Hello Lovelies, I have a new recipe for you, and it is our favorite food: Vegan Umami RAMEN! And wie I say favorite I mean the WHOLE family. Everyone has a favorite dish here, of course, but we all agree on Ramen. We love it very much and could actually eat it every day. The only thing that then varies a bit is what you want as a topping with your ramen. Ramen are actually Japanese noodles, but also the noodle soup in which they are served is called ramen.
If Asian noodles disappear as fast at your table as they do at ours, also try my new quick vegan chop suey – the colorful veggie stir-fry is just as much of a family hit as this ramen.
If you love Asian food, my quick tempeh and cashew stir-fry with crunchy veggies lands on our table often too – high-protein and ready in 30 minutes.
When the weather turns warm and you want that same Asian comfort cold instead of hot, try my vegan poke bowl with watermelon tuna – fresh, colourful and ready in about 30 minutes.
This is another recipe that I was able to create in collaboration with Knorr Switzerland * and this time I used their new UMAMI spice. If you ask yourself: Umami - what is that?
UMAMI - the 5th taste
The human tongue can distinguish between five flavors. Umami is next to sweet, sour, salty and bitter the fifth and youngest sense of taste. This was discovered in Japan and refers to a spicy or delicious taste. Umami is particularly common in high-protein foods. The umami taste is produced by a specific amino acid called glutamic acid. Which is quite natural in meat, fish, mushrooms, tomatoes and fermented foods like cheese or soy sauce. Breast milk also contains glutamic acid. The salts of this acid are glutamates. These are also available naturally in the foods.
So the new Knorr UMAMI spice picks up on just that fifth sense of taste, in a completely natural way and with 100% natural ingredients. The spice is a combination of salt, onions, dried mushrooms, soy sauce powder, celery and other spices and I find it super delicious. Not only does it go well with ramen soup, it also goes well with salad, vegetables or dips.
Unfortunately, we have never been to Japan (but it's on the bucket list), but luckily there is now the possibility to eat delicious ramen almost everywhere in the world. Especially in LA, the trend is very popular and we have eaten it very often. Fortunately, you do not have to travel that far, either to Japan or to LA, because with this delicious recipe you can easily make your Ramen at home.
What I also like very much is that everyone can put together their own topping. My kids love corn in the soup, my husband likes a lot of pasta and mushrooms. I like a lot of vegetables and broth. So everyone has their favorites and you can make a great "Ramen Party" where everyone chooses their favorite toppings. By the way, in Japan you eat the noodle soup for breakfast - I don't need that, but for lunch or dinner I'm always ready for this healthy soup. You can prepare the broth well ahead, and if you have less time, it does not have to be simmering that long. The taste is then simply less intense.
Have you ever eaten ramen and if so, with what do you most like it? I hope I could inspire you to make Umami Ramen at home, it's really easy.
For now, this was my last recipe with the new Knorr spices, I'm really excited about the new spice line. They are fresh, tasty and without additives! I've really enjoyed cooking up the whole series with them.
If you love Asian cooking as much as we do, be sure to try my creamy vegan Tom Kha Gai with tofu for another cozy bowl of soup. When you are short on time, these veggie stir-fry noodles from the wok come together in minutes, and for something fresh I love this soba noodle salad with peanut dressing - all 3 fit right into an umami-loving kitchen.
If you have Pinterest, you can find me here and pin this picture:
**This blogpost was created in cooperation with Knorr Switzerland – the recipes are my own. *
