Yakisoba (Japanese Fried Noodles)

So, I've been working on a few new blog posts, but last week was Spring Break and we had family in town, so nothing went live.

Anyway, one of my favorite Japanese dishes is Yakisoba, which are fried noodles.  They are Japanese equivalent of cook-out food.  When we'd go to the beach, we'd see the locals using the provided grills to fry their noodles.  No hot dogs and hamburgers for them.

Yakisoba is made with the protein of your choice (I usually go for beef because when I first learned out to make it, that's the meat I used), precooked soba (buckwheat) noodles, and fresh veggies.  There is also a yakisoba sauce used to bring it all together.  And it is often served with pickled ginger on top (I usually skip this because I forget to buy it).

When I lived in Okinawa, I could buy bags of refrigerated soba noodles at my local American grocery store.  Alas, that is not an option here in South Texas.  If you have an Asian grocer in your area, you may be able to find some there.  Again, that isn't an option for me here.  Fortunately, my local grocery store has frozen soba noodles in it's freezer section.  I'll admit, they aren't as good as the ones I'd get in Okinawa, but they do their job.  Don't worry if you can't find soba/yakisoba noodles where you live.  When I first moved here, I couldn't find any, but I really had a craving for yakisoba, so I used some noodle pasta.  You could easily use spaghetti or linguine to make this dish (though the noodles will have a different taste since they aren't made from buckwheat).

Another item that may be difficult to find is your yakisoba sauce.  This is a much easier fix.  I found some on Amazon and had it shipped straight to my house.  If, however, that isn't your thing, you could easily substitute soy sauce.  Just know that yakisoba sauce has a thicker consistency than soy sauce.  In fact, my husband and oldest daughter like their noodles saucier than I make them (they really shouldn't be that saucy), so they always add soy sauce to their servings before eating.

Step 1: Prepare your meat and veggies.  I usually just buy stir fry meat from the grocery store because it means I don't have to cut up my meat myself.  However, if you aren't lazy like me, you'll need to cut your meat into strips or bite size pieces.  Cut your onion into thin strips.  For the rest of my veggies, I prefer to use carrots and cabbage.  Again, showing my laziness, I buy a small bag of julienned carrots.  If choosing carrots, you'll need to cut them into very thin strips.  For the cabbage, I only use a 1/4th to a 1/2 of the head.  You won't need to cut it into super thin pieces.  Occasionally, I'll just buy a bag of cabbage prepared for coleslaw because it is once again already prepped for you, however, I like my cabbage to be larger, so I usually don't do this.  If you choose to use different veggies, make sure they are cut into thin pieces because they aren't going to cook for very long.

Step 2: Heat oil in a large frying pan (I will often use a dutch oven instead because the depth of the pot makes it easier to blend the noodles and sauce in at the end).  Don't worry if you don't have sesame oil, vegetable oil will work fine.  The sesame oil will give it a slightly different taste and smell but the end results will be very similar.  Sauté your meat and onion in the pan until your onion is becoming translucent and meat is almost completely cooked through (as we add the other ingredients, the meat will continue to cook, so if it is already fully cooked at this point, it will get tough).

Step 3: Add the remainder of your vegetables and stir to combine.

Step 4: Add noodles and stir well (if you use the frozen noodles like me, let them thaw first).

Step 5: Stir in your yakisoba sauce until all of the noodles are evenly coated.

Step 6: Enjoy as is and/or with pickled ginger and added soy sauce.

Yakisoba (Japanese Fried Noodles)

Serves: 6-8 Ingredients: 2 tsp sesame oil 1 lb lean meat, cut into bite-size pieces or strips 1 medium onion, cut into thin strips 2 medium carrots, thinly sliced         or 1/2 - 3/4 small package of julienned carrots 1/4 - 1/2 head of cabbage, cut into strips 2 pkgs Soba Noodles (thawed, if using frozen) 1/3 C Yakisoba Sauce Optional toppings: pickled ginger, soy sauce Directions: 1. Prepare your meat and veggies.  2. Heat oil in a large frying pan or dutch oven.   Sauté your meat and onion in the pan until your onion is becoming translucent and meat is almost completely cooked through. 3. Add the remainder of your vegetables and stir to combine. 4. Add noodles and stir well. 5. Stir in your yakisoba sauce until all of the noodles are evenly coated. 6. Enjoy as is and/or with pickled ginger and added soy sauce.

*This is my very first printable recipe, just click above to print (and please forgive my photography; I'm just getting back into blogging and photography is not my forte).