Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles
Dinner in just 15 minutes! Our Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles are an umami flavor-packed vegetarian meal that is delicious, nutritious, and so incredibly easy to make!
We have made this countless times. Not just in recipe testing but also just because of It. Is. SO. GOOD. Seriously. If you were to ask me right now what my favorite vegetarian, healthy, noodle dish is, it’s right here: Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles!
These noodles are so great because not only do they come together so fast, but they’re packed full of nutrition thanks to all of the mushrooms and spinach. Hello, fiber, protein, and antioxidants!
Ingredients Needed
- Soba Noodles – We love how quick, easy, and healthy these noodles are!
- Spinach – We love an excuse to add spinach to any dish!
- Mushrooms – Isn’t it a perfect pairing, spinach and mushrooms?
- Garlic – Do we ever cook without it?
- White Miso Paste – This is what adds the salty, earthy, sweet umami flavor! More on what miso is, below.
- Rice Vinegar, Sesame Oil, Soy Sauce – To mix with the miso for a sweet and salty sauce.
- Scallions and Peanuts – To add a little texture and crunch!
- Sesame Seeds – Optional to garnish.
What is Miso Paste?
Miso paste is a Japanese fermented soybean and rice koji paste. At least this is what about 95% of the miso found in the US is made of. Miso paste goes back thousands of years in Japan, and making traditional miso in Japan is considered to be an art form.
Kinds of Miso
There are actually over 1,000 types of miso made. And their flavors range from sweet to a super hearty earthy flavor. Typically you’ll see miso come either Light (white) or Dark (red).
White Miso (like the miso we use in this recipe) is a great introduction to the amazing umami flavors of miso. Its flavor is mild and sweet but still salty. The fermentation time of white miso is much shorter than its counterpart, which is why it has a more mellow flavor. White miso is perfect to add a little umami to dressings, sauces, or soups.
Red Miso – Dark miso can actually range in color from red to almost black. It’s fermented much longer than white and therefore it has a much stronger, earthy, salty, and pungent flavor. Because of its potency, it can easily overpower a lot of flavors and ingredients, and therefore is best used within heartier meals like meats and mushrooms.
Easy to Make
We love this recipe because thanks to quick-cooking soba noodles, miso noodles are on the table in only 15 minutes!
Step 1: Cook the cook mushrooms and spinach.
Meanwhile, cook your soba noodles. Remember, unlike regular pasta, soba noodles only take 4 minutes to cook!
Step 2: Prep your miso sauce.
Whenever we make a sauce, we love to use a Pyrek with a pour spout.
Step 3: Add sauce to the dish and then add noodles and mix!
Step 4: Top with diced scallions, peanuts, and some sesame seeds and done!
Cooking Tips
While these spinach soba noodles only take 15 minutes to make, here are some of our cooking tips!
That way, when you add your noodles, they’ll be done before the mushrooms and spinach are.
This recipe uses a ton of spinach and therefore all of it will likely not fit in your pan at once. Therefore, add about half and then use some tongs to mix it all in, and as the first batch begins to wilt, add the rest.
We’ve found that adding the sauce to the mushrooms and spinach first before adding the noodles is the best for sauce distribution.
Instead of adding all of the noodles at once, add them in small amounts and mix after each addition.
While many recipes call for rinsing your noodles to prevent them from becoming clumpy or gummy, we find that the starch from the water will help the sauce cling to the noodles, so we recommend just draining and then adding (in small amounts) to the pan while they are still hot.
Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles, packed full of umami flavor, and a TON of nutrition, finished with the right amount of added texture from the scallions and peanuts. These noodles are one of my family’s latest fast dinner favorites!
Other Fast Noodle Favorites
- Sesame Soba Noodle Salad
- Spinach Artichoke Pasta
- 15 Minute Garlic Fried Noodles
- 20 Minute Sweet and Spicy Noodles
- One Pot 20 Minute Greek Pasta
- Beef and Spinach Noodles
- One Pot Creamy Broccoli Pasta
- 15 Minute Tuna Pea Pasta
- Chicken and Broccoli Sesame Noodles
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
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Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles
Ingredients
- 6-8 oz soba noodles
- 4 cups fresh spinach packed
- 1 lb mushrooms sliced thin
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 tablespoons white miso paste heaping tablespoons
- 2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons gluten free soy sauce
- 1/2 cup peanuts chopped
- 1/3 cup scallions diced
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds optional
Instructions
- Start a pot of water for the soba noodles. Do not salt – not needed for soba noodles.
- In a large skillet or cast iron, heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil.
- Add sliced mushrooms and saute for 5-6 minutes stirring often.
- Meanwhile, mix miso, vinegar, remaining sesame oil, and soy sauce in a small pyrek with a pour spout or a small bowl. Whisk until smooth.
- Once mushrooms have softened, add garlic and saute for another minute.
- Meanwhile, once water has reached a boil, add soba noodles and set a timer for 4 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add spinach, half at first, and turn with tongs wiht mushrooms. Adding the second half after the first has started to wilt. Once it all has wilted, add miso sauce and stir well to combine and simmer 2-3 minutes.
- After 4 minutes of boiling, drain the noddles and then add noodles, a tongful at a time, mixing into sauce after each addition.
- Stir well to combine all noodles with sauce.
- Top with scallions, peanuts, and sesame seeds.
This recipe looks and sounds delicious! Would tofu be a good addition?
Sure! I don’t eat much tofu, but I’m all about adding protein to recipes!
What a simple yet so flavourful recipe. My kids love noodles and this was a treat. I loved the peanuts and the sesame oil in it.
Great to hear, Silvia. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review.
I’ve actually never tried soba noodles but this recipe has inspired me to try them. I love spinach and mushrooms together and the addition of peanuts really appeals to me!
I’m a fan of Soba noodles so had to try this recipe! It is really good and the umami flavors are irresistible. My family really enjoyed this for dinner and I enjoyed the fact that it took me less than an hour to make it and clean up!
The flavors come together in this soba noodles dish to create an easy and delicious lunch or dinner.
Thanks, Sharon!
What’s not to love about this Miso Spinach and Mushroom Soba Noodles recipe!? I’m drooling!!
So delicious! Loved everything about the sauce and the spinach and mushrooms really made it filling.
So great to hear, Kim. Thanks so much for sharing!