noodle bowl

I love that one of my favorite foods (noodles/pasta) is also one of the fastest and easiest to make. Pasta is a classic college student go-to meal because it is fast, easy, and cheap. This bowl goes a little beyond your average bowl of noodles or package of ramen, providing more nutrition and a lot more flavor. For this recipe I used soba noodles, which are a type of noodle made out of buckwheat (perfect for you gluten-free friends). This was my first time cooking soba noodles, and they did not disappoint. The whole package (containing around 7 servings) cost me around $5 and required just 6 minutes to cook! While the noodles are cooking, I sautéd a big pan of vegetables and tofu to save for the week. I whipped up a simple teriyaki sauce dressing with some ingredients I already had to put on top. Usually teriyaki sauce is loaded with sugar and additives, but when you make it yourself you can control what goes in it. All you need out of teriyaki sauce is for it to be slightly sweet, salty, and savory. The combination of tamari, sesame oil, and honey for natural sweetness achieves just that.

Vegetables and tofu keep well in a container throughout the week. I cooked the whole package of noodles at the same time, but I think taking a few minutes to make them fresh would have been ideal. Feel free to use the vegetables or noodles that you like. Instead of tofu, you could also simply fry and egg to put on top or any other protein source you like (also, there is protein in everything, especially the broccoli!). You could also take this concept and make regular pasta with vegetables on the side and use a premade marinara sauce. The idea here is that this is an easy, healthy, cheap, and fast meal.

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Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 5

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Ingredients:

• one package soba noodles
• broccoli (one head)
• string beans (around 2 cups)
• baby portobello mushrooms (1 package)
• extra firm tofu (1 package)
• coconut or olive oil

for the sauce

• sesame oil (3 tablespoons)
• honey (1 tablespoon)
• soy sauce or tamari (2 tablespoons)
• garlic powder (1/2 teaspoon)
• salt

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Supplies

• large frying pan
• cutting board
• knife
• small bowl

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Instructions:

1. Wash and chop your veggies.
2. Cut the tofu into chunks.
3. Begin to boil water for the noodles according to instructions on the package. Add the noodles and cook according to instructions
4. Heat oil in the frying pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add your veggies and quickly sauté until they are tender and bright green and the mushrooms are soft. This should take around 5 minutes.
5. Set aside the veggies, add more oil to the pan and add the tofu. Add in tamari, sesame oil, and salt to taste. Sauté until all sides are golden brown. This should take around 10 minutes.
6. Mix up the dressing in a small bowl. Adjust ratios of ingredients to taste.