Salt & pepper tofu, glass noodles and a rainbow of fresh fruit and vegetables, dressed with a spicy chilli sauce. This healthy and quick Spicy Tofu Noodle Bowl is vegan and gluten free.
Cold noodle bowls are a fantastic meal for hot summer days. Cool cucumbers and an array of other vegetables and fruit are given a zing with the spicy chilli sauce.
You can make this healthy vegan and gluten-free bowl in about 15 minutes. So, it’s great for busy week nights and quick work-from home lunches.
What Noodles to Use in Your Bowl
This Spicy Tofu Noodle Bowl recipe uses glass noodles made from green beans and peas. Glass noodles or Longkou Pancit Vermicelli are actually pretty easy to find in most grocers. Typically they can be found in the Asian cuisine section where you would typically come across rice noodles.
I use Rooster Brand Longkou Pancit Vermicelli. They’re light yet filling and have the most beautiful texture that soaks in the sauce without being soggy. The texture is a bit firmer than a rice noodle, and more dainty than a buckwheat noodle.
Another plus os that these Vermicelli noodles are made of vegetables so they’re full of fibre, and don’t leave you with that heavy feeling like some noodles do.
They’re super quick and easy to cook. All you have to do is boil water, and once the water is boiling add the noodles and remove from heat. Let the noodles sit in the hot water for 5 minutes, then drain. Then you simply rinse under cold water until your glass noodles are thoroughly cool in temperature.
Of course, you can choose to use any variety of noodles you like. Some other options are: soba, buckwheat or rice noodles.
I highly recommend though using glass noodles though!
Ingredients in Your Spicy Tofu Noodle Bowl
• Rooster Brand Longkou Pancit Vermicelli
These will make the best cold noodle bowl but you can use buckwheat or rice noodles.
• Fresh cantaloupe
If you’re not a fan of cantaloupe replace with any type of melon such as honeydew, watermelon, or even any other type of fruit you like! Juicy and sweet fruit will work best in this recipe.
• Breakfast radishes
Use any variety of radish you can find or are in season.
• Sliced cucumbers
These give balance to the spicy chilli sauce.
• Peas in the pod
Remove from pod before eating as they pods are quite tough to chew into!
• A few blackberries
Use any type of sweet berries you like. The blackberries add beautiful colour contrast to this rainbow-like noodle bowl.
• Salt & pepper tofu
Cubed tofu quickly fried up in a pan with just salt and pepper. Easy, quick and tasty!
Ingredients in Your Spicy Chilli Sauce
• Ground ginger
This gives a slightly peppery and sweet aroma. You can use fresh ginger if your prefer. For speed we use the ground form, which is not as strongly flavoured and has a warm bite to it with a little sweetness.
• Minced fresh garlic
To save time it’s always great to have on hand a bottle of dehydrated minced garlic which you can use in place of fresh garlic.
• Soy sauce
Tamari works just as well here too if you prefer or if that’s all you have on hand!
• Sesame oil
This adds a toasted slight nuttiness to the sauce and a depth of flavour.
• Fresh lemon juice
This gives a zippy brightness. Or you can use lime juice or even fresh squeezed orange if you like.
• Dried red pepper flakes
Red pepper flakes add the heat to this sauce. You can amp up the heat by adding more if you love spiciness!
• Water
To make your sauce less thick.
• Maple syrup
Used for sweetness in this sauce. Start with 2 tsp and add another if you like it sweeter. You can also use agave syrup in place of maple syrup.
Spicy Tofu Noodle Bowl
Ingredients
Spicy Chilli Sauce
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 1 tsp dried chilli flakes or dried red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp water
- 2-3 tsp maple syrup
Noodle Bowl
- 2 nests/servings Vermicelli glass noodles I used Rooster brand Vermicelli Longkou Pancit
- half cantaloupe cubed
- 1 cucumber sliced
- 6-8 breakfast radishes
- 6-12 peas in the pod
- 6-8 blackberries
Salt & Pepper Tofu
- 1/2 package tofu rinsed and pressed
Instructions
Spicy Chilli Sauce
- Add ginger, minced garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, lemon juice, chilli flakes and water to a small bowl.
- Add 3 tsp maple syrup to the mixture.
- Taste and add 1 more tsp if you prefer it more sweet.
Salt & Pepper Tofu
- Drain and press half a package of tofu.
- Cut into cubes and place in frying pan.
- Seasons with salt and pepper to taste and fry, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until golden brown on each side.
Noodle Bowl
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.
- Add 2 nests (or servings) of Vermicelli glass noodles and cook according to package directions.
- Drain noodles and rinse well with cold water until noodles chilled throughout. (Ensure noodles have been well drained and are fairly dry so they don't add water to your bowl).
- Wash, cut and dry your vegetables and fruit.
- Place your vegetables, fruit, tofu and noodles in a bowl. Add your Spicy Chilli Sauce to a small dip bowl, or drizzle desired amount on top of bowl. Enjoy!
Looking for more healthy bowl recipes? Try my Noodle Bowl with Peanut Sauce!
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