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A simple weeknight dinner that’s packed with protein and doesn’t require a grocery run? This garlicky peanut noodle dish just might earn a permanent spot in your dinner rotation. Made with mostly pantry staples and ready in under 30 minutes, it’s rich, creamy, and endlessly adaptable – perfect for busy evenings.
The dish comes from Nisha Vora, a Harvard-educated former lawyer who left the legal world to follow her passion for plant-based cooking. In a recent video on her Rainbow Plant Life YouTube channel, Vora walks viewers through the process in four simple steps, making it easy to recreate this protein-packed meal at home.
The combination of soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and the spicy kick of chili crisp, make this dish tangy and flavorful. But it’s also a highly nutritious option, with peanut butter providing healthy fats and protein, and the addition of vegetables like bell pepper and scallions boosting the its fiber and vitamin content.
Whether you’re craving a hearty dinner or need a quick dish to serve during a hectic week, this recipe checks all the boxes.
Here’s how to make this garlicky peanut noodle dish in your own kitchen.
Step 1: Prep Your Protein
The first step in preparing these peanut noodles is to choose your protein. Vora opts for tofu in her version of the recipe, but she notes that you can easily substitute with other options such as tempeh, seitan, or even skip the protein altogether if preferred. “This recipe is very customizable,” Vora explains. “You can use whatever protein you like or just omit it.”
If you’re using tofu, Vora suggests pressing it for about 10 minutes to remove excess water. After cutting the tofu into cubes, coat it with olive oil, salt, white pepper, and potato starch. “This [the potato starch] will help the tofu crisp up in the oven,” Vora says. Spread the tofu out on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 425°F for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through. Once the tofu is crisped to perfection, it’s ready to be added to the noodles.
Read more: ‘What I Eat In A Day – Realistic Vegan High-Protein Meals’
Step 2: Prep Aromatics and Vegetables
While the tofu bakes, Vora turns her attention to the aromatics and vegetables. She begins by slicing four scallions on a bias, though she notes that straight slices work just as well. To mellow out the scallions’ strong flavor, Vora soaks them in cold water while she prepares the rest of the ingredients.
Next, she grates four cloves of garlic. For extra flavor, Vora suggests incorporating a red bell pepper, but she also encourages flexibility. “You can customize this,” she notes, “You can julienne some cucumbers, chop up some snap peas, or grate cabbage.” Add any leftover green vegetables to the mix as well.
Vora then chops a generous half-cup of roasted salted peanuts to sprinkle over the noodles, ensuring that peanut flavor takes center stage. “I want this to be a peanut-forward dish with a lot of peanut personality,” Vora says.
Step 3: Prep the Peanut Sauce and Cook the Noodles
The peanut sauce is where the magic happens. Vora heats a tablespoon of neutral oil in a small pan and sizzles the grated garlic until fragrant, a Chinese cooking technique that infuses the oil with a rich garlic flavor. She adds soy sauce, rice vinegar, white pepper, and brown sugar to the pan. The sugar, though unusual in savory dishes, enhances the savory flavors and balances the other ingredients.
Then, it’s time to add peanut butter to the sauce. Vora recommends a creamy, unsweetened peanut butter. “You want a heaping third cup of peanut butter,” she explains. “But it is much easier to measure if you have a scale.” To prevent the sauce from becoming too thick, Vora adds hot water to thin it out and creates a smooth, pourable consistency.
Vora prefers fresh or shelf-stable udon noodles for their thick, chewy texture. However, she notes that dried noodles will work just as well, adding that you can even use linguine if that’s what you have on hand. “This is a very flexible recipe,” she says, noting that if you’re allergic to peanuts you can use a different nut butter such as cashew or almond. Once the water is boiling, cook the udon noodles for about two minutes, then rinse them under cold water to cool them down, as Vora prefers serving them at room temperature.
Step 4: Assemble the Dish
With all the components prepared, it’s time to assemble the dish. Vora combines the cooked noodles, crispy tofu, nicely curled scallions, and vegetables in a large bowl. She then pours the peanut sauce over the noodles, tossing everything together. To finish, she adds the chopped peanuts and garnishes with chili crisp and additional scallions.
“Once you try it, you’ll probably also want to have it in your fridge at all times,” Vora says, referring to the homemade chili crisp she adds for an extra layer of flavor. The result is a rich, satisfying noodle dish with a perfect balance of savory, sweet, and spicy.
Nisha Vora’s garlicky peanut noodles are an excellent choice for anyone looking for a quick, customizable, and nutritious weeknight meal. Whether you stick to the original recipe or get creative with your protein and vegetables, this dish is sure to satisfy your taste buds while keeping things simple and wholesome.
Find this and other plant-based recipes on Vora’s Rainbow Plant Life website.
Read more: ‘Why I Love These Easy, One-Pot, Protein-Packed Vegan Dinners’
