My family has started a new tradition of having a vegetarian family dinner ever Sunday night. I am obviously pretty excited about this because I get to show off how tasty and exciting a vegetarian diet can be (and it wasn't even my idea.. it was my mom's suggestion!) Her and I usually trade off cooking duties or team up to make a recipe, and so far my family has really loved trying new things and having a big meal sans meat. I encourage you to try it out for yourself!
This is what I made for dinner this Sunday. It is fresh and light; and it is filling enough that you definitely don't miss the meat, but you feel completely satisfied. It is delicious as a hot dish, which is how we ate it for family dinner, and as a cold noodle salad, which is how I enjoyed it for lunch the next day!
Ingredients:
1 350g box whole wheat spaghetti or soba noodles
~2 cups napa cabbage, shredded
4 large carrots, grated - I used my mandolin to finely grate the carrots but a box grater works well too
2-3 cups snow peas
3-4 cups broccoli florets - I used a bag of prepared stir-fry vegetables that had broccoli florets and shredded broccoli stems, but feel free to use just the florets if that's all you have or can find
6-8 cremini mushrooms, sliced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup chopped roasted peanuts
Sesame Ginger Sauce:
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. rice vinegar
3 tsp. minced fresh ginger
1 tsp. sugar
1/4-1/2 tsp. sriracha or Asian hot sauce (depending on how spicy you want it)
Directions:
Have all your stir-fry vegetables chopped and ready to go because this dish comes together very quickly once your noodles are cooked.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Put a kettle on to boil water for the sauce.
In a small bowl, whisk together the sesame ginger sauce ingredients. Adjust the seasonings to your taste.
Once the water has boiled, cook the spaghetti noodles until al dente, about 8 minutes. Pour the noodles into a colander to drain.
In the same pot, add all the vegetables (cabbage, carrot, snow peas, broccoli, and mushrooms) and about 1/4 cup of water. Place it back on the stove on medium-high heat. Cover with a lid and allow the vegetables to steam, stirring them around occasionally. Steam until the broccoli is bright green and tender, about 5-7 minutes. Pour the water off of the vegetables.
In a large serving bowl, or in the large pot, combine the steamed vegetables and cooked noodles. Pour in the sesame ginger sauce and toss to coat. Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, and chopped peanuts. Serve warm or cold.
*Recipe by Brooke McMillan, inspired by Canadian Living Magazine
