I received an email from Megan this week inquiring if I could recreate her favorite frozen noodles bowls purchased from Costco. There’s not a Costco located in New Orleans (yet), so I wasn’t aware of the item in question. However, I’ve been craving for a bowl of noodles anyway. So I decided to try it. The result was an extremely quick, simple, and delicious Teriyaki Noodle Bowl! Yum!
I prefer fresh veggies in the freezer; however, when I need a tiny amount of variety of vegetables, it makes sense to purchase an already frozen mix, or else I’ll have a plethora of vegetables in my ears. The frozen vegetables do well. However, they’re typically much less tender than fresh ones when incorporated in stir-fries. Keep that in your mind while making your choice.
Megan’s primary problem with her shop-bought noodles concerned the level of sugar and salt the bowls included. Teriyaki sauce is basically comprised of sugar and salt; therefore, you can’t avoid it, Still, at least when you make it at home, you are aware of the exact details of what’s contained, and the chances are it’s not as salty and sugar as supermarket sauce. You can try your hand at the recipe and adjust the ingredients to suit your taste and nutritional requirements.
I was all set to make this recipe using pineapple; however, when I returned home from the shop, I found that I had bought pineapple in heavy syrup, and this didn’t work. If you’d like to use pineapple, here’s the way to go about it: purchase an eight oz. container of pineapple chunks soaked in juice, take the juice out and then use it instead of the water that is in the sauce teriyaki. Incorporate the pineapple chunks into the vegetables after you stir-fry them, and you’re done. Easy
INGREDIENTS
Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce ($0.39)
2 Tbsp rice vinegar ($0.23)
2 tablespoons brown sugar($0.03)
1/4 tsp toasted sesame oil ($0.05)
Two cloves of garlic, chopped ($0.16)
2 inches fresh ginger, grated ($0.21)
Sprinkle red pepper flakes on the counter, an option ($0.02)
1 Tbsp cornstarch($0.04)
2 TBSP water ($0.00)
Noodles & Vegetables
One lb. frozen stir-fry veggies ($1.57)
Eight oz. buckwheat soba noodles ($3.69)
One tablespoon vegetable oil ($0.02)
INSTRUCTIONS
Mix the vinegar from rice, soy sauce, brown sugar, and toasted sesame oil, the red pepper flakes cor,n starch, and water into an empty bowl. Peel the ginger, and then grind it into the bowl with an ice grater that has a small hole. If you don’t own a grater, you could chop the ginger. Chop the garlic into small pieces and add the ingredients to the bowl as well. Mix the ingredients to mix them.
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a simmer at a high temperature, then add the noodles. Then, keep boiling for 5 to 6 minutes, and until noodles become soft. The noodles should be rinsed in a colander.
Cook the vegetable oil in a large pot at medium-high temperature. Once the skillet is ready add the frozen vegetables. Stir them and cook for about two minutes, and only to heat the vegetables. Stir the sauce briefly before pouring it onto the hot skillet. Let it come to a boil, and at that point, it will begin to thicken. The vegetables will continue heating through when this happens. Stop the heat once the sauce has become thick and hot.
Add the drained noodles back to the cooking pan, and then stir them until they are coated with the sauce. Divide the noodles among four bowls, and then sprinkle any remaining vegetables from the skillet onto the top. Enjoy!
