Singapore Noodles are one of our go-to’s when we get a craving for Chinese takeout. With plenty of curry powder and thin rice noodles, it’s a family favorite. In fact, Singapore Noodles is one of the dishes we use to gauge how good a Chinese takeout joint is! But one of the best things about this vegetarian Singapore noodles recipe is that it can be easily made for your vegetarian and vegan friends and family by omitting the standard trio of Chinese roast pork, shrimp and eggs you’ll find in the classic Singapore Noodles, or Singapore Mei Fun.
What’s more, for those of you who don’t already know it, mei fun (sometimes spelled mai fun) noodles are a thin rice noodle that can be found totally gluten-free! (Some brands can sometimes contain small amounts of wheat flour and wheat starch, so be sure to check the ingredients list.) And since this recipe doesn’t call for any soy sauce, the entire recipe can easily be made gluten-free as well. Quite the happy accident, as we know many of our readers have trouble finding gluten-free noodle recipes that don’t rely on soy sauce.
But even if you’re not vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free, these Vegetarian Singapore Noodles are still a great option for light dinners, meatless Mondays, or when you’re looking to eat a bit healthier. You won’t be disappointed!
In a large bowl, soak the mei fun dried rice noodles in 8 cups of hot water for 30 to 45 minutes. Drain the rice noodles in a colander and set aside.
Prepare the vegetables and set them aside. The dish comes together quickly, so it helps to put them on plates ready to go by the stove. If using dried mushrooms, soak them for at least 30 minutes in hot water. (For other tips, see our Chinese Dried and Preserved Ingredients page.) When preparing the fresh leeks, they should be julienned first and then washed 2 to 3 times, as they are quite sandy.
Combine 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1½ tablespoons Malaysian curry powder (preferred) or a Madras curry powder, 2 teaspoons salt, 1¼ teaspoons sugar, and ⅛ teaspoon ground white pepper. Set aside.
Heat your wok to medium heat, and add ¼ cup of vegetable oil around the perimeter of the wok.
Stir the garlic into the oil…
And immediately add the Shiitake mushrooms, bell pepper, carrots, cabbage, broccoli, and ⅔ of your leeks. Turn the heat up to the highest setting.
Stir-fry everything together for 1 minute, and add the spices you prepared earlier along with 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine.
Next, add the mei fun dried rice noodles and stir fry everything together for another 5-6 minutes until well combined and the rice noodles are warmed through.
Cover the wok for 1 minute if you feel it’s not hot enough or if the noodles are not lightly sizzling. A quiet wok at this point means there’s not enough heat! If your stove heat is not very strong, warming the noodles may take longer, and they may start to dry out. If this happens, add 2 tablespoons of water around the perimeter of the wok.
When steam starts rising from your noodles and they’re nearly done, add the other ⅓ of the leeks to the mixture. Stir fry for another minute, incorporating the leeks. A fresh and slightly more raw onion flavor is what we’re going for!
Transfer to a dish and serve your vegetarian Singapore noodles immediately with homemade hot chili oil or chiu chow chili oil.
- 8 ounces mei fun dried rice noodles
- 3 ounces fresh Shiitake mushrooms, or 4 to 5 reconstituted dried shiitake mushrooms, sliced
- 1 small yellow or red bell pepper, julienned
- 1 medium carrot, julienned
- 6 ounces napa cabbage, julienned
- 3 ounces broccoli florets, cut into small pieces
- 5 ounces leeks, julienned and thoroughly washed
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1½ tablespoons Malaysian curry powder or Madras curry powder
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1¼ teaspoons sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon fresh ground white pepper
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 2-3 tablespoons hot water
- In a large bowl, soak the mei fun dried rice noodles in 8 cups of hot water for 30 to 45 minutes minutes. Drain the rice noodles in a colander and set aside.
- Prepare the vegetables and set them aside. The dish comes together quickly, so it helps to put them on plates ready to go by the stove. If using dried mushrooms, soak them for at least 30 minutes in hot water. (For other tips, see our Chinese Dried and Preserved Ingredients page.) When preparing the fresh leeks, they should be julienned first and then washed 2 to 3 times, as they are quite sandy.
- Combine 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1½ tablespoons Malaysian curry powder (preferred) or a Madras curry powder, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons salt, 1¼ teaspoons sugar, and ⅛ teaspoon ground white pepper. Set aside.
- Heat your wok to medium heat, and add ¼ cup of vegetable oil around the perimeter of the wok.
- Stir the garlic into the oil, and immediately add the Shiitake mushrooms, bell pepper, carrots, cabbage, broccoli, and ⅔ of your leeks. Turn the heat up to the highest setting.
