sunny-side-up fried egg, marinated tofu cubes, or meat for more protein.
- Make it spicier. Top with toasted chili crisp oil, sriracha, garlic chili sauce or other hot sauce to spice it up.
- Sweeten it up! You can add maple syrup or honey if you are not vegan.
- Make it gluten-free. Use ramen brown rice noodles, gluten free miso paste and tamari to make this dish gluten free.
- Add extra crunch. Chopped-up peanuts or cashews would add a salty crunch to the dish.
- Use your favorite veggies. Swap out the veggies with whatever you prefer (broccoli, red pepper, bamboo shoots, napa cabbage, etc.). Just be sure to adjust the cook time if needed.
Expert recipe tips and tricks
I compiled a list of my top tips for making sure this recipe turns out perfectly every time.
Recipe Tips
- Do not wash or soak the mushrooms when cleaning because they will absorb water and will be difficult to sear. Instead, use a wet towel or paper towel to wipe them clean before slicing them into halves.
- Different noodles absorb different amounts of liquid. You can reserve some of the water the pasta cooked in before draining and add a small amount back in while tossing the pasta if it becomes too dry. I normally put a bowl or cup under the strainer to reserve a little bit of pasta water.
- Some noodles, like rice noodles, benefit from a quick cold water rinse as soon as they’re done cooking. This removes extra starch to keep the noodles from sticking.
- Remove the pan from heat right after you add the noodles and sauce. This will make sure it is still hot enough to heat up the sauce and give it a silky texture to bond with the noodles better.
- To prepare ahead of time, do not combine the pasta, veggies, and sauce yet. You can prepare the veggies and the sauce in advance and store them separately. Then make the noodles and sear the vegetables right before serving and toss it all together.
- Cook the noodles al dente – don’t over cook them! Cook until they’re just slightly under done. This will keep them from getting mushy and ensure they soak up the sauce.
Storing leftovers
If there are leftovers, place them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Any longer than that and the sauce can start to separate and get watery. You can eat them chilled or warm them up in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop first.
While I love freezing some noodle dishes, this one does not freeze well. It may work if you use a basic wheat spaghetti or another longer cooking firmer noodle but rice noodles or ramen noodles are too delicate to reconstitute well upon defrosting.
Easy 20-Minute Miso Noodles (Vegetarian)
Equipment
- 1 large skillet or wok
- 1 strainer
- 1 pot
- 1 Wooden spoon or spatula of some kind for cooking the veggies
- 1 tongs or a pasta fork
Ingredients
- 8 oz dry noodles udon, rice noodles, ramen, spaghetti, soba or any noodles you prefer
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil divided
- 8 ounces shiitake mushrooms sliced in half or quartered if large
- 2 cups edamame beans thaw first if frozen
- 2 bunches baby bok choy bottom core cut off and leaves separated
- sesame seeds and other garnishes (sliced radish, julienned carrot, etc. – see notes for ideas)
Sauce Ingredients
- ¼ cup white miso paste
- 1/4 cup tahini can substitute peanut butter
- 3 Tablespoons low sodium tamari or soy sauce or coconut aminos*
- 3 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons mirin
- 1 Tablespoon garlic chili sauce
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic about 2 medium cloves
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil toasted or untoasted
- 1/3 cup sliced green onion
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together all sauce ingredients with a wire whisk. Set aside.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and on another burner, start heating a large sized skillet over medium-high heat.
- Once the skillet is hot, add 1 teaspoon sesame oil and then mushrooms and cook, stirring only once or twice for 2-3 minutes to allow them to sear. Add remaining teaspoon sesame oil and then edamame and bok choy. Let cook for 3 minutes until veggies are well seared. Remove pan from heat.
- While vegetables are cooking in the skillet, cook noodles in pot of boiling water al dente according to package instructions (usually 3-5 minutes for soba noodles, longer for other types) and drain, reserving ½ cup of the cooking water from the noodles.*
- Add noodles and sauce to the pan with the mushrooms and bok choy. Add a splash of the reserved pasta water to the pan to thin out the sauce if it’s too thick and stir in. Add a small amount at a time until you get the desired consistency (normally 1-2 Tablespoons but will depend on how thick your tahini was and the absorbency of the noodles used).
- Use tongs to divide noodle mixture into 4 serving bowls. Top each one with a sprinkle of green onion, sesame seeds, chili crisp oil and any other garnishes you are using. Serve right away.
Notes
- Substitutions:
- Mushrooms: can sub regular or baby portobellos for shitake
- Rice vinegar: can sub apple cider vinegar or another vinegar with a tiny pinch of sugar.
- Noodles: substitute with rice noodles, ramen, spaghetti or whatever you prefer.
- Tamari: can swap soy sauce 1:1. If swapping for coconut aminos, you may need to add extra salt.
- Gluten free: Rice noodles and tamari make it GF. I really like the Lotus Foods brown rice and millet ramen and buy it at Costco. Make sure your miso is GF too because not all are.
- More protein: Top with soft boiled, poached or sunny side up fried egg, marinated tofu or meat for more protein.
- Spice: Top with toasted chili crisp oil, siracha or other hot sauce to spice it up.
- Reserving pasta water: I normally put a bowl or cup under the strainer to reserve the pasta water. If you forget, just use plain hot water.
- Remove the pan from heat right after you add the noodles and sauce. This will make sure it is still hot enough to heat up the sauce and will make it become silky and bond with the noodles better.
- Garnish ideas: sesame seeds, julienned carrot, more green onion, thinly sliced radish, red pepper, chopped up peanuts, a fried egg, chili crisp oil, and/or whatever else you prefer.
- Rinsing noodles: some noodles, like rice noodles, benefit from a quick cold water rinse as soon as they’re done cooking. This removes extra starch to keep the noodles from sticking.
- To prepare ahead of time: You can prepare the veggies and the sauce in advance and store them separately. Then make the noodles and sear the vegetables right before serving and toss it all together.
- Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Do not freeze.
Nutrition
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