Vegan Pineapple Stir Fry with Curried Coconut Sauce

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Hands down the best vegan vegetable stir fry we've ever cooked! And it's all plant-based! This Vegan Pineapple Stir Fry featuring curried coconut sauce and sesame-covered noodles is a sticky, messy, and extremely satisfying dish to eat, whether you're vegan, vegetarian, or a sworn meat-eater!

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Why Is This Vegan Stir Fry So Special?

We always get very excited about making these pineapple noodles. For us, it's the perfect weekend lunch that can be made in just about 30 minutes.

This dish always reminds us of Singapore! We've eaten copious amounts of noodles whilst on holiday there for a week and although nothing was exactly like this Vegan Pineapple Stir Fry, the aromas and flavours of the dish definitely take us back to the buzzing Hawker markets.

Ingredients

• sesame seeds: we will toast sesame seeds, but you can buy already toasted ones.
• bell pepper: we used green pepper, as it is the least sweet and retains the most crunch, but you are welcome to use any colour to make the dish even more vibrant.
• red onion: cut into 8 wedges.
• tinned pineapple chunks: or rings, chopped into pieces. Use pineapple in juice (not syrup).
• noodles: whole wheat noodles tend to be vegan, but if you're not following a vegan diet, egg noodles work great!
• curry powder: we used medium, but feel free to go spicy or mild depending on your preferences.
• chilli flakes: skip if you're not a fan of spicy food.
• creamed coconut: don't confuse it with coconut cream or coconut milk though - they have completely different textures. Creamed coconut normally comes compressed into a block shape or small (50g) sachets. We normally find this in the international food isles in the Thai or Chinese sections.
• pineapple juice: from the tin your pineapple chunks/rings were in.
• soy sauce: dark or light, you choose. You can substitute it with tamari or coconut aminos.
• vegetable, olive or coconut oil.

Method

Start by toasting your sesame seeds in a dry frying pan on medium heat. When they turn golden brown, tip them into a small bowl or plate to prevent further browning. Reserve the pan for the next step.

Grab a medium-sized red onion and cut it into 8 wedges. Then deseed a pepper and cut it into bite-size pieces. You can use any colour of pepper you have, but here's the thing. Red, orange and yellow peppers are lovely, but I find them too sweet and not as crunchy in this dish. Because green peppers are harvested early they aren't as sweet and have a firmer crunchier texture.

Fry the onion wedges and pepper in a reserved pan with a splash of oil for about 4 minutes.

If you have pineapple rings, just chop 3-4 of them into pieces. For this recipe, we use tinned pineapple in juice (not syrup). Add the pineapple chunks (reserve any juices in the tin) to your vegetables, increase the heat and stir fry for another 2 minutes. Your pineapple will caramelise slightly, vegetables will soften but still retain some crunch.

While your vegetables are cooking, boil your noodles. We tend to use dried medium egg noodles (when it's not Veganuary) and find they work best texturally. We have also tried it with whole wheat noodles (usually vegan) and it makes a more filling, less sticky dish. Whole wheat noodles seemed to absorb more sauce. Glass noodles will work too!

How To Make Vegan Stir Fry Sauce?

Now onto the best part - curried coconut sauce! It's very flavoursome, and if you taste it on its own, you may think it's too rich, too sweet and too salty. But when mixed with vegetables and pineapple noodles, it is PERFECTION!

The one ingredient that is not substitutable in this recipe is creamed coconut. Don't confuse it with coconut cream or coconut milk though - they have completely different textures. Creamed coconut normally comes compressed into a block shape or small (50g) sachets. We normally find this in the international food isles in the Thai or Chinese sections. Chop 50g of it roughly to help incorporate it into the sauce quicker.

Start your sauce by toasting curry powder and chilli flakes in a dry pan to release aromas. Then add all the other ingredients: creamed coconut, 4 tablespoon of pineapple juice from the tin, 3 tablespoon soy sauce and 2-3 tablespoon water. Mix to combine and cook on low heat until thickened slightly. It will typically only take 30 seconds to a minute.

All that's left is to assemble. Tip your vegetables into the drained noodles, add the sauce and stir to combine. Divide between two bowls and generously sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and some spring onion.

What Else Can You Add To Vegan Stir-Fry?

If you feel that vegan vegetable stir-fry won't fill you up (although we think this recipe is really rather filling), add some extra bits to it:

• Crispy fried tofu.
• Vegan Hoisin Duck (we love Linda McCartney's duck)
• Tempeh or seitan chunks will work great here too!

Other Quick Vegan Meals

If you are looking for more quick but delicious vegan recipes, here are some of our favourites:

• Caribbean Vegan Courgette Curry With Pineapple
• Carrot and Ginger Soup With Coconut Milk
• Coronation Chickpea Sandwich (Curried Chickpea Salad Sandwich)
• Vegan Tofu Bulgogi (Korean Marinated Tofu)
• Vegan Yasai Pad Thai

You can find a full collection of our Veganuary recipes here too!

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