Vegetable Lo Mein

Vegetable lo mein is a delicious way to eat a lot of vegetables (and by now you've probably noticed that many of my dinners are heavy on the vegetables!).  If you make lo mein at home as opposed to getting take out, you can attempt to control the amount of sodium in the meal.   I've reduced the sodium a lot in this recipe, but you should know that it is still a sodium-heavy meal.

This recipe is another one adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook.  It has napa cabbage, red peppers, mushrooms, and green onions for vegetables.  When I made this I also added a handful of green beans because I happened to have some.  So keep in mind that you can easily add other vegetables and they will be happy in this lo mein!

I've made this a few times with regular spaghetti noodles, but I like it best with actual lo mein noodles. It was actually the fact that I finally found lo mein noodles in a store that prompted me to make this again.   I haven't tried it, but I bet fresh noodles from the refrigerated section of an Asian Market would also be great in this recipe (perhaps even better??).   This meal is pretty fast to put together-- if you have all of the ingredients then it is definitely faster to make than getting take out!  Start bringing the water to a boil for the pasta while you are prepping the vegetables for maximum efficiency. :)

Vegetable Lo Mein

*NOTE:  Although this is a vegetable lo mein, it is not vegetarian due to the ingredients in the sauce!  I haven't tried to modify it to make it vegetarian yet.*

serves: 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons soy-sauce
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 8 ounces dried lo mein (or spaghetti)
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 10 ounces mushrooms, brushed clean, stemmed, and thickly sliced
• 1 head napa cabbage, halved, cored, and sliced 1 inch thick
• 2 red bell peppers, sliced
• one bunch green onions, sliced 
• 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh cilanto
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• sriracha, to taste (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1) For the sauce: whisk the broth, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and cornstarch in a small bowl.  Set aside.

2) For the noodles:  bring a large pot of water to boil and cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain in a colander when cooked.  Start cooking the noodles when you start cooking the vegetables.

2)  For the vegetables: In a large pot or dutch oven, heat one tablespoon canola oil over medium-high heat.  Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are light brown and releasing moisture, about 5 minutes.

3)  Add red peppers and cabbage to mushrooms and attempt to stir.  Cover and cook for 1 minute.  Remove cover and continue to cook, stirring as you can, until the cabbage wilts.  It will look like a ton of cabbage at first, but it will wilt down significantly within a few minutes!

4)  Add the green onions, ginger, and garlic and cook for another minute.  Re-whisk the sauce together and pour over the vegetables.  Bring to a boil and cook for a minute until thick.

5)  Add the cooked noodles, cilantro, and toasted sesame oil to the vegetables and sauce.  Toss until combined (tongs work well).  Add 1/2 teaspoon (or more) of sriracha if desired for heat.  Serve immediately.

(recipe slightly adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook)