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I bought tofu for the first time in my life to make this – SO GOOD! This will be a regular dinner for us. Thanks!
Lindlee
Oh, nothing to see here, just a basic, non-fancy, back-pocket noodle stir fry that will make your Monday (Tuesday Wednesday Thursday) night dinners a little more happy.
Can you even believe we are coming to the end of summer?
I can’t. If I were still teaching (common refrain of my life) I would be in my last week of “free summer time,” which means probably starting to shop for some classroom materials and stress-dream about the start of the new school year. Which means I would also be panicking about meal prep again.
How To Make Our Stir Fry:
Blame it on any combination of summer vacations, a three-month-long-eating-out-binge (honestly I have a food blog but I LOVE EATING OUT. There. I said it.), and all-around laziness, but Bjork and I have sort of drifted away from our normal meal prep routine as we’ve settled into summer.
I am not super sad to see the transition into fall because 1) fall is my absolute favorite food season, and 2) I am sort of anxious to get back into a routine.
Maybe it’s the colder, darker Minnesota fall days that start to drive us back into a more consistent work mode, or maybe it’s just that, as a former teacher, the school calendar is forever ingrained into my view of the world and I can’t not view September as a time to trade spontaneous brats and burgers and ice cream for some semblance or organized, responsible eating again. But regardless: as we near the end of August, meal prep would be a welcome thing in our lives again.
‘Specially if it includes tons of fresh veggies which I don’t have to chop myself, THANK U WHOLE FOODS. Did you know you can buy a fresh stir fry mix already chopped? And my mom told me that at some grocery stores you can pay to have them chop your produce before you pick it up? What what whaaaat?
For me, the pre-chopped veggies were an important element in making this approachable for the here and now. Same with these Black Pepper Stir-Fried Udon (HELLO). I mean, I AM excited for the fall organization and everything, but girlfriend, it is still August. Don’t rob me of my pre-chopped veggies just yet.
There are several things I love about this stir fry.
- You shake up the sauce in a jar. Couldn’t be easier.
- You can keep almost all ingredients in your pantry all the time.
- You can adjust based on what you have on hand. No tofu? Switch for chicken. And so on and so forth.
- NOODLES. I love a good veg-and-rice stir fry, but I ***LOVE**** a good noodle stir fry. Notice the difference there? Give me the noodles.
As lovers of Pad Thai, naturally, we are topping this with peanuts, cilantro, and lime. May or may not make sense, but it tastes fresh and happy and yum.
Save it, memorize it, tuck it in your back pocket. And then go noodle crazy on a Monday night, I dare you.
Back Pocket Stir Fry with Noodles
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Back Pocket Stir Fry with Noodles – simplicity wins. Brown rice noodles with tofu and all kinds of colorful veggies for a quick and easy dinner! vegan, vegetarian.
Ingredients
Stir Fry Basics:
- 7 ounces brown rice noodles
- 1 14 oz package tofu
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for sautéing
- 3–4 cup chopped vegetables (I used a pre-chopped fresh stir fry mix)
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- peanuts, cilantro, and lime for serving
Shake-in-a-Jar Stir Fry Sauce:
- 1/4 cup soy sauce (or tamari for a gluten-free option)
- 2–3 tablespoons brown sugar or honey
- 1/4 cup water
- 2–3 tablespoons white vinegar, to taste
- 1 teaspoon chili paste, to taste
Instructions
- SAUCE: Shake all sauce ingredients together until smooth.
- NOODLES: Soak rice noodles in a bowl of warm water.
- TOFU: Press tofu with paper towels to remove water. Cut tofu into cubes. In a nonstick skillet over medium high heat, fry tofu with a little olive oil until golden brown. Add a little sauce to get a nice browned crust. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- VEGGIES: In the same pan, add veggies and garlic and another swish of oil. Stir fry over medium high heat until tender-crisp.
- ASSEMBLE: Drain the noodles. Add them to the pan with the veggies. Add about half the sauce and stir-fry until thoroughly mixed. Add tofu. Top with peanuts, cilantro, and lime.
Notes
The tofu takes a while to crisp up, so be patient! I think I sautéed mine for about 15 minutes to get a nice crispy exterior. Check out this post for more tofu deets.
My vegetable mix included red peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, bok choy, and pea pods. Broccoli would also be yummy.
You might have a little more sauce than you need… which makes it easy to fry up more noodles and veggies next time! 🙂 It should keep fine in the fridge for a week or two. I used about half my sauce for the recipe as written, and nutrition information includes only half of the sauce.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Asian-Inspired
Keywords: stir fry with noodles, noodle stir fry, tofu stir fry
One More Thing!
Looking for more easy recipes to keep in your back pocket? Check out our go-to list here!
