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Vegetable Lo Mein Noodles

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This Vegetable Lo Mein recipe is made with pasta noodles sauteed with snap peas, bell pepper, onions, mushrooms, and cabbage. They’re tossed in a sweet and savory Asian sauce. Skip the Chinese takeout and save money with homemade Asian noodles!

lo mein vegetables and noodles in steel wok on blue background

VEGETABLE LO MEIN

I’m crazy about Asian noodles. I mean, stir-fried noodles with fresh vegetables, tossed in a sweet and savory Asian sauce.

What’s not to love?

Actually, it can be a little oily when ordered as Chinese take out, which is why I came up with my own recipe.

It’s much healthier, budget-friendly, and ready in 30 minutes. This recipe uses everyday ingredients available at most grocery stores!

It easily ranks in the top favorite weeknight dinners of our meal rotation.

What kind of noodles are used in Lo Mein?

Lo Mein recipes typically call for packaged lo mein noodles that you boil, drain, and toss with other ingredients in a wok or skillet.

But, you can use any wheat noodle for this Asian noodle recipe. I often use spaghetti or linguine noodles because I always have them on hand.

What is a good substitute for lo mein noodles?

I love this rice ramen when I need a gluten-free option for Asian noodle recipes.

I can hardly tell I’m eating a rice noodle when I use it in this recipe. They’re just as hearty and delicious as any wheat egg noodles.

lo mein vegetables and noodles in steel wok on blue background

Chow Mein vs Lo Mein: What’s the Difference?

Lo Mein and Chow Mein are both Chinese noodle dishes made with wheat egg noodles.

The major difference between them is how the noodles are prepared in the manufacturing process.

Chow mein noodles are fried, then packaged.

Lo Mein noodles are boiled or steamed, then packaged.

I personally prefer lo mein noodles simply because they are not fried.

Both noodles require boiling before they can be turned into noodle entrees.

However, chow mein noodles can be used straight from the package (dry) and crumbled up as garnish or toppings for Asian dishes like salad, soups, and entrees.

What is Lo Mein sauce made of?

Lo Mein sauce is a sweet and spicy sauce that’s often made with soy sauce, brown sugar, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and spices.

In order to make my recipe both vegetarian and vegan, I skipped the oyster sauce.

I’ve seen a few people add Sriracha, or ginger paste, or hot sauce to kick things up a notch. I’m all for that too!

The best veggies for Vegetable Lo Mein

The beauty of this Asian noodle recipe is that you can use any vegetables you like.

For this recipe, I used green onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, snap peas, and cabbage, but the possibilities are endless!

I also love knowing that when we ‘stir fry’ vegetables, they retain more nutrients when cooked for shorter periods of time.

So, let’s eat ALL the veggies we can get our hands on!

lo mein vegetables and noodles in steel wok on blue background

How do you make Lo Mein?

Step 1. Boil the noodles according to package instructions; rinse, drain, and set aside.

Step 2. Whisk together sauce ingredients and set aside.

Step 3. Saute the veggies.

Step 4. Toss the noodles, veggies, and sauce together.

Step 5. Heat through; serve warm.

* Grab recipe card below for full instructions

Lo Mein Meal Prep Steps

Step 1: Follow the recipe below, but do not add the sauce to the noodles and vegetables. Instead, package it into 2-4 oz portioned containers.

Step 2: Allow the cooked veggies and noodles to cool, then portion into meal prep containers.

Step 3: Store meal prepped portions in the refrigerator up to 4 days.

Step 4: To reheat, pour the lo mein sauce over the noodles and reheat until fully warmed through. Use your favorite reheating method, stirring as needed. You might like to eat the noodles cold too!

Lo Mein Recipe Tips:

Tip #1: Substitute any pasta noodle for lo mein noodles in this recipe.

Tip #2: Use a reduced sodium soy sauce to cut down on the sodium.

Tip #3: Once the pasta/noodles have been boiled, rinse them under cold water to remove excess starch and prevent them from over-cooking.

