ramyaramesh3007A vegan take on the classic spicy beef noodle soup, this dish is slow cooked with vegetables, fragrant lemongrass and topped with a spicy vietnamese sate sauce.
As someone who has lived in Singapore her whole life, I am always exploring every dish I have ever tasted to make it vegan since the food scene is so diverse here! However, I have never had beef noodles in my entire life because I’m a Hindu so I could always smell it when I walked past famous boat noodle places that everyone raves about.
I took it as a sign to recreate a vegan version of this soup after tasting it at a Vietnamese Restaurant that was fully vegan. This soup is filled with aromatics and packed with so much flavour.
What do I Need To Make This?
This recipe requires quite a number of ingredients but if you don’t have them, there are many substitutes! Simply leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible!
- vegetables for the fresh broth – carrots, pineapples, white radish, dried shitake mushrooms.
- vegan beef stock powder – for that beef-y flavour. Or you can substitute it with a vegan beef bouillon cube).
- kombu dashi powder
- vegan fish sauce
- lemongrass tops (green part) – I used the stalks to make my vietnamese sate sauce.
- young jackfruit – I used this a ‘beef’ substitute but you can also use shitake, button or portobello mushrooms.
- dark soy sauce – this was simply to flavour the jackfruit.
- protein – I fried some extra firm tofu for a delicious topping option.
- garnish – coriander and mint leaves work really well.
- noodles – get dried thick round rice noodles. You should be able to find them in asian supermarkets.
Some Notes:
The rice vermicelli noodles I got were too thin, generally they are slightly thicker and chewier for this dish.
You can keep the sate sauce in the fridge for up to a week (not longer since it’s made with fresh spices).
Traditionally, you also use annatto seeds, but I couldn’t find one near me so I omitted it. However, you can add 1 tsp of seeds if you are able to find them for a more authentic flavour.
This recipe can easily be made gluten free too! Substitute soy sauces with gluten free soy sauce or tamari. Ensure the beef stock you use is gluten free too.
Vegan Bun Bo Hue Chay (Spicy Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
Ingredients
Vegan 'Beef' Soup
- 2 medium carrots
- 1 cup pineapple diced
- 1/2 large white radish
- 1 cup dried shitake mushrooms
- 10 cups water
- 1 tbsp vegan beef stock powder (or 1 vegan beef boullion cube)
- 2 tsp kombu dashi powder
- 2 tsp vegan fish sauce
- 5 lemongrass tops (green part)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 can young jackfruit
- 2 tsp vegan beef stock powder
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce
Toppings
- 200 g extra firm tofu
- 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
- 4 tbsp vietnamese sate sauce
- coriander
- 4 servings dried rice noodles
Vietnamese Sate Sauce
- 4 lemongrass stalks (1/2 cup chopped lemongrass)
- 2 large red chillies
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp vegan fish sauce
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- salt (as per required)
Instructions
- Add water to a boiling pot. Add radish, carrots, diced pineapples and lemongrass tops.
- Wash the dried shitake mushrooms thoroughly. Then add the mushrooms to the broth.
- Add beef stock powder, kombu dashi stock, black pepper, vegan fish sauce and sugar. Cover with a lid and simmer on low for 2 hours.
- Add some oil to pan – and add your jackfruit. Then add your vegan beef stock powder, dark soy sauce and stir fry until the jackfruit becomes brown on both sides.
- Transfer the jackfruit to the beef stock. Continue simmering.
- To the pan, add some olive oil and pan fry slices of tofu. You can also bake or air fry them until crispy.
- Once done, add soy sauce and 1 tbsp vietnamese sate sauce and give it a good mix.
- Boil the noodles according to package instructions, drain and rinse with cold water. `
- To a bowl, add your noodles, 3-4 large scoops of the broth. Top with fried tofu and drizzle with 3 tbsp sate sauce. Garnish with coriander and serve!
Vietnamese Sate Sauce
- Add the oil to a pan and wait for it to heat up.
- Chop lemongrass and chili finely. Add them to the oil, they should be sizzling. Add some salt.
- Lower the heat and continue frying until they start browning slightly. Add your aromatics like garlic powder, onion powder, sugar and give it a good mix.
- Lastly, add vegan fish sauce and soy sauce. Give it a good mix, let it cool down and transfer to an air-tight container.