This Vegan Japchae (잡채) recipe is a delicious gluten free and vegetable packed dish ready in under 30 minutes!
Hey everyone! First, I just wanted to welcome you to my new and re-branded food blog! You can read more about Okonomi Kitchen, the story behind it and what to expect moving forward but for now, let's dive into todays delicious recipe: Vegan Japchae. I think as of today, I only have one Korean recipe on the blog which is the Korean BBQ Jackfruit Bowls using my Sugar-Free Korean BBQ Sauce. That needs to change because I LOVE Korean food! Bibimbap, jajamyeon, kimchi, ddukbokki, banchans (korean side dishes)... you name it. SO GOOD!
What is Japchae?
Japchae is a super popular Korean noodle dish you will find at any Korean restaurant. It’s popular for good reason, Japchae uses glass noodles made from sweet potatoes. They have this unique bouncy texture which works perfectly with the crunchy texture from all the vegetables. Typically, meat is used as the protein source but it can easily be replaced with tofu for a vegan or vegetarian version . You can find glass noodles in Asian markets in the Korean aisle, or where they sell all kinds of Asian noodles. They’re also very inexpensive to buy, making this dish really budget friendly!
Korean Cooking
Watching my Korean friends parents cook, I learned that it is very common to prepare and cook each ingredient separately. This may sound like a lot of work but if you have the time and patience, it’s totally worth it! You can ensure each ingredient is cooked properly and seasoned well so that nothing is undercooked or over-cooked.
How to make Vegan Japchae
However, if you’re like me (lazy and always in a hurry) you can get away with cooking the vegetables in one pan as you go IF you know how to time each vegetable correctly. I learned to time each vegetable by first cooking each ingredient separately so I highly recommend doing the same so you know what Japchae is suppose to taste like. The perfect Japchae has bouncy noodles, vegetables that retain their structure with a well balanced flavours of sweet, salty and nutty.
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Vegan Japchae
- Total Time: 25
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
Description
This Vegan Japchae (잡채) recipe is a delicious gluten free and vegetable packed dish ready in under 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 package sweet potato noodles (250g)
- 1 package smoked firm tofu (300g)
- 1 medium zucchini (200g)
- 1 small carrot (130g)
- 1 medium onion (150g)
- 3 scallion stalks
- 3 garlic cloves
- 6 shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated
- large handful of spinach
- sesame seeds
Sauce
- 5 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook sweet potato noodles following the directions on the package. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Add 1 teaspoon of sesame oil to coat the noodles, and then use scissors to cut the noodles (around 3-4 times). In the same pot, add in the spinach and blanch for 30 seconds. Rinse with cold water and squeeze the excess liquid out using a towel. Chop the bundled up spinach in half.
- Slice all the vegetables into match stick sized pieces. They should all be relatively the same size. Cut the tofu into thin rectangles.
- Put all the sauce ingredients into a small bowl and stir.
- In a large wok, over medium high heat fry the smoked tofu with a little bit of sesame oil just until lightly browned on each side. Transfer into another bowl and set aside.
- In the same wok, fry onions and garlic for 1 minute. Then add in the shiitake mushrooms and carrot and fry for another minute. Add in the zucchini and scallions and fry for one more minute. Slightly turn down the heat and add in the noodles, spinach tofu and sauce. Toss and cook until all the sauce is all soaked up.
- Serve and garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
Notes
Nutritional Information Disclaimer: Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated on an online tool (Cronometer).
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Entree
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ of recipe
- Calories: 484
- Fat: 11g
- Carbohydrates: 22g
- Protein: 16g
Keywords: vegan japchae
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Cheïma says
I made it as a meal prep ! This is the best korean dishe ^^ Japchae is very conforting and satisfying for healthy meal that give good nutrients and energy 🙂
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
Hi Cheima,
Yes, Japchae is so good super happy you liked it 🙂
Carina Maria says
Very delicious and perfect for meal prep! 🙂 Will cook it again for sure!
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
Hi Carina!
Thank you so much, so glad you enjoyed!
K says
Just made this tonight and it turned out very well! It made more than I expect-- is this a dish that can be frozen easily?
Lisa Kitahara says
Hi K!
So glad you enjoyed! I'm not sure how the noodles would be defrosted but if you do let me know how it goes!
Rhe says
Such an easy recipe. Swap out whatever you don't like for veggies you do like. Super yummy. The sauce can be used for other dishes as well. I will definitely make this again.
