Here’s a new Meatless Monday idea for you: Today’s Easy Fresh Vegetable Lo Mein recipe incorporates colorful veggies and satisfyingly slurpy noodles in an all-in-one vegan meal.
Instead of using a potentially mushy bag of frozen stir fry vegetables to make homemade lo mein, why not try this Easy Fresh Vegetable Lo Mein recipe with your choice of fresh vegetables? Today’s batch features carrot, red bell pepper, broccoli, mushrooms, onion, and spinach… because, that’s what the contents of my fridge yielded.
Want to change things up? Try substituting snow peas for broccoli (add them to the pan after stir-frying other veggies for a few minutes), increase the carrot, add bok choy instead of spinach, throw in some shredded cabbage, and/or add some edamame. Vegetarian lo mein is a great way to use up various veggie odds and ends.
No, spaghetti noodles aren’t authentic in lo mein — but they’re what I had on hand, and they’re easy to find at ALDI or any local grocery store. You can make your own veggie lo mein with spaghetti noodles, or use ramen, lo mein noodles, or even veggie zoodles of choice. This is a forgiving basic recipe!
Looking for more vegetarian recipe ideas? Take a few minutes to browse through the Meatless Monday category for additional dinner options — or, check out fifteen favorite meatless meals to jump start your vegetarian cooking.
Easy Fresh Vegetable Lo Mein
Ingredients
– for the noodles
8 oz dry spaghetti noodles
– for the veggies
1 Tbsp canola or vegetable oil
8 oz mushrooms, chopped
1 sweet bell pepper, julienned or in matchsticks
1 medium carrot, julienned or in matchsticks
6 oz broccoli crowns, chopped small
1/4 of a medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp sesame oil
5 oz fresh spinach
– for the sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp packed brown sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
– to top
2 green onions, chopped
Directions
Start water boiling for the pasta. Cook spaghetti al dente according to package directions, then drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, cut up all of the veggies.
Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat for one minute. Add all of the vegetables, except for spinach.
Cook veggies over medium-high heat, stirring often, for five minutes or until crisp-tender.
While the veggies are stir-frying, mix the sauce ingredients together.
When the veggies are done, stir in the sesame oil and the spinach. Cook and stir in the spinach for another 2 minutes over medium-high heat, or until spinach is just wilted.
Stir the cooked spaghetti noodles and sauce into the skillet, until everything is heated through and nicely combined.
Top your veggie lo mein with chopped green onion, and serve.
Note: No, spaghetti noodles are not authentic — but you may be more likely to have them on hand, and they will do! Substitute in another noodle, if desired.
Vegetarian Lo Mein is both pretty and veggie-stocked…
Eat the rainbow and all that: Lo mein is so much prettier with fresh vegetables, that it makes you want to enjoy. If you mix it up with different veggies, just include a variety of colors and textures for maximum impact. (Don’t be intimidated by the length of the ingredient list, either, because most of simply involves cutting up a variety of veggies.)
And if you have picky kids like I do… I’ll confess that College Guy avoided the mushrooms, while Middle School Guy picked out the bell pepper. I figure that at least they each got some veggies in, and both enjoyed the rest of this noodly dish. This vegan lo mein recipe is sure to satisfy!
Easy Fresh Vegetable Lo Mein, printable recipe
Easy Fresh Vegetable Lo Mein
Ingredients
for the noodles
- 8 oz dry spaghetti noodles
for the veggies
- 1 Tbsp canola or vegetable oil
- 8 oz mushrooms chopped
- 1 sweet bell pepper julienned or in matchsticks
- 1 medium carrot julienned or in matchsticks
- 6 oz broccoli crowns chopped small
- 1/4 of a medium yellow onion thinly sliced
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 5 oz fresh spinach
for the sauce
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp packed brown sugar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic about 3 cloves
- 1/2 tsp powdered ginger
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper optional
to top
- 2 green onions chopped
Instructions
- Start water boiling for the pasta. Cook spaghetti al dente according to package directions, then drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, cut up all of the veggies.
- Heat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat for one minute. Add all of the vegetables, except for spinach.
- Cook veggies over medium-high heat, stirring often, for five minutes or until crisp-tender.
- While the veggies are stir-frying, mix the sauce ingredients together.
- When the veggies are done, stir in the sesame oil and the spinach. Cook and stir in the spinach for another 2 minutes over medium-high heat, or until spinach is just wilted.
- Stir the cooked spaghetti noodles and sauce into the skillet, until everything is heated through and nicely combined.
- Top your veggie lo mein with chopped green onion, and serve.
Notes
Recipes in the real world
Be sure not to miss the free ALDI meal plans, which show you how to use these easy family recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family. Or, find more recipe ideas with the Recipe Search!