I have to admit, char kway teow is one of my favourite local meals. However, as it contains about 40g fat (about eight tsp oil!) and 76g carbs (that’s the same as about five slices bread!), it’s safe to say that it’s best enjoyed just once in a while! After finding fresh kway teow (flat rice noodles) at my local market, I started experimenting with more healthier kway teow dishes. I now make this veggie kway teow on a regular basis.

Although kway teow is usually made with white rice flour you can find brown rice kway teow too. If you are using white rice kway teow for this dish, be sure to follow the amount shown in the recipe which will give you a fist sized serve of carbs for each person.

Veggie Kway Teow

Serves: 4                Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 clove garlic, diced
• 1 knob of ginger (approx 2 cm cube), diced
• 4 shallots, diced
• 2 tsp miso paste
• 1 tbs reduced salt soy sauce
• 1/2 cup of warm water
• 250g brown rice (if possible) kway teow
• 3 carrots, cut into matchsticks, steamed or raw
• 1 head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces and steamed
• 4 bunches of buk choy, washed and cut into 3 cm pieces
• 300g firm tofu, sliced
• Optional extras: sesame seeds, chilli, coriander

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a deep frying pan then add the shallots and cook until soft
2. Next, add the garlic and ginger and cook for around three minutes, stirring regularly until fragrant
3. Add the miso paste, soy sauce and water and mix until the paste is dissolved
4. Now, add the kway teow and cook until soft, adding more water as necessary
5. When the kway teow is almost ready, add the buk choy and tofu, cook until warmed through
6. Combine noodles with carrot and broccoli and toss gently
7. Serve with sesame seeds, coriander and chilli on top

Variations: You can be really creative with the veggies you use for this dish. I like it with eggplant (diced and baked), fresh red cabbage or capsicum. You can also replace the buk choy with any other Asian greens. I also like to swap the tofu for a fried egg sometimes.

Nutritional Facts:

Per serving: 294 calories;  7.5g fat;  28.6g carbohydrates; 16.5g protein

Carbohydrate Servings: 2

Looking for more vegetarian meal ideas? Try this Mapo Tofu or this Gado Gado.