Is Lo Mein Vegan? The Ultimate Guide to Vegan Lo Mein (2024)

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Learn the swaps you can make to create vegan lo mein.

Elyse Glickman

Writer

Elyse has nearly 20 years of experience in the field of food and drink writing and journalism. In addition to contributing to a variety of food, nutrition, and travel publications, she has developed and managed her own publication, Liquid Living, focused on home entertaining.

Why Is Lo Mein Usually Not Vegan?

Lo mein is not vegan because eggs are the base ingredient. The eggs give the noodles their color and texture. Also, the traditional sauce in lo mein dishes consists of sesame oil, garlic, ginger, oyster or fish sauce, and soy sauce. The inclusion of oyster or fish sauce means it is not safe for vegans, even if the rest of the dish can be ordered with vegetables and tofu.

When Is Lo Mein Vegan?

Fortunately, more vegan lo mein dishes are available at restaurants today. You can also swap lo mein noodles out with different plant-based noodles. Stir-fry them in a sauce that keeps the garlic and ginger and omits oyster sauce and any other animal-sourced ingredients.

Spaghetti and other plant-based Italian pastas made with durum wheat are good substitutes for lo mein noodles. Durum wheat provides a comparable texture and elasticity to lo mein noodles without eggs. Other vegan noodles can be swapped in, as well.

Vegan Substitutes for Lo Mein

In addition to Italian pasta, there are many types of plant-based noodles from all over the world that can substitute for lo mein noodles. While the textures and flavors of some noodles won't duplicate lo mein, they impart their own unique flavor that, we think, makes them just as tasty.

Capellini: This extra-thin durum wheat pasta gives a lo mein-style dish a more delicate texture and sensibility.
Spaghetti: Similar in size to lo mein noodles, the Italian staple can be readily stir-fried into a tasty plant-based version of the traditional dish.
Soba: These buckwheat-based Japanese noodles bring a rich, nutty character to a variety of stir-fried noodle dish recipes.
Udon: This hearty, thicker noodle is regarded as "comfort food” in Japan. While it is commonly used in soups, it can be stir-fried and served in a similar fashion to lo mein with vegan toppings and sauce.
Ramen: When prepared without the broth as a soup, the wheat-based ramen noodles are a quick and easy base for a lo mein-type dish.
Vermicelli: These thin, rice-based noodles found in Southeast Asian cuisine are very delicate and have a slightly chewy texture, but will mix well with a Chinese-style vegan sauce, vegetables, and tofu.
Pad Thai rice noodles: These rice-based noodles are wider and flatter than lo mein noodles, but have a good elastic texture and hold up nicely under sauce and vegetables.

Miracle Noodle Pasta Angel Hair Style: These noodles, made with a natural fiber called glucomannan, absorb the flavors of the other ingredients they're prepared with.
Simply Nature Edamame Spaghetti: This high-fiber, edamame-based protein pasta is a great companion for vegetables and sauce.
Explore Cuisine Black Bean Spaghetti: This black bean-based pasta brings a mild nutty flavor to a lo mein-style dish. It is as easy to cook as traditional spaghetti, as well.
Better than Noodles Organic Konnyaku Noodles: Made with konnyaku, a Japanese cousin to the sweet potato, these noodles cook up similarly to Miracle Noodle Pasta.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is lo mein plant-based?
No, the noodles are made from eggs. Also, most Chinese restaurants top the noodles with animal proteins and a sauce that may contain seafood, chicken stock, or other animal-sourced ingredients.
Is there dairy in lo mein?
No, the noodles are typically made with egg and flour. While traditional sauces topping the noodles may have animal-based ingredients, there's usually no dairy.

FAQs

Is Lo Mein Vegan? The Ultimate Guide to Vegan Lo Mein? ›

Authentic Chinese/Cantonese lo mein is not vegan-friendly because it's made with egg noodles and meat. The good news is that lo mein recipes are very flexible, so you can easily swap the traditional ingredients for plant-based alternatives, like rice noodles and lots of extra veggies or tofu.