★★★★★
Danika says
So delicious! Simple to make and turned out great. This will be a new household staple
★★★★★
Sharon Wu says
AMAZING recipe! Definitely going to be made on repeat. Vegan/healthy never tasted so good. My boyfriend loves it too 🙂
★★★★★
Sam says
Can I use normal firm tofu? I haven’t been able to find smoked.
Lisa Kitahara says
Yes! I would stir fry it in some sesame oil and soy sauce first so theres more flavour 🙂
Sherry Simmons says
I’m making this again. It’s an excellent vegan recipe but I think I’ll add a little chicken breast this time. I love the glass noodles, they are my favorite noodles. * * * * * - five stars!
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
Yay I'm so glad you enjoyed this Sherry! 🙂
Tina LeBlanc says
Such a delicious combo - I didn't have glass noodles, so just subbed a half package (half of 454g pack) of rice noodles.
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
So happy to hear you enjoyed!
Toni Dager says
I made this dish about a week ago, and my husband and I LOVED it - really delicious! The store was out of tofu, so we added some extra veggies - YUMMY!!! *We also put the mushrooms on the side because my husband loves them, but I can’t eat them. We’ll definitely make this again!
★★★★★
Toni Dager says
My husband and I made this a couple weeks ago, and it was delicious! The store was out of tofu, so we added in extra veggies - YUMMY! *Will definitely make this again!
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
So happy to hear you both enjoyed!
M says
Sooo good, just made this for the family and I will definitely be using this recipe in the future!
Christine says
Really yummy! I used soy curls instead of tofu and it was delicious! I can eat tons of this for some reason...so light and comforting!
★★★★★
Christie says
This recipe was simple and delicious! It's a great base recipe to build off of and use whatever produce you have on hand -- swapped smoked tofu with marinated tofu, zucchini with red bell pepper and marinated portobello mushrooms for dried shiitake.
★★★★★
Native Forest says
I loved the recipe so much! It was so delicious, I made it twice already. Thanks again for the recipe!
★★★★★
surbhi says
Turns out really well ! If you’re using light soy sauce like me, just go ahead and sprinkle some salt on top !
★★★★★
Anoushka says
This recipe is so delicious and versatile! It turned out so well, and it was super simple to make as well!
★★★★★
@thefernemoji says
Love japchae and this was super easy to make, and our results were awesome - love having smoked tofu in the dish too. Thanks!
★★★★★
Alma I Reed-Herrera says
Easy to find ingredients and super easy to make and super delicious
★★★★★
Jacqueline says
Followed this recipe and it turned out amazing!
★★★★★
Snehal says
This was so delicious and easy to make. I got all of the ingredients at my usual grocery store. I love how adaptable it is. You can use whatever veggies you have on hand!
★★★★★
Hannah says
so easy and so delicious!!! A go to of mine when craving Asian but want to keep it healthy!!
★★★★★
Claudia says
LOVED this recipe. I will make vegan japchae again soon. Thank you for sharing.
★★★★★
Trina says
Recently tried JAPCHAE at a Korean/japanese fusion restaurant by my house. And LOVED it.
I actually had a package of sweet potato noodles I was trying to sort outward to make for supper. And the recipe in the back was JAPCHAE. The original recipe calls for meat. And since I’m vegetarian I decided to look up a vegan one on Pinterest!
This recipe was so easy, simple and delicious. My boyfriend and I kept going back for more. And the sauce ingredients were minimal.
Can’t wait to make this again!
★★★★★
Ines says
Absolutely love this recipe! I’ve made this dish at least three times now, it’s becoming one of my favorite meals, it’s so easy to make and it’s packed with flavors! So grateful that I know about this blog, all the recipes on it are too bomb! Thank you for everything Lisa!
★★★★★
Eve says
After making trying out other recipies... this one stands out. It’s so awesome and yummy. I tried it with some chicken and eggs it was delicious. Family loved it. Thank you so much Lisa
Byron Foster says
I’m making this for the third time in three weeks! So full of delishousness!! Thank you!
★★★★★
Danica says
Very delicious & easy recipe. I love sweet potato noodles, this recipe is definitely a staple with the easy to find ingredients
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
So glad you enjoyed, Danica! 🙂
Ines says
I made this dish at least once a month, I’m obsessed with it. It has become one of my to go dish whenever I’m not sure what to make. I almost always have the ingredients in the fridge and it is so easy to make, packed with flavors, I’m in love haha.
Thank you for sharing this delicious Korean recipe with us!!
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
Me too! We make it so often and love that we can use veggies we have in the fridge– so glad you enjoyed this recipe!!
