Vegan Japanese Mazemen “Mixed Noodles” with Organic Pressed Tofu

By Nancy Eisman

Here’s a quick and easy Japanese-inspired dish known as Mazemen—‘maze’ for mixed and ‘men’ for noodles. Basically, it’s ramen noodles without the broth, and let’s face it, the best part of a bowl of ramen is the noodles, and the pesky broth is just a barrier to some tasty slurping.

Not to worry—these noodles aren’t naked. Full of flavor from a glossy sauce and loaded with nutrition from a variety of toppings, Mazemen (maz-eh-mon) is limited only by your imagination. Hearty but not heavy, all it takes to make this satisfying meal is to combine the umami-rich sauce ingredients, cook the noodles, quick sauté the toppings, and mix it all together.

Instead of ramen noodles, I decided to use brown rice spaghetti, which, along with tamari in place of soy sauce, makes this recipe gluten-free. For toppings, there’s crumbled tofu, shiitake mushrooms, savoy cabbage, long red peppers, and green onions, but feel free to forage through your fridge for other options, e.g., broccolini, baby bok choy, lotus root, other mushrooms, carrots, chile peppers, edamame, radishes, bamboo shoots, or any of Melissa’s Asian Essentials® will do very nicely.

So, the next time you find yourself craving a bowl of ramen-style noodles, simply skip the broth and slurp up the Mazemen!

Vegan Japanese Mazemen “Mixed Noodles” with Organic Pressed Tofu

Ingredients

For the sauce:
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 ½ tablespoons white miso paste
2 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
1 tablespoon plant-based butter, melted
About 2 tablespoons hot water

For the toppings:
1 package Melissa’s Organic Pressed Tofu, crumbled
Salt & pepper to season
Cornstarch to coat
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoon sesame oil
1 package (8 oz.) shiitake mushrooms, diced
1 cup long red pepper, diced
2 cups savoy cabbage, diced
1 cup green onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons ginger, grated

Noodles:
1 box (12 oz.) brown rice spaghetti

Preparation
Add all of the sauce ingredients into a medium-sized bowl. Whisk together until combined. Set the sauce aside.
In a separate bowl, place the crumbled tofu, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat lightly with corn starch. Add the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon of sesame oil to a large sauté pan and stir-fry the tofu on medium heat until browned, about 12-15 minutes. Remove the tofu from the pan and set aside.
Add the remaining oil to the same pan and add the other topping ingredients. Sauté for about 3-4 minutes until the toppings are tender, and then set the pan aside.
While the toppings are being sautéed, cook the brown rice spaghetti in a large pot of boiling water. Drain the noodles and then add them back into the pot. Pour the sauce over the noodles until well-coated.
Add the tofu and other toppings to the noodles, toss in the toasted sesame seeds and mix completely until everything is evenly distributed. Serve hot, warm, or cold the next day. (Garnish options: diced Japanese cucumbers and/or diced green onions.)