Tip #4: Prepare ingredients up to 3 days in advance to save time cooking on a busy weeknight. Here’s how…

    1. chop the veggies
    2. boil, rinse and drain the noodles
    3. whisk together the sauce
    4. store components separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator and simply reheat everything together when ready to serve.

lo mein vegetables and noodles in steel wok on blue background

Vegetable Lo Mein Ingredients

  • reduced sodium soy sauce
  • sugar
  • sesame oil
  • fresh ginger
  • wheat egg noodles
  • green onions
  • mushrooms
  • bell peppers
  • snap peas
  • napa cabbage

Kitchen tools I use for Asian noodles

More healthy Asian recipes

Vegan Thai Peanut Zucchini Noodles

Instant Pot Thai Coconut Lentil Chickpea Curry

Stir Fry Vegetables in Black Bean Sauce (with Meal Prep Instructions)

vegetable lo mein noodles in steel wok on blue background with title named Vegetable Lo Mein Noodles

Skip the takeout and make Vegan Veggie Chinese Lo Mein Noodles! Sweet and savory Asian meal prep on thekitchengirl.com #glutenfreefriendly #asiannoodles #vegannoodles #lomein #veganlomein #veggielomein #mealprep #chinesenoodles
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5 from 26 votes

Vegetable Lo Mein

This Vegetable Lo Mein Recipe is made with pasta noodles sauteed with snap peas, bell pepper, onions, mushrooms, and cabbage. They’re tossed in a sweet and savory, easy lo mein sauce. Skip the Chinese takeout and save money with homemade Asian noodles!
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Keyword how to make lo mein, lo mein noodles, vegetable lo mein
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 8 1 cup servings
Calories 250kcal
Author Traci Antonovich

Ingredients

For the Lo Mein Noodles:

  • 12 oz Lo Mein Noodles or any wheat pasta noodle

For the Lo Mein Sauce:

  • 1/4 cup Reduced-Sodium Soy Sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Sugar
  • 1 tsp Sesame Oil
  • 1 tsp Fresh Ginger finely grated

For the Vegetables:

  • 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
  • 3 Green Onions sliced, save green tops for garnish
  • 2 cups Mushrooms chopped
  • 4 mini Bell Peppers chopped
  • 2 cups Snap Peas chopped
  • 2 cups Napa Cabbage shredded

Instructions

For the Lo Mein Noodles:

  • Cook NOODLES according to package directions; rinse in cold water, drain, set aside.

For the Lo Mein Sauce:

  • In a small bowl, whisk together SOY SAUCE, SUGAR, SESAME OIL, and GINGER; set aside.

For the Vegetables:

  • Heat SESAME OIL in a large skillet or wok; add GREEN ONIONS (white stalk), MUSHROOMS, BELL PEPPERS, and SNAP PEAS; sauté until tender, stirring as needed.
  • Add CABBAGE and sauté a few minutes until tender, stirring as needed.
  • Add cooked NOODLES and LO MEIN SAUCE; continue heating until warmed through, gently tossing as needed.
  • Serve warm or chilled; garnish with sliced green onions

RECIPE NOTES

Yield: 8 cups
Serving size: 1 cup
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy and are estimates based on unbranded ingredients acquired from a nutrition database. For accurate calculations, please refer to brand packaging information and consult your nutritionist.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Vegetable Lo Mein
Amount Per Serving (1 cup)
Calories 250 Calories from Fat 36
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 4g 6%
Sodium 273mg 11%
Potassium 307mg 9%
Total Carbohydrates 42g 14%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Sugars 4g
Protein 8g 16%
Vitamin A 7.7%
Vitamin C 26.4%
Calcium 4%
Iron 8.7%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Did you make this recipe? Tag me!Mention @thekitchengirl or tag #thekitchengirl
Traci Antonovich
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Traci Antonovich

Recipe author and content creator at The Kitchen Girl
Smart, affordable eating happens HERE. I'm on a mission to help you eat healthy AND save money through simple, everyday recipes, product reviews, and budget-friendly kitchen tips.

About my recipes: Minimal meat & more plants!
Traci Antonovich
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Comments

  1. Kirsten/ComfortablyDomestic says

    01/22/2019 at 8:12 pm

    Confession: I've never made vegetable lo mein at home, even though it's one of my favorite take-out dishes. I like your idea of making it gluten free with rice noodles. I have a dear friend with celiac disease, and she would be CRAZY excited if I made this for her. So I shall!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • Traci Antonovich says

      01/22/2019 at 10:10 pm

      Oh how perfect and I'm glad you know about this recipe! Yep, I've made it with Trader Joe's brown rice noodles and I love it with them! Hope your friend enjoys it...thanks! :)

