I have combined the common store-cupboard recipe, stew, with flavours and textures of Thailand to create Thai green curry noodles with white beans and jackfruit.
It’s incredibly delicious and more-ish and packed with gorgeous textures and flavours. If you love Thai food, then you’re in for a treat.
If you don’t have time to read the recipe for my Thai green curry noodles now, then PIN it for later!
How healthy is my Thai green curry noodles?
Sticking with authentic ingredients and packing it with a lovely handful of vegetables, this recipe if full of flavour and nutrition.
Coconut milk plays a key role in this recipe. I’ve used two cans which makes the dish quite fattening on paper. However, it’s important to note that coconut offers the type of fats known as medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs). It’s been shown that these fat types benefit health and performance. Despite counting towards the amount of saturated fat in food as labelled, they’re processed differently by the body. However, moderation and balance is key to a healthy diet.
If you’re interested in learning more about vegan milk alternatives, then take a read of this article. It looks at the nation’s favourite vegan milk focusing on their nutrition and the environmental impacts of each.
Jackfruit offers tonnes of benefits. It’s very popular in vegetarian and vegan cooking – it’s often used as a ‘pulled pork’ replacement due to its interesting texture. It contains no saturated fat or cholesterol, it’s light in sodium and very low in calories. It’s well known for being rich in dietary fibre and potassium.
You can buy jackfruit ripe and sweetened, or green and unripe. When cooking savoury dishes with jackfruit, you’ll need the un-ripened version which can be found canned in many high street supermarkets.
Using cannellini beans in this recipe boosts the amount of plant-based protein. Plus, the bamboo shoots offer lovely crunch, more dietary fibre, essential vitamins, minerals and antioxidant properties.
How can I adapt this green Thai curry noodles with white beans & jackfruit?
Let me share a few tips and take you through the different elements of this recipe so you feel confident with ways it can be adapted:
The following ingredients are store-cupboard friendly and can be found in your local supermarket:
- Jackfruit (canned)
- Vegetable stock
- Coconut milk (canned)
- Thai Green Curry Paste (store in the fridge after opening it)
- Light brown muscovado sugar
- Light Soy Sauce
- Chilli flakes
- Pre-cooked ramen/udon noodles (found in the world food aisle and stored in the cupboard – must be used immediately once opened)
- Cannellini Beans (canned)
- Bamboo shoots (canned)
The use of jackfruit in cooking is a growing trend and it’s now become widely available in the UK’s supermarkets. You can get it in the following supermarkets:
- Tesco
- Asda
- Sainsbury’s
- Waitrose
- Aldi
- Holland & Barrett
- Local Health Food Stores
- Local International Supermarkets
Often Green Thai Curry pastes will have shrimp oil/paste in it – check the label to make sure it’s vegan friendly. For this recipe I have used the Green Thai Curry Paste by Thai Taste – this is where you can buy it. It’s gluten-free, vegan and boasts lots of authentic ingredients – it’s genuinely my favourite brand to use.
If you fancy, you could use a red Thai curry paste instead – feel free to experiment.
I have used cannellini beans for these green Thai curry noodles, but feel free to use another type of white bean such as chickpeas, butter beans, haricot beans etc. You could even use a 50/50 mix to incorporate different texture and protein levels.
The fresh ingredients for my green Thai curry noodles:
- Red bell pepper
- Lime juice
- Fresh red chilli
- Fresh Thai basil
As supermarket stocks return to normal, I do believe the above are easy to get hold of.
Thai basil does taste different to Italian basil, so I’d advise using Thai basil if you can get it. If not, then Italian basil will work as a plan B.
You could substitute in lemon juice instead of lime; extra chilli flakes instead of fresh chilli; and any sweet bell pepper would work (red/orange or yellow).
How do you make vegan Thai green curry paste?
As I already mentioned, Thai curry pastes often have shrimp paste and fish oil in them, so they aren’t vegetarian-friendly nor vegan. Fish oil and/or shrimp paste is used for saltiness, but it can easily be substituted with soy/tamari sauce when making your own.
Making your own is surprisingly easy – it’s just a matter of blending together the ingredients until they form a fine paste. However, it just requires the gathering of those ingredients – some of which may be hard to come by depending on where you are in the world e.g galangal and kefir lime leaves.
To simplify things, I’d highly recommend buying a pre-made paste to make your life easier.
How to store my Green Thai Noodle Stew?
This will last in the fridge for up to a week, stored in an air-tight container.
You can also freeze it for up to three months. To freeze, allow it to cool completely before transferring it to freezer containers/bags. If you’re making it to freeze, then I would advise freezing it after step 5.
This recipe is delicious and very easy to make. Allow the meal to whisk you away to South East Asia through FLAVOUR when we otherwise can’t travel. This is why it’s part of my IGTV recipe series, Vegan In Lockdown. You can watch the series here – I release a new recipe video every Monday at 5 pm:
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I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments once you’ve tried my Green Thai Curry Noodles with white beans and jackfruit. I’m sure you will adore the taste and be delighted by how yummy a Life Without Meat can be.
You might also like:
- Mouthwatering Vegan Katsu Curry
- 25 MINUTE VEgan Tikka Masala with Tofu & Chickpeas
- Creamy Coconut Curry with Chickpeas, Squash & Tofu
Much love,
G
x
Thai Green Curry Noodles with White Beans & Jackfruit
Thai green curry noodles with white beans and jackfruit – a simple, easy dinner recipe loaded up with healthy veggies and gorgeous texture.
Ingredients
- 1 can of jackfruit (250g when drained)
- 2 red bell peppers, sliced into rings
- 250ml of vegetable stock (1/2 vegetable stock)
- 2 x 400ml cans of coconut milk
- 50g Green Thai curry paste
- 1 tbsp light brown muscovado sugar
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 fresh red chilli
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 10 Thai basil leaves
- 1 can cannellini beans
- 1 can bamboo shoots
- 350g pre-cooked ramen/udon noodles
Instructions
- Add 1 can of coconut milk to a pan on medium heat. Reduce the coconut milk over medium heat for five minutes. This allows the milk and oil to separate a little, and you’ll notice it thickens ever so slightly.
- Meanwhile, prepare your red bell pepper into slices. Drain and rinse your jackfruit, and snip off the triangular-shaped hardy ends of each piece. Then dissolve your stock in 250ml boiling water.
- Once the coconut milk has thickened a little, add the green Thai curry paste and use a whisk to combine it well over medium heat.
- Next, add your stock, the second can of coconut milk, light brown muscovado sugar, light soy sauce, lime juice, chilli flakes and fresh chilli. Lower the heat a allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Use these 5 minutes to blitz 10 Thai basil leaves with a dash of water in a food blender/processor. It will form a luminous green juice. Add this to the pan ingredients and combine well. See notes if you don’t have a blender.
- Next, add the cannellini beans, red pepper, jackfruit and bamboo shoots. Stir well and leave to simmer on medium heat for 15 minutes.
- In the last minute, add 350g pre-cooked ramen noodles and use a fork to break them up as they cook very quickly. Serve with fresh Thai basil and chopped red chilli. Enjoy!
Notes
Allergens:
Soy.
If you don't have a blender:
- You can use a hand blender to blitz the Thai basil leaves in a small container with some water.
- If you don't have a hand blender, you can finely chop the basil leaves and add them to the pan. It may not be as green and will incorporate a little more texture but you don't want to miss out on that fragrance!
