Broccolini Soy Noodles

Noodles are always a solid player in my dinner repertoire, and these broccolini soy noodles are the perfect weeknight dinner that takes full advantage of spring produce. Think chewy ramen, tossed in a sweet miso soy sauce, with crispy tofu, broccolini, and scallions! 

Ingredients

• Extra-firm tofu: Extra-firm tofu (or high-protein tofu) is tofu that’s already been pressed to remove any excess water. Which means denser, meatier tofu that holds its shape and is ideal for stir-fry! Plus, because it’s already pressed, it has a higher protein content than regular tofu.
• Ramen noodles: Any noodle works well here, like udon noodles.
• Broccolini: Broccolini is a hybrid cross of broccoli and Chinese broccoli – it has thinner, tender stems, and a milder flavor than typical broccoli. Which is why I prefer it, especially for a dish like this.
• Scallions: Feel free to swap these out for an equal amount (by weight) of spring onions. Which is the same plant, but it is harvested later, resulting in a sweeter flavor and larger bulb.
• Soy sauce: Use a good-quality soy sauce here.
• Coconut aminos: I like to use coconut aminos in place of dark soy sauce (it’s not a perfect swap, but it works). That said, if you have dark soy sauce, I outlined in the recipe card below how to swap it out.
• Coconut sugar or brown sugar
• Chinese cooking wine: I used the clear Chinese rice cooking wine from Yu Yee, which Whole Foods now sells. Shaoxing wine would also work if you have that on hand. More on Chinese rice wine below!
• White miso paste: White miso is a type of miso that ferments for a short period of time, resulting in a mild, delicate flavor that’s perfect for this dish.
• Garlic, just one clove
• White pepper
• Avocado oil
• Toasted sesame seeds: I like using a mix of both toasted white sesame seeds and black sesame seeds.

Chinese Rice Wine 101

Chinese rice wine is ubiquitous to Chinese cuisine and is a staple ingredient in many Chinese dishes. It’s essentially a cooking wine made from rice, used for deglazing and adding depth and complexity to sauces, broths, etc. The most popular variety is Shaoxing wine, which is a dark brown color and used across the board. Another variety is mi jiu (aka rice wine), which is clear and colorless, and has a clearer, lighter flavor than Shaoxing wine. I used clear Chinese rice wine in this noodle dish as it’s what I had on hand, but Shaoxing wine will also work as a substitute.

Quick note on the alcohol in Chinese rice wine: most recipes (including this one) use very little and cook it long enough to cook off most of the alcohol.

How to Make These Soy Broccolini Noodles – A Visual Guide

Preheat the oven to 450°F (I used my toaster oven for this, at 450°F convection), and line two quarter sheet pans with parchment paper.

Start by chopping the broccolini into florets, cutting off the woody parts of the stem, leaving just the tender, thinner stem. Scoop onto a parchment-lined quarter sheet pan. Drizzle the broccolini with avocado oil and kosher salt, and toss to coat. Cube the tofu into small cubes and scoop onto the other parchment-lined quarter sheet pan. Drizzle with avocado oil, white pepper, and kosher salt, and toss to coat. Bake the broccolini for 8-10 minutes until just turning slightly charred, and bake the tofu for 20-25 minutes or until golden-brown and crisp.

Boil the noodles until al dente, drain and rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process. In parallel, while the noodles cook, add all the sauce ingredients to a jar/bowl, whisk well to break up the miso, and set aside. Chop the scallions into 2”-3″ long pieces and thinly slice lengthwise; set aside.

Add the sauce to a large skillet/pan (I used a 12” skillet) and gently heat over medium heat, until the sauce is gently bubbling. Add in the cooked broccolini, tofu, and scallions, and toss to coat. Then, add in the cooked and drained noodles and toss to coat. Sprinkle in the sesame seeds, taste, and adjust for salt. Serve immediately!

Notes, Substitutions, etc.

• If you want to make this recipe single-serve, simply divide the recipe in half. When cooking this for myself, I bake the tofu and broccolini in the same sheet pan; just keep them separate so you can pull the broccolini out easily.
• Feel free to play around with this dish: add bean sprouts, swap the scallions for spring onions, or use thinly sliced beef in place of the tofu (you’ll need to saute the beef if you do this). This dish is super versatile; the only ratios that matter are the noodles to sauce.

So excited for you to make this dish – it’s so perfect for early spring. Please leave a starred review and rating, love hearing from you!

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