Vegan Laksa

Vegan Laksa is a comforting Singaporean-Malaysian noodle soup with coconut milk-based broth, veggies, and tofu puffs. It's a hearty, colorful, and nutritious dish.

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• What is Laksa?
• This recipe of Vegan Laksa
• Ingredients and substitutions
• Instructions
• 📖 Recipe
• If you enjoyed this recipe, also check out my other Curry recipes
• 💬 Reviews

What is Laksa?

Laksa is a popular and flavorful dish that originated in Southeast Asia, particularly in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. It's well known for its rich and aromatic broth made with spices, herbs, and coconut milk. It features rice noodles topped with ingredients like tofu, vegetables, and herbs. With bold flavors from ingredients like shallots, lemongrass, and chili peppers, Laksa offers a fragrant and spicy taste.

There are different regional variations of Laksa, each with its own unique twist. For example, in Penang, Malaysia, you'll find Asam Laksa, which has a tangy and slightly sour broth made with tamarind. In Singapore, you'll encounter Katong Laksa, which features a rich and creamy coconut milk-based broth.

This recipe of Vegan Laksa

This Vegan Laksa is inspired by the Katong Laksa from Singapore. As the original Laksa paste contains shrimp paste, this recipe creates a cruelty-free Laksa paste that omits shrimp paste. Our Laksa Paste is the heart and soul of this recipe, bursting with layers of flavors. Shallots, garlic, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, lime zest, and red chili come together to create a harmonious blend of aromatics. Complemented by a tantalizing mix of coriander, cumin, paprika, and turmeric, the paste sets the stage for a truly authentic Laksa experience.

The dish is balanced by the chewy rice noodles that take on the flavors well. Moreover, crisp greens like bok choy, snap peas, or broccoli add freshness and color, while tofu puffs bring a delightful texture to the dish. Fragrant cilantro, sliced red chili, and bean sprouts will lend a touch of vibrancy to each bowl.

Thank you to Ramya from Brown Girl Vegan who created this amazing recipe with me – for authentic vegan recipes, go to Brown Girl Vegan Eats!

Ingredients and substitutions

The vegan Laksa recipe includes these ingredients:

To make the Laksa paste:

• Flavorful aromatics that are roughly chopped: shallot, garlic, galangal, Thai chili, kaffir lime leaves, lime zest
• Spices: coriander, cumin, paprika, turmeric

To make the Laksa broth:

The Laksa broth enhances the flavors of the dish with:

• Coconut milk
• Water
• Season with soy sauce, salt, and pepper
• Toppings:
  • Fried tofu: You can use pre-fried tofu puffs to save time or fry your firm tofu
  • Bok choy: Alternatively, you can use broccolini, spinach, or snap peas.
  • Bean sprouts
  • Cilantro

Instructions

Make the Laksa Paste:

Roughly chop the shallots and garlic. Remove the tough outer leaves of the lemongrass and chop it into chunks.

Roughly chop the galangal and chili into small pieces.

Add the chopped shallot, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, and chili to a blender and other ingredients. When adding the kaffir lime leaves, tear them in half along the stem to enhance the aroma. Add the dried spices. Blend until it forms a paste, you might have to stop a few times to scrape down the sides.

Make the Laksa Broth:

Add the oil to a deep pan, followed by the curry paste. Saute the curry paste until fragrant for about 10 minutes.

Add water and coconut milk and mix well. Add soy sauce, salt, and pepper as needed. Bring to a boil.

Add your tofu puffs and bok choy. Cook them for a few minutes until the bok choy or greens are bright green. Turn off the heat. Squeeze the lime juice on top.

Cook the rice noodles according to the package instructions.

Add the noodles to a bowl, ladle on the soup base, and top with tofu puffs, greens, cilantro, and bean sprouts.

If you have tried my recipe, please let me know what you think by leaving me a review on this page or tagging me on Instagram @veggieanh. I would love to see your creations!

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📖 Recipe

If you enjoyed this recipe, also check out my other Curry recipes