Here is my version of a gluten-free yakisoba. Yakisoba was and still is one of my favourite Japanese fast foods. I can still remember the sights and smells of Yakisoba being made in stalls and grocery store food stands in Japan. Yakisoba is very popular in Japan. The Japanese characters for Yakisoba are ????. It means 'yaki'-fried and 'soba'-noodles. Yes, I know what you are thinking right now, soba are buckwheat noodles and you are right, but 'yakisoba' doesn't mean buckwheat noodles. In Japan they use a wheat based noodle similar to ramen noodles in yakisoba.

Above you can see the type of gluten-free noodle I used this time. I love Lotus Foods gluten-free ramen. In particular I really like the millet and brown rice flavour. They have a nice chew to them that reminds me of gluten noodles. The only issue I find is that they are short, not long like gluten ramen, but they taste good. If you'd like more information about this company check out their website at https://www.lotusfoods.com/. Now if you can't find these where you live, then I have used gluten-free spaghetti noodles with satisfactory results.

Let's start cooking! First thing you'll need to do is make your yakisoba sauce. I can't find any gluten-free version to buy where I live, so made my own. Here is a link to my gluten-free yakisoba sauce.

After making your sauce, you'll need to chop up your vegetables into thin strips and stir-fry in some oil. I like using a little canola or olive oil with a teaspoon of sesame oil to boost the flavour. I only fry mine until they are mixed in the oil and still crunchy. Then I add a couple of tablespoons of the yakisoba sauce and cover and cook until they are to your liking. Some like their veggies soft others with a bit of a crunch. If you like them cooked softer you can always add a few tablespoons of water to steam them. Once cooked remove to a plate. You will use the same frying pan or wok to fry the noodles.

While the vegetables cook, you can start boiling your noodles as per instructions on the packaging. Drain the noodles well. Put a about a tablespoon of oil into the frying pan and heat it up a bit. Then add the noodles and stir till coated. Next add a couple of tablespoons of the sauce and fry for a few more minutes.

Our family likes to put the noodles on a plate and top with the vegetables and our favourite garnishes. This recipe makes about four servings.

Gluten-free Japanese Yakisoba

Ingredients

• 2 cups, thinly sliced cabbage
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup, thinly sliced carrots
• 1 thinly sliced red pepper (optional)
• 1 garlic clove minced or about 1 teaspoon of garlic powder(optional)
• oil for frying (I mix canola and sesame oil together)
• cooked gluten-free noodles of your choice (I used 4 blocks of the gluten-free Lotus noodles. We love noodles, but if you'd like less noodles and more vegetables just adjust.)
• 1/4 cup or more of gluten-free yakisoba sauce (see link)

Directions

1. Wash you vegetables and cut all into thin stripes.
2. Heat a large frying pan or wok and add your oil and vegetables and stir to coat. If you like your veggies soft,then add a few tablespoons of water cover and let simmer.
3. Meanwhile heat a large pot of water and cook your noodles and drain.
4. Add yakisoba sauce to your vegetables about 1 to 2 tablespoons and stir let simmer with the lid off so the sauce evaporates a bit.
5. When vegetables are cooked remove to a plate and add some more oil to the pan and add your noodles and fry a bit, then add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the yakisoba sauce and heat through.
6. Grab a plate and put the noodles on and top with the vegetables.
7. Top with mayonnasie and aonori and ketchup (optional).
8. Enjoy! You can top with a fried egg too if you like.
9. Note: This dish is very flexible. My vegetable amounts are approximates. Use as much or as little as you like. I don't sweat it if I put in a bit more cabbage.

There are many versions of yakisoba throughout Japan. Each area seems to have their way of making it, but basically it is stir-fried vegetables, the main one being cabbage, that is mixed with a yakisoba sauce and cooked noodles. You top it with a variety of garnishes, such as aonori (powdered seaweed), mayonnaise, beni shoga (pickled ginger), and katsuobushi (fish flakes). I don't like fish flakes, so I give them a miss.

This is a great dish to use up vegetables from your fridge. Meat can be added too. Thinly sliced pork, beef or chicken can be fried and mixed with the vegetables. In some areas of Japan they put the yakisoba mixture on top of an okonomiyaki!!! Ohhh heaven.

If you like Japanese food check out some of my other Gluten-Free Japanese recipes.

• Gluten-Free Japanese Curry
• Gluten-Free Onigiri (Rice Balls)

What are your favourite vegetables in yakisoba? Have you got any suggestions on what to add or how to make it better? I'd love to hear your ways of making one of my favourite Japanese foods.