Karina says
This is such a delicious recipe! 10/10 would recommend. This was my first time making Japchae and it was bomb! I added about twice the amount of sauce added and had it with scrambled eggs on top. ありがとうございます！ごちそうさま。
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
Thank you so much Karina, that makes me so happy! So glad you enjoyed 🙂
Logan Georgison says
This was so satisfying! I added double the veggies and tofu to make it a bit more meal prep friendly and it was so so good. Highly recommend, will definitely be adding this to my go to recipes. Substituted the sugar for two stevia packets and it worked out pretty well.
★★★★★
Tiffany says
This recipe was so good, I've already made it two more times 😋 I've been wanting to try japchae for so long and I'm glad I found this recipe to do it. So simple and so delicious
★★★★★
Lisa Kitahara says
So happy to hear this was a hit for you, Tiffany! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Charlotte Mae says
Delicious! My whole family loved it, even my dad who is a huge meat eater. Highly recommend!!
★★★★★
Heidi Cecilie says
Absolutely delicious and super easy to make! I would recommend making a bit more sauce though, but that may be because we like our food saucy hehe
★★★★★
Indira says
I'm vegetarian so this recipe was perfect.....according to Ayurveda, sweet potato is one of the best foods so I am glad I can make this, as I am trying to cut down on wheat and rice. I will just add some green chilles next time to make it spicier.
★★★★★
Kristina says
Fantastic recipe and it came together so quickly!
★★★★★
Karen Agreda says
The recipe was so delicious and simple! My daughter, who is the pickiest eater on the planet, loves the noodles and veggies (which she also normally doesn't touch). Even my husband devoured it. Will be making again!
★★★★★
Kat says
This was so good! Used lots of other random veggies I had (shredded cabbage, red pepper) and it turned out awesome. Used extra firm tofu instead. And we tried chili crisp on top, that was a great finisher! Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe, can’t wait to make it again.
★★★★★
Judy says
I love this approach where I don't need to cook each vegetables separately 😉 and they still taste amazing! Honestly this is even better than the ones that I order from the restaurants in Malaysia. I also did minor twist where I replaced the noodle with shirataki noodles, and they still turns out amazing!
★★★★★
Pre says
Love this recipe! Gluten free, full of veggies and flavour. It's become a weekly staple. I like how I don't have to cook all the veggies separately, but the integrity and flavour of the dish remains. Thank you Lisa!
★★★★★
Phoebe says
Made this and as always it absolutely hit the spot!
Simple and very delicious, will definitely make it again as requested by my partner 🤣
★★★★★
Leah says
I made this and it was delicious. I added Oumph instead of Tofu & to the sauce I also added garlic, pepper and Mirin to the sauce as well.
I love Japchae & this version is quick and tasty!
★★★★★
Breanna says
Such a easy yummy recipe! Will definitely become a weekly staple. Served it for my friend when she came over for dinner and she begged me for the recipe. She’s a picky eater and she LOVED it.
★★★★★
Rihab Chaieb says
Amazing ans easy recipe! This will definitely
Be a staple in my
Weekly cooking! Thank you 🙏🏽
★★★★★
Barb says
I made this tonight. So easy and so delicious! Thank you for sharing how to make it.
★★★★★
Lillian says
Quick and simple recipe that's really versatile. It's easy to substitute any veggies that you may have languishing in your fridge. I recently used peppers as my "green" since I was out of spinach. I've made this japchae with rainbow chard and collards before too. All delicious substitutions!
★★★★★
Lacey says
Delicious and easy to make! I made this for dinner when I was short on time & it did not disappoint. Everything came together quickly and the flavor was spot on. I didn’t have smoked tofu, so I just sautéed my tofu pieces with a tiny drop of liquid smoke mixed into the sesame oil to get that smokey flavor & it seemed to work really well.
★★★★★
Riley says
So so delicious, and accessible! I was easily able to sub in the vegetables that I had on hand, and I was so proud and pleased that I was able to cook something that tastes just like from a restaurant. I will absolutely be sharing this recipe with friends, family, and hope to incorporate it into my regular cooking routine.
Absolutely recommend!!! 🙂
★★★★★
Emily says
Got the sweet potato glass noodles off of amazon as they aren't sold where I live. This recipe was a huge hit at my work. Didn't have smoked tofu so just pan fried the tofu with a little liquid smoke and it worked perfectly. I've never had japchae before and this was absolutely delicious.
Haley says
So delicious. I used only 3 tablespoons soy sauce cause I’m salt sensitive & it still came out amazing. One of my new favorite Korean recipes!
★★★★★