Recipe and review: 'Orient' Soba (Stir-fried with veggies)

Orient -- Soba
Overall Rating: 4.5/5
Summary: ahh my carelessness led to me buying this non-vegan product, but boy was it tasty! The noodles are perfectly sized and textured after cooking for 2 mins. The sauce was tasty, but not spicy enough for me. I remedied this in my recipe (outlined below).

Where to buy: Bulk Barn

Ingredients:  
Noodles: Wheat Flour, Buckwheat Flour, Potato starch, Vital Wheat Gluten, Salt, Water.
Liquid Sachet: Soy sauce (water, soya bean, salt), anchovy powder (2%), sugar, salt, bonito extract, seaweed, water
Dry sachet: Sesame seeds, dried seaweed, wasabi flavoured horseradish powder (horseradish powder, mustard powder, corn starch, potato starch, ascorbic acid, citric acid, propylene glycol, colour), dried green onion

Nutrition Facts:
Serving size: 1 package (200g)
Calories: 220
Fat: .5g
     Saturated: .2g
     Trans: 0g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 530mg
Carb: 49g
     Fibre: 2g
     Sugars: 2g
Protein: 5g
Calcium: 2%
Iron: 2% 

Check out the link for 'propylene glycol'. You'll find that it's used in antifreeze, detergents, and paint and you'll find some associated side effects. 

Also, I failed to read the ingredients for all three components (noodles, liquid sachet, and dry sachet), so I missed that this had 'anchovy powder'. Whoops! I know some would frown upon me for knowingly cooking and eating this non-vegan product. I am of the mentality that the damage is already done and that no good comes out of throwing it away. In fact, I personally find it wasteful and short-sighted to throw away food in this manner.

On the plus side, the nutritional profile isn't bad at all. One entire package is only 220 calories, has almost no fat (.5g), no cholesterol, and a good amount of protein and fiber.  The portion size is excellent. I actually only had half of the package and I was satisfied (although I did have extra veggies in my recipe).

Soba Stir-fry Recipe
Ingredients: 
1 carrot (1/2 shredded, 1/2 chopped)
1 orange bell pepper
1 tbsp Earth Balance Coconut Spread
1 pkg Orient Soba Japanese Style Noodles (cooked following directions on package)
2 stalks baby spinach
1 tbsp pepper sauce

1. Melt Coconut Spread over saucepan
2. Add in 1/2 chopped carrot
3. Add in dry and wet sachet and pepper sauce
4. Add in bell pepper and spinach and fry for 2 minutes (I like my veggies crispy)
5. Add in cooked Soba noodles and stir-fry for 2 minutes
6. Add 1/2 shredded carrot for garnish

This adds a healthy dose of vitamin A (about 300%), vitamin C (about 110%) and additional fiber (about 4g).

Mmm, I really enjoyed this dish! The sauce was very tasty and super duper spicy -- best part. The carrot was refrigerated so the cool shredded carrot garnish balanced out the heat of the pepper sauce very well. The noodles were perfectly boiled after 2 minutes and the texture was great! The firmness and crunchiness of the chopped carrots complemented the tenderness of the noodles and it was a harmonious fusion. I'm patting myself on the back (not really, but I'm pretty proud of myself).

Other Orient Foods products:

• Udon (vegan)
• Noodle Stir-Fry (vegan)
• Tempura Batter Mix (vegan)

Brand:

• Unfortunately, nothing impressive to report.