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Lo Mein isn’t just for eating at Chinese restaurants anymore! It’s for a quick weeknight side dish or a weekend lunch. Because guess what guys, it only takes about 25 minutes to make lo mein. Who knew?! I mean I always thought Lo mein was this sacred recipe that only Chinese restaurant chefs could make. Reality check, it’s super easy!!
Even though I don’t follow a gluten free diet I do usually opt for rice over lo mein when eating at a Chinese restaurant. I often find that pasta weighs me down and makes me feel all blood sugary. The solution is to make lo mein myself. The best part is that I used my new favorite pasta made from chickpeas! It’s higher in protein, fiber and lower in carbs than traditional pasta. Plus it’s gluten free soy free and all the things! Besides it just tastes really delicious! And this way I can share it with you guys because I love you and want you to have all of the best recipes! 🙂
Healthy gluten free lo mein made at home in only 25 minutes was born! Go us!
I may have gotten a little carried away with all of the veggies, you know me, go big with the veggies or go home, right?! I chose green onions, mushrooms, celery (for crunch), red bell pepper and frozen peas. But you could honestly chose any veggies you prefer. Snow peas, carrots, or bok choy would all be tasty options.
I have to confess that when I first had the idea to make gluten free lo mein I wanted to use zucchini noodles or some other type of vegetable noodle. The first time I tested this recipe I made it with the zucchini noodles and it was good but it didn’t feel like lo mein. The texture fell flat without the soft chewiness of real noodles. Sorry zoodles, I still love you for many other recipes, don’t you worry. Don’t you just love that there are healthier options out there now for pasta that contain veggies, like chickpeas and are higher in protein?
The food nerd in me is freaking out right now!
I know you’ll love this easy gluten free lo mein! Its soft and chewy from the noodles, packed with crunchy veggies, and topped with a perfectly salty sauce with a slight kick to it. My mouth is drooling over here!
For more Asian inspired recipes try my Lighter Orange chicken, Healthy General Tso’s chicken, and my Eggplant Green Curry with Chicken. Can’t get enough!
3 green onions, sliced (separate white/light green from dark green)
3 celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2cup frozen peas
8ounces gluten free spaghetti*
Sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce (or sub coconut aminos if avoiding soy, or tamari if avoiding gluten)
1 tablespoon coconut sugar
3 teaspoons sesame oil
2 inches ginger, grated
Optional 1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce
Instructions
Prepare the veggies: Chop all of the veggies as instructed above. The cooking process moves quickly so you want to be ready.
Mix the sauce: In a small bowl add all of the sauce ingredients and whisk until combined. OR shake in a mason jar. Taste and adjust as needed.
Cook the pasta: Start boiling the water for the pasta. Follow package instructions of how to cook. Cook the noodles just under a minute or two so there is still a bite on them. Drain and set aside when cooked.
Cook the veggies: Heat up a large skillet over medium high heat. Heat the oil and add the mushrooms and the white/light green onions. Saute for 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are well browned. Add the celery and red bell pepper, saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and frozen peas, saute for 1 minute. Add in the cooked noodles to the pan along with the sauce. Toss to combine, remove from heat.
Serve: Garnish with the reserved green onions. Leftovers reheat nicely.
Notes
*You can use any kind of gluten free sapaghetti you find or have on hand but I really love Banza pasta. It’s made with chickepeas so it has more protein and less carbs than traditional pasta. Plus it’s gluten free and soy free!
Lo mein is not usually gluten free. Even if the sauce is thickened with gluten free cornstarch, like many are, conventional soy sauce is made with wheat, so it's not gluten free. Of course, this recipe for gluten free lo mein is made with tamari or gluten free soy sauce, and rice noodles or other gluten free noodles.
The defining feature of any lo mein dish is the sauce, so make sure you take the time to get it right. Using dark soy sauce will give the lo mein color and a bolder taste while adding light soy sauce will give the dish some extra saltiness and flavor without staining the noodles darker.
Gluten-free pasta tends to be less forgiving than regular pasta and can go from hard in the center to mushy in a matter of minutes. The cook time on the back of the package isn't always accurate. To cover your bases, set a timer for 2 minutes shy of the time called for. Taste a few noodles at this time.
Lo mein (traditional Chinese: 撈麵/撈麪; simplified Chinese: 捞面; Cantonese Yale: lou1 min6; pinyin: lāo miàn) is a Chinese dish with noodles. It often contains vegetables and some type of meat or seafood, usually beef, chicken, pork, or shrimp.
These long strands are particularly good at soaking up the favors of whatever they are cooked with, making them excellent substitutes in a dish that is covered in thick sauce — like lo mein. Vermicelli and rice-based noodles such as those that go into pad Thai are other alternatives that can work in a pinch.
You want to buy an egg noodle or pasta that's relatively thin and has some tooth. Some common names will be lo mein, chow mein, egg noodles or pancit noodles. Most markets have Japanese yaki soba noodles in the cold case, and those would work perfectly.
For this recipe, you can use virtually any kind of noodle you want. Lo mein traditionally uses Chinese egg noodles which is kind of like spaghetti since it's wheat based, but also has egg. I, of course, can't eat wheat, so I just used brown rice spaghetti which works really well.
The noodles are made from white flour, which raises your blood sugar faster than fiber-rich whole grains. Plus, they're cooked with oil and soy sauce, so you get extra fat and sodium. Can't pass it up? Order the vegetable version, and only have half the order.
Cook pasta in an extra-large saucepan, for best results use 1lt of salted water per 100g pasta. Allow the pasta to boil uncovered while it cooks. There is no need to add oil to the cooking water. Boil for 5 minutes then carefully taste the pasta every minute until it is 'al dente'
Just like regular noodles, you'll want to drain the pasta, never rinse. Unless the instructions specify to do so. This is common when cooking quinoa pasta due to the distinct flavor or residue. Before draining, reserve 1/2 cup to 1 cup of the cooking water.
Yes, pure, uncontaminated oats are gluten-free. The U. S. Food and Drug Administration considers oats a gluten-free grain under its gluten-free labeling regulations and only requires that packaged products with oats as an ingredient contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten overall.
Traditional lo mein noodles are made with wheat, so they are not gluten free. Feel free to sub in rice noodles or your favorite GF spaghetti noodles to make this gluten-free!
Largely this is a matter of personal taste since both dishes can be made to your preference. If you prefer lightly sauced noodles with some crunch and vegetables with some snap, chow mein might be the way to go. If you like a more comforting noodle with richly flavored sauce, lo mein may be the better option.
This can be a bit trickier because it really depends on the brands for these sauces but the good news is you can now find both hoisin and oyster sauce in gluten-free form. The best strategy is to check the ingredients list if a sauce isn't marked “Gluten Free” clearly on the label.
Conventional noodles are made with wheat flour, so are not gluten free. But, as with other forms of pasta, there are lots of high-quality gf alternatives available. And most rice noodles are gluten free.
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