This was delicious!!! I used all the sauce though I couldn’t save any 🙂 I also did your baked tofu, and for veggies I used carrots, and broccoli.
Thank you for this fast easy and delicious recipe!
I’ve made this twice and am not sure what I’m doing wrong, but it lacks any substantial flavor and is underwhelming. Saving half of the sauce would just leave noodles and veggies in my mind, and I don’t mind eating less flavorful things for the sake of health!
We followed the recipe exactly, soaking the noodles at the beginning until we perceived them to be soft. We added them to the pan and mixed everything together and the noodles were completely inedible. The dish was ruined and we have to order takeout. Moral of the story — cook the noodles separately.
Great recipe and easy to cook in camper! Delicious!
Loved this! Added shishito peppers and they gave so much flavor 😋
Love your creativity 😁👌💗😋thank you so yummy live your bowls food also
I definitely am giving this recipe 5 stars; especially for ease of making. The sauce was super easy to make. I used coco aminos, and the rest of the ingredients called for (honey, not brown sugar), and we ended up using all of the sauce. I’m new to using Tofu, and this was delicious. I do wonder if marinating the tofu might give it a bit more flavor? I used frozen corn, frozen broccoli, two carrots, celery and a few peppers. And ramen rice noodles. Delicious!
You could definitely try that!
Just made this stir fry and I love it! Came out delish.
I have a few q’s about substitutions…
1. Can I use chili flakes instead of chili paste? Should I add another ingredient im order to thicken the sauce a little?
2. I added carrots with the rest of the veggies (brussel sprouts, green beans, onions) and they came out a little crunchier than I would have liked. Should I have added them earlier to soften them up? Boiled them in water, perhaps?
Would love your input.
Will definitely make again.
Thanks!
Hi, Aimee! Glad to hear you enjoyed this stir fry!
1. Yes, chili flakes or sriracha sauce can work in place of chili paste.
2. Carrots sometimes take a bit longer to soften. We’d suggest cutting them into coin-shapes and/or cooking them a bit longer next time.
Hope this helps!
What type of chile sauce do you recommend? do you mean something like Sriracha?
We like using sambal oelek here (affiliate link)! https://amzn.to/3DcyoBO
I needed something fairly quick and easy, and had tofu sitting in the fridge I needed to use up so I tried this. It was great! I loved the sauce, as it’s more vinegary and I’m not a huge fan of the thicker, sweeter sauces. I only had frozen edamame but it still was really yummy and filling! I’ll definitely make it again!
Always a winner! This is truly the perfect recipe to have on hand…we have two active kids and I was able to get this on the table tonight after a swim meet quickly and easily. It does take us a little longer as our grocery stores don’t have pre-cut stir fry mix, but that just lets us be more versatile. Tonight we made it with bok choy, broccoli, carrots, and a little celery since that’s what we had on hand.
Packed with flavor and comes together quickly! I love it! Made mine with tofu and topped with lime, chili oil, green onion and cilantro.
Do you think a scrambled egg would be good in this? Sort of like fried rice…
Absolutely!
You need to specify gluten free soy sauce when you write a recipe that you say us gluten free.
Thanks for the feedback!
I am planing to make your Back Pocket Stir-fry with Noodles.
I am not sure what kind of chili paste to buy?
Sambal Oelek Ground Fresh Chili Paste
Thai Green Curry Paste
Thai Red Curry Curry Paste
Is there a brand that you favor?
We’d recommend the Sambal Oelek. We usually use Huy Fong brand. Enjoy, Gail!
Looks good and flexible too
I like your back part stir fry with Noodles recipe but the sodium count is WAY too. high to be healthy. Do you have any suggestions for those on a lower salt diet. I could put a “little” light soy sauce for taste but would rather substitute. Any ideas?
Hi Nancy! We’d suggest using coconut aminos or low sodium soy sauce.
Love how simple the recipe is but full of flavor.
I have always loved stir fry. Easy to make and feeds my whole family. Some of the ways that I’ve learned how to cook was using https://sliceutah.com/professional-course/. It’s a great way to become a professional cook and make those great meals for your family.
I was not looking for a recipe, I was looking to see if you put a caption on
your pictures in the directions for your recipe. But then I fell in love with the recipe. While I will have to swap out some of the vegetables(they are not IBS friendly. lol), the basic recipe should still be delicious.
Enjoy!
Love how easy this recipe is if you start with pre-chopped veggies! Such a great idea for a weeknight meal!
My family and I really enjoyed this. Made with chicken instead of tofu. Even my picky child had seconds. I have found so many great recipes through your blog that we all enjoy. Thank you!!
Thank you so much for sharing!
Looks especially yummy! Love easy stir fry like this!
Love this recipe! Totally what we all need for weeknight meals that come together in a flash, with whatever ingredients you have on hand.