Is vegetable lo mein usually vegan? ›

Lo mein can be vegan depending on how it's prepared.

Traditional lo mein typically includes egg noodles, but if you use wheat noodles, rice noodles or vegan lo mein noodles the dish can be vegan. Some will also add pieces of cooked egg in the lo mein too.

Is lo mein usually dairy free? ›

Is there dairy in lo mein? No, the noodles are typically made with egg and flour. While traditional sauces topping the noodles may have animal-based ingredients, there's usually no dairy.

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Does all lo mein have eggs? ›

The Lo-Mein noodles that you eat at your local Asian restaurant are typically made of flour mixed with water and alkaline. Sometimes they might add eggs to the noodles to make it more chewy.

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Which Chinese noodles are vegan? ›

Ramen, udon, somen, soba, glass noodles, naengmyeon, and rice noodles are all typically made vegan-friendly, but naturally, there may be some variation between brands so always check the ingredients list just to be safe!

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What is the difference between chow mein and lo mein vegan? ›

The difference between these two Chinese dishes mainly comes down to the noodles. Lo mein uses thin egg noodles, while chow mein uses thicker, chewier noodles. Chow mein noodles are also stir-fried until slightly crispy, whereas lo mein noodles are boiled in water before they're tossed with the veggies and sauce.

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Is the impossible orange chicken lo mein vegan? ›

The Impossible Orange Chicken Lo Mein, a vegan spin on a popular dish currently on the menu, is also utilizing the new meatless chicken—which is breaded with panko crumbs.

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What is a substitute for egg noodles in lo mein? ›

There are plenty of noodles that can replace the slippy wheat strands that go into lo mein. Take chop suey noodles, for example, which are made from the same dough comprised of water and wheat flour that's used to make lo mein noodles, just sans the eggs.

What is the difference between lo mein and mei fun? ›

Despite their similarities as Chinese noodle dishes, Mei Fun and Lo Mein have distinct differences: Noodles: Mei Fun uses thin rice noodles, while Lo Mein features thicker wheat noodles. Texture: Mei Fun has a soft and silky texture, whereas Lo Mein offers a denser and chewier experience.

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Does Panda Express chow mein have egg? ›

Does Express Panda's Chow Mein contain egg? No. Panda Express's Chow Mein does not contain eggs. Only wheat noodles, onions, celery, and cabbage are used to make this dish.

Is PF Chang's lo mein vegan? ›

If you're a fan of noodles, you'll be delighted to know that P.F. Chang's Signature Lo Mein can also be enjoyed as a vegan dish. This classic Chinese dish can be easily customized to suit your dietary preferences. When ordering the Signature Lo Mein, request your server to replace the egg noodles with rice noodles.

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What can vegans eat at Chinese restaurants? ›

Chinese broccoli with garlic and soy.
Salt and pepper tofu.
Mapo Tofu.
Kung Pao tofu.
Vegetable fried rice.
Vegetable spring rolls.
sh*take/chive/tofu dumplings.
Vegetable buns.

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Aug 11, 2015

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What noodles are best for vegans? ›

Wheat, buckwheat and rice noodles are all common and on their own present no dangers for a vegan as they are all plant-based. This can also be true for less-common noodles made with seaweed, acorn or mung bean. Egg noodles, on the other hand, clearly are not suitable for vegans as they combine their flour with egg.

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What is vegetable lo mein made of? ›

Vegetable lo mein is a Chinese stir-fried noodle dish made with vegetables and cooked pasta. The vegetables can vary but this dish usually includes carrots, bell peppers, broccoli, and snow peas. The dish is typically seasoned with a savory sauce made from soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil.

Is the vegetable lo mein at PF Chang's vegan? ›

P.F. Chang's Vegetable Lo Mein is not vegan by default due to oyster sauce, egg, and meat.

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Is Chinese food usually vegan? ›

There is a common misconception that Chinese cuisine is not very vegan-friendly…and the truth is, it can be very heavy on chicken, pork and seafood. While it's easy enough to swap out animal ingredients from most recipes, there are actually a fair few traditional recipes that are in fact 100% plant-based.

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