ramyaramesh3007This Vegan Tantanmen features the perfect creamy, silky sesame broth served with spicy charred tofu and broccoli.
Tantanmen, also known as tantan noodles, originated in China, specifically from the Sichuan province. The dish is believed to have been inspired by the street food sold by vendors carrying a pole (or “tan”) over their shoulders, hence the name “tantan” (担担). Traditionally, it consists of noodles served in a spicy, savoury broth, often featuring ground meat, sesame paste, and a variety of spices.
The dish was adapted in Japan, where it evolved into incorporating Japanese ingredients — the ramen is often served with a rich sesame-based broth and various toppings. This version is entirely vegan!
Ingredients You Need
- extra firm tofu – this is the perfect option to make charred tofu.
- charred tofu seasoning – garlic, ginger, hot bean paste, vegan oyster sauce and rice wine vinegar
- ramen – you can use fresh vegan ramen or dried ramen, both options work!
- tsuyu – sake, mirin, soy sauce, kombu and mushroom seasoning (you can substitute kombu with nori if you cannot access kombu). This makes at least 1 cup of tsuyu – you can use the remaining as a substitute for soy sauce in other recipes.
- broth – oat milk, starchy noodle water, pickled mustard, mushroom seasoning.
- sesame paste – this is not the same as tahini! It has a more roasted, earthy and slightly bitter flavour.
- chili oil – you can use my Homemade Chili Oil recipe!
- toppings – spring onions, toasted sesame seeds, chili oil (la-yu), charred broccolini
Gluten free substitutions: Use a gluten free soy sauce. Ensure your mushroom seasoning doesn’t contain any wheat flour and is gluten free. Use unsweetened soy milk instead of oat milk. Omit hot bean paste for the tofu and substitute with more chili oil.
Alliums free substitution: Omit garlic when making charred tofu and add a pinch of hing (asafoetida). Omit spring onions and substitute with coriander. Use my Homemade Chili Oil recipe which doesn’t contain any alliums!
Vegan Tantanmen with Charred Tofu
Ingredients
Tsuyu
- 1/4 cup sake
- 1/2 cup mirin
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 2 sheets kombu or nori
- 2 tsp mushroom seasoning
Soup Base
- 4 tbsp sesame paste
- 2 tbsp chili oil
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup unsweetened oat milk
- 1 tbsp mushroom seasoning
- 2 tbsp chopped pickled mustard
Charred Tofu
- 150 g extra firm tofu
- 2 tsp chili oil
- 1 tsp garlic paste
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp hot bean paste
- 1 tbsp vegan oyster sauce
- oil for frying
Toppings
- 2 ramen cakes
- 4 stalks broccolini
- 4 tbsp spring onions
- 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- chili oil
Instructions
- Heat up a pan over medium flame and crumble some tofu onto a pan. Add chili oil and fry until it gets crispy. Saute garlic and ginger on the side.
- Prepare the tsuyu by combing the ingredients and bringing to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes and strain out the kombu/nori sheets. You can use the leftover tsuyu for other recipes as a seasoning sauce.
- Mix together, add hot bean paste, rice wine vinegar, vegan oyster sauce. Saute the tofu until lightly charred (more crisp than golden brown).
- Cook the ramen noodles according to package instructions. Drain, save the water and set aside.
- In a small pot, combine the starchy noodle water, oat milk, mushroom seasoning and chopped pickled mustard greens.
- Add 2 tbsp sesame paste, 1 tbsp chili oil, 2 tbsp tsuyu in a bowl. Mix together. Ladle in scoops of the oat milk broth and mix well.
- Char some broccoli on a pan with oil and glaze with tsuyu.
- Divide and place the cooked noodles into bowls.
- Top with charred tofu, broccolini, spring onions, toasted sesame seeds and chili oil. Enjoy!