Kelp Noodle Salad

Oooh you didn't know you hit the jackpot did ya? The most asked cooking question I get is, 'how do you get your kelp noodles so soft?? Mine are always so crunchy'. We my friends, you've come (or possibly stumbled upon) the best kelp noodle advise one might ever receive. I'm about to put you on so much game, everyone is going to be jealous of your noodz, guaranteed. Seriously- head over to your fav local grocer or hop on amazon to place this order and let's get it poppin.

Ingredients:

• Kelp noodles

• 2 carrots

• 3 stalks of kale

• 6-7 shiitake or oyster mushrooms

• cube of ginger

• 3T amnio acid

• 1 pack of tempeh

• 3 cloves garlic

• 1 lime

Orange-Maple Miso Dressing:

This is adapted from Oh She Glows, one of my favorite blogs when I first went vegan. This dressing has been a staple in my house for so long, I had to pay homage. 

• 3T light miso

• 2T rice vinegar

• 1T toasted sesame oil

• 1T tahini

• 1⁄4C fresh orange juice

• 1t maple syrup

The method:

Start by placing your kelp noodles into a big bowl, rinse them well then cover them in warm water. I typically bring a pot of water to a boil and pour that in along with some room temp water, 1:1. Next take a lime, roll it out and squeeze that puppy in. Mix your liquids up and let that sit for a minimum of 30mins. 

Next, combine your ingredients to make your dressing and set aside.

Then, chop up your carrots, kale, mushrooms and ginger, tempeh and garlic. 

In your saucepan, heat up some oil. On a medium heat, add in your garlic, tempeh, ginger and carrots. 

While this is cooking, pull out a separate pan and heat up some oil. Throw garlic and mushrooms on a high heat. Cook this for about 2mins making sure to flip. 

Be sure to check your veggies in between this and add in your liquid aminos.

Next apply pressure to the mushrooms (I know this sounds so funny but it works like a charm). I typically use a smaller pan to do this, but if you don't have one utilize a plate. Apply pressure on a lower heat for 5 more minutes then pull these puppies off. 

Once the tempeh has browned throw in your noodles and your mushrooms and let this cook on a low heat for 7 mins or so. 

Finally, add in your kale (let it get that perfect shade of dark green) and your sauce. 

Enjoy with a good hot sauce or by itself :)

The Breakdown:

Kelp noodles: Packed with calcium, iron, iodine and vitamin K. They have no fat, protein or sugar. They are packed with fiber (ahem, bathroom issues go bye bye). There are also studies being conducted around their benefits as it pertains to thyroid health soooo thats a plus. 

Tempeh: With 31g's of protein in just one cup, we are off to a good start. Tempeh is fermented soy which in turn makes it easier on the digestive system. I hear a lot from women and mainly men "I was told not to eat soy, it's too much estrogen", as this point might have some weight behind it, our bodies are happy with some soy, a fermented soy. Essentially, when a fermented soy (tempeh, natto, miso) is ingested our bodies are more easily able to digest it's nutrients because it is coming as a package deal. 2 for the price of 1 here, I'm talking about a natural probiotic. Fermentation allows food to act as a host to healthy bacteria and this is just what happens here. High in manganese, riboflavin and calcium to name a few. A recent study from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia produced some interesting results in regards to the bioavailability of calcium from tempeh. This study involves postmenopausal women. They measured levels of calcium from tempeh and determined them to be as equally absorbed as calcium from cow's milk.  Don't be afraid of it, just like tofu, once it's seasoned it's fantastic.

Kale: Another leafy green. Here we are always pumped on fiber, antioxidants, calcium, and vitamin K and chlorophyll my main bitch. Hit the link.

Ginger: Anti inflammatory and helps with digestion :)

Garlic: This bad baby packs a punch. It's antibacterial which is mostly attributed to it containing allici. It helps to lower cholesterol levels, prevent blood clotting, has been shown to have anti-cancer properties, anti-microbial affects, high in magnese, vitamin b6, vitamin C, selenium and fiber. When cooking with garlic, chop it up 10mins prior to cook time. This will release an enzyme called allinase which then forms an organosulfur compound called allicin, alliinase is heat sensitive. When we chop this up before hand, the allicin can form before cooking. Fun fact, Cas!

Happy cooking.

xx