Thai food is probably my favourite food. I love the rich flavours and the creaminess of the coconut. So any Thai curry or soup is very much welcomed by my body. I used to always make curries, but then I thought I could make it in some sort of soup and add noodles instead of rice. So I experimented a bit and this is the result. I loveeeee this recipe! To make it easier, I used a red curry paste. Make sure to use a vegan curry paste. A lot of brands use fish sauce. I used Thai Taste Red Curry Paste. It’s my favourite and it’s 100% vegan. You can make the soup the way you like it best: I used wholewheat noodles, for some extra protein, but you can also use rice noodles if you prefer. I fried the tofu, but a healthier option is to not fry it. You can then just add the tofu at the same time you add the spring onions. To make it spicer, add some chilli flakes. No matter what you prefer, I’m sure you will love it!
THAI THE NOODLE
Serves 3-4
1 tsp coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
3-4 cm ginger (15 gr, finely chopped)
1 red onion (chopped)
1/2 head of broccoli (chopped)
4 tbs curry paste
2 vegetable stock cubes
750 ml water (boiled)
1 red bell pepper (chopped)
1 yellow bell pepper (chopped)
3 spring onions(chopped in 2 cm)
4 small heads of bok choy
1 can coconut milk
3 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp chilli flakes (optional)
1-2 tbs coconut oil
200 gr extra firm tofu (sliced, chopped)
150 gr whole wheat noodles (uncooked)
toppings
Fresh coriander (optional)
Beansprouts (optional)
Sugar snaps (optional)
Lime wedge (optional)
-First fry the tofu in 1-2 tbs coconut oil on all sides until golden.
-In the meantime: Fry the garlic, ginger and red onion for 1-2 min, with the tsp of coconut oil, on medium heat.
-Add the broccoli and fry all together for another 2 min.
-In the meantime: dissolve the stock cubes in the water.
-Add a splash of the stock to the pan and all the curry paste and keep stirring for about 1 min.
-Add the rest of the stock, the coconut milk, the soy sauce, the chilli flakes and both bell peppers.
-Mix well, let it come to boil, turn the heat to a low, add the noodles and let this simmer for about 5 min.
-Add the bok choy and the spring onion to the soup and let it simmer until the noodles are ready.
-Serve in a bowl, with the tofu and choose some of you favourite toppings.
Do you love the Thai kitchen as much as I do? When you make the recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram, so I can give you a shoutout! You can also use #planetmanel if you like. Thank you! X
I lived in Shepherds Bush for 1,5 year. Great place to live. Near Westfield and great transport into central London. A lot of weekend you could find me in Westfield or in West 12, what is on the opposite of the road. I always walked past Thai Buffet, or I saw it from the bus. It said ‘Lunch £5,90’ and ‘Dinner £6,90’. They serve Thai and Chinese vegetarian food. I always thought, ‘I should go there’. I like buffets, I like Thai food and it’s SO cheap! Only, because it was cheap and it also looked cheap I never bothered to go. I never was too keen on the idea and mostly went to Wagamama instead. Until last year, when my brother came and stayed at my place for a few days. He is really into buffets too and as it’s vegetarian, I was positive they had some vegan options too. That’s why I decided to go with him.
Ok, it’s not the place I would take my lover on Valentines Day, but it’s perfect for a hungry Saturday afternoon. Like me and my brother. I asked the lady what was vegan and I couldn’t believe my ears when she said that everything is vegan! What?! Why didn’t I go here before?! The food looked delicious and I couldn’t wait to start. I was so excited. We ordered a drink and we ran to the buffet, haha! With buffets I always like to start with salads. Just because your body will digest it easier, starting with raws. After that I was very happy to dig in the 
seitan, tofu and spring rolls.. gosh it was nice! When I was full I really wished I had another stomach to fill. They even had crispy duck style pieces and a lot of rice, noodles and lots of veggies. I really liked all the food and there are quite a lot of options for a small restaurant like this. Everything is very tasty, but I wasn’t crazy about the dessert though. It was just fruit, nuts and some tapioca pudding. They could have done a lot better I think. Maybe it’s just the Thai and Chinese kitchen that don’t give a lot of vegan style dessert option. All together I think it’s great value for money though!
So like I said before, it’s not a place you’re going to, to have a romantic dinner. But with all the food options, you don’t really care about the interior that much. It’s alright. Something I didn’t like that much is the staff. They were friendly, but not very focused on service. I know it’s a buffet and it’s all self-service, but it’s just nice if you feel very welcome. Overall, I was very pleased that I went and I’m sure I’ll come back here. Especially when my family is over here. My brother liked it a lot too and I’m sure the rest of my family will as well.
Planet Manel 