  2. Trish @ Rhubarbarians says

    01/22/2019 at 6:37 am

    Yay for easy weeknight dinners! I always think homemade Chinese food is going to be way more involved than it is. Thanks for the clarification on lo mein vs chow mein. I didn't know the difference! Gotta add this one to our dinner list. Thanks!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  3. Mackenzie says

    01/21/2019 at 1:08 pm

    I can't tell you how excited I am for this recipe! My three kids all ADORE lo mein and they ask for it all the time. In fact, I think that it's the only part of going out to eat that they look forward to. They beg me to make it at home but I've never found a recipe that is just right until this one! This will be in our rotation for sure!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  4. Debra says

    01/21/2019 at 11:37 am

    YUM! Recipes that can use up whatever veggies I have in the crisper drawer are my favorites. This sauce sounds delish and I love how simple this is to put together. I know what we are having for dinner tonight!!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  5. Marisa Franca says

    01/21/2019 at 6:31 am

    What a gorgeous dish!! It is so appealing to see the colorful vegetables among the delicious pasta. So much better to make it at home and KNOW exactly what is in the dish rather than takeout! Great explanation between the noodles. We are having Asian style chicken tonight -- these noodles would be great as a side.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  6. Annemarie says

    01/21/2019 at 6:30 am

    I love lo mein too but the restaurant versions are just too much to have often, so I'm happy to see this homemade version! I can definitely see making this often, especially since I can mix up the veggies based on what we have in the house. Thanks for a quick and vegan dinner!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  7. Sean@Diversivore says

    01/20/2019 at 10:13 pm

    I've heard from quite a few people now that spaghetti works quite nicely as a replacement for some Chinese noodles, but I haven't tried it yet myself. In fact, I think there's a whole category of fusion-y modern Thai food that uses spaghetti in place of the more traditional Chinese noodles. In any case, this sounds like a great recipe to get myself going with, and it's nicely loaded up with veggies to boot. Cheers!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  8. Annissa says

    01/20/2019 at 9:14 am

    Wow! This is like making real takeout at home! I love how much color and nutrition the veggies add. I'm going to have to share this one with my vegan friends!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  9. Tracy says

    01/19/2019 at 9:23 am

    Oh my gosh thank you for making this recipe standard pantry item friendly! I never have the right noodles on hand and it usually dissuades me from the recipe. Thanks for showing me you can use regular noodles for lo mein, too!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  10. Dana says

    01/16/2019 at 11:42 am

    Thanks for clarifying the difference between lo and chow mein. Any time we get Chinese takeout, I look at the two, and bring up Google images to try and decipher which one I might prefer more, and then I just go for something else. Lol. I love East and Southeast Asian noodle dishes so very much, so this recipe is perfect to have up my sleeve.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  11. Gloria says

    01/16/2019 at 10:57 am

    Who wouldn't want to dive into this noodle bowl. So delicious, and perfect for dinner any night of the week. LOVE the fact it can be made at home so easily. I really don't like takeout, especially when you can make food like this at home.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  12. RebeccaLyn says

    12/09/2018 at 5:57 pm

    Making this tonight with different veggies .., can’t wait to plate it and sit down to some beautiful food.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  16. Ann says

    03/05/2018 at 11:49 am

    YES. This looks so fresh and flavorful, not to mention infinitely adaptable! I love stir fries for clearing out the fridge.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  17. Savita says

    03/05/2018 at 11:31 am

    Traci, these noodles look so delicious. Pass me a bowl please! Love the fact that these are vegan.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  19. Jem says

    02/27/2018 at 7:49 am

    Noodle dishes are one of my favourites as you can really make them your own. Yum!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  20. Tara says

    02/27/2018 at 7:37 am

    I can see why this is one of your favorite comfort foods. It looks incredible! I love all those vegetables.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  24. Brian Jones says

    02/26/2018 at 10:52 pm

    Stir fry is such a great way to cook and it really is just about the best quick meal going, all the ingredients in this sound glorious!
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  27. Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says

    02/26/2018 at 6:28 pm

    Having some good vegan dishes in my pocket is top of my list for 2018 as I have a friend who recently turned vegan!!!! It isn't something I have ever thought about before. So this is just perfect!!!!!!!! Thank you
    ★★★★★

    Reply

  28. Dana says

    02/26/2018 at 5:35 pm

    Oh goodness, Traci! This looks so incredibly delicious and healthy! Not to mention perfect for weeknights. 30-minute meals for the win!And now I'm craving lo mein.
    ★★★★★

    Reply

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