- Stir-fry everything together for 1 minute, and add the spices you prepared earlier along with 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine.
- Next, add the mei fun dried rice noodles and stir fry everything together for another 5-6 minutes until well combined and the rice noodles are warmed through. Cover the wok for 1 minute if you feel it’s not hot enough or if the noodles are not lightly sizzling. A quiet wok at this point means there’s not enough heat! If your stove heat is not very strong, warming the noodles may take longer, and they may start to dry out. If this happens, add 2 tablespoons of water around the perimeter of the wok.
- When steam starts rising from your noodles and they’re nearly done, add the other ⅓ of the leeks to the mixture. Stir fry for another minute, incorporating the leeks. A fresh and slightly more raw onion flavor is what we’re going for! Transfer to a dish and serve immediately
Dave Rodebaugh says
Singapore is a city-state made up of a blend of peoples from all over asia. I am sure the person who first made this thought about that. I love Singapore noodle dishes and I don’t really care if it came from Singapore or Hong Kong, I just know that it is delicious.
I love your site. Grew up in Philadelphia and spent many days in Chinatown with my best friend and his family who owned a number of restaurants. The family came from Hong Kong and they changed from a kid who ate white rice with soy sauce, to a lover of Chinese dishes. Keep up the good work.
Bill says
Hi Dave, Thanks for sharing your thoughtful comments and background! We’ll do our best :)
Mary says
Hello,
This looks delicious. I usually mix up my own curry powders, but I’m not sure what recipe to look for. The recipe here says Malaysian curry powder, but the link takes me to a Madras curry powder. I had no trouble finding recipes for Madras curry, but I didn’t know if its the same kind.
Bleh. I don’t feel I’m explaining this very well.
I guess what I am asking is this the “standard” kind of Madras curry powder, or are the ones used in Singapore and Malaysia different.
Bill says
Hi Mary, Thanks for pointing it out and you are right! We have not added Malaysian curry powder to our ingredients list yet but Madras curry powder also works! I will adjust the recipe accordingly and update our ingredients pages once I get a good photo of Malaysian curry powder. :)
Mary says
Thanks. That makes sense. Do you think something like this would work?
https://keviniscooking.com/malaysian-curry-powder/
Bill says
Hi Mary, I am not familiar with that homemade curry powder recipe you mentioned, but it sure looks delicious!
Pau Paul says
Having spent half a decade recently in Singapore.
The only time I find Singapore noodles with a curry flavour is in Hong Kong.
The closest thing in SG might be Indian-Chinese fried noodles or sometimes a Maggi Goreng at a Malay stall has a curry option.
However there is something that nearly every hawker centre has if it is open for breakfast called economic bee hoon and this might be the best food from Singapore that doesn’t get any publicity.
Which are thin rice noodles fried with minimal ingredients(normally just a dash of maybe fish/soy sauce and some garlic) and then you tell the stall Uncle what tofu, hot dogs, chicken wings, fried lunch meat, fish cakes, cabbage etc to toss on top. You toss on some simple sambal and you end up with a plate of food for $2 that fills you up.
Bill says
Hi Pau Paul, thanks for sharing!
Camille says
This looks delightful. Are all curry powders and turmeric powders hot and spicy? If so, what
seasoning would work well here instead? Maybe oyster sauce or hoisin sauce? What dry
seasoning would be a good substitution? Thank you.
Bill says
Hi Camile, turmeric powder is not spicy but most curry powders are a bit spicy. Curry and turmeric are the spices that make this dish what it is so I can’t recommend any substitution. ;-)
Camille says
Thank you for replying so quickly.
I love your site and will continue to explore it.
Tracy says
If you really want to try this recipe, I would suggest starting with maybe 1 tsp of the curry powder and see how you like it. If you like it, try adding more next time. This dish is so good. I always order this when I see it on a menu, but homemade is so much better. Also, make sure you get the correct Malaysian curry powder or it won’t taste the same at all. :)
Harold says
There’s no such dish in Singapore!
Bill says
Hi Harold, you are right and I believe this Singapore Noodle dish probably was invented and named in Hong Kong.
Ophelia says
As much as I love Singapore noodles, there is actually no such dish in Singapore! As far as I am aware some HK chef created it. The first time I ate it, I went away to college, in Australia!
Bill says
Hi Ophelia, this is true but over time somehow the name stuck for this type of curry rice noodle stir fry dish! :)
Jill says
I love vegetarian Singapore rice noodles and wish there was an option to email this recipe and others
Bill says
Hi Jill, I just added the option to share our recipes via email. Thanks so much for pointing that out and making the request!