Has anyone ever had those Miracle Noodles (Shiratake noodles)?

miinanov
miinanov Posts: 37 Member
edited November 17 in Food and Nutrition
Are they actually 0 calories and healthy?
What recipes do you guys make with them?
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Replies

  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    Nope they smell too fishy for me and gross. :sick:
  • dfwesq
    dfwesq Posts: 592 Member
    There are a lot of different brands. Some are almost zero calories, and some are more than that, but still low. They're a traditional Japanese food made of a soluble starch, and they taste fine to me. A lot of people say they have to wash them first, to get rid of the smell that some brands have.

    They work OK in recipes that call for noodles or other pasta, though in my experience they don't freeze well. They work pretty well in noodle soups. They might work in place of pasta but the texture is different - a little more elastic than real pasta - and the taste might be different too.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,345 Member
    I've tried them, I'm not a massive fan but they have their uses. You need to rinse them REALLY well, and they're no good with things that don't have a strong flavour. I'd never use them in rice paper rolls, for instance. They're ok with a flavourful stirfry sauce. Texture is a bit weird.

    I have some sitting in the cupboard, now that I think about it.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    I have used them several times. The ones I have are mixed with some tofu, so the calories are roughly 15 per serving. I have used it with parmesan chicken and even with meatballs. Just make sure that you really rinse them well and dry fry them.
  • AmyOutOfControl
    AmyOutOfControl Posts: 1,425 Member
    I tried them once. It was literally the grossest thing I have ever tasted.
  • ladipoet
    ladipoet Posts: 4,180 Member
    Thing to remember is they are a NOODLE not a PASTA. They will not taste nice with a tomato or cream sauce (pasta style).

    I use them to replace regular pasta in pasta dishes and I find they work quite well for that for me. FWIW, they tend to take on the flavor of whatever sauce you put on them.
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    I actually like them. But I don't try to pretend they're pasta.

    I use them in salads with strong flavored ingredients like tuna, sardines, or kimchi. I also like them added to veggie stir fries.

    The somewhat odd fishy smell can be reduced by rinsing them well, and if I cut them up in to small pieces, which helps with the rubbery texture.
  • VlpW
    VlpW Posts: 53 Member
    I'm still traumatized by trying them...the smell, the rubber band texture...just nope for me. :p
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    They work in Asian noodle recipes. I used them because I'm trying to work through a cookbook (1,000 Vegan Recipes) recipe by recipe, in order. I started about 6 years ago with the snacks. I'm now in the bean main dishes. But when I was in the noodles section... there was one for Asian noodles in spicy peanut sauce. And I'm plugging the ingredients into the recipe builder. And I'm seeing the numbers climb. Rice noodles, oil, peanut butter... I wasn't finished inputting and the calories-per-serving were already up past 800! It was better when I tried changing the number of servings from 4 to 6. Then I decided to see what happened if I switched out the 1lb of rice noodles for Shiratake. And at 4 servings, calories went down to just about 400!

    They won't work well with Italian-style recipes. I can't think of using marinara sauce with them and having it end well. But in a stir-fry or Asian noodle salad? They'll be fine. Drain them first, rinse them, boil them for a couple of minutes and then dry them by draining and putting in a dry skillet on medium for a couple of minutes.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,345 Member
    They work in Asian noodle recipes. I used them because I'm trying to work through a cookbook (1,000 Vegan Recipes) recipe by recipe, in order. I started about 6 years ago with the snacks. I'm now in the bean main dishes. But when I was in the noodles section... there was one for Asian noodles in spicy peanut sauce. And I'm plugging the ingredients into the recipe builder. And I'm seeing the numbers climb. Rice noodles, oil, peanut butter... I wasn't finished inputting and the calories-per-serving were already up past 800! It was better when I tried changing the number of servings from 4 to 6. Then I decided to see what happened if I switched out the 1lb of rice noodles for Shiratake. And at 4 servings, calories went down to just about 400!

    They won't work well with Italian-style recipes. I can't think of using marinara sauce with them and having it end well. But in a stir-fry or Asian noodle salad? They'll be fine. Drain them first, rinse them, boil them for a couple of minutes and then dry them by draining and putting in a dry skillet on medium for a couple of minutes.

    Just wanted to say, that's a really cool challenge to set yourself!!

    ... and way healthier than my similar challenge to try every beer in the book "1000 Beers to Try Before You Die"
  • dfwesq
    dfwesq Posts: 592 Member
    ladipoet wrote: »
    Thing to remember is they are a NOODLE not a PASTA. They will not taste nice with a tomato or cream sauce (pasta style).

    I use them to replace regular pasta in pasta dishes and I find they work quite well for that for me. FWIW, they tend to take on the flavor of whatever sauce you put on them.
    There are several different kinds. Some have really smells or strange textures, and others less so, depending on the recipe. One of them is more western-friendly and is made with some soy instead of only soluble fiber. I think that one may work better as a pasta substitute if you really want to use them for that. There are also varieties made with seaweed that are a little more flavorful in an Asian-style noodle soup.

    One thing about the texture: they don't cut or break easily like cooked pasta will. So if you don't want to try to eat extremely long noodles, you may need to cut them up on a cutting board before adding them to your recipe.

  • 43501
    43501 Posts: 85 Member
    miinanov wrote: »
    Are they actually 0 calories and healthy?
    What recipes do you guys make with them?

    Not "0" calories but pretty damn close. They are healthy. Shirataki comes from konyakku, which is a tuber like a yam, if I remember correctly. You can get blocks of konyakku from an asian grocer and they behave a bit like tofu.

    I'll reiterate what everyone else said: these are for eastern-style noodle dishes, NOT pasta. Think of your ramen/soba/udon/etc dishes. You make them in broth and toss in meat, vegetables, eggs etc. They are actually mostly water and will take on the flavor of whatever you cook them in.

    Be sure to rinse them very thoroughly, several times if you have to. The liquid they come in is what gives it that "fishy" smell.

    As for texture, I have no idea what people's problem with it is. They're exactly like vermicelli/thin rice noodles but don't break apart as easily (hence the comparison to rubber).

    I will add one more thing, from personal experience... If you have digestive issues, be careful about how much you eat and how often. I would eat it literally every day if I didn't get debilitating stomach aches from it every now and again.
  • dovnkels
    dovnkels Posts: 25 Member
    I made a stir-fry with these and found that the noodles refused to be chewed!
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,492 Member
    So gross
  • hgycta
    hgycta Posts: 3,013 Member
    I like them, but I like a lot of weird things (like squid in Asian recipes, not the fried kind). It doesn't remind me of noodles but it's definitely a filling option when you use up your calories on something else! Just make sure you save calories for pasta sauce or something I would never recommend eating them plain xD
  • NewMeSM75
    NewMeSM75 Posts: 971 Member
    VlpW wrote: »
    I'm still traumatized by trying them...the smell, the rubber band texture...just nope for me. :p

    ^^^ This!
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
    I really wanted to love these but as soon as someone said fishy I knew exactly how it would go down. I'd rather make room for less real pasta or pass altogether, that kitten sounds nasty af
  • elpint0r
    elpint0r Posts: 99 Member
    They're super nasty, don't kid yourself
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    I've found the level of fishiness varies by brand. The brand I get (Better than Noodles) isn't very fishy smelling. It's a blend of the konjac root and oat fiber, so they're about 35 calories per package, but still really low calorie. I rinse them a bit, dry fry them, and they're good to go. I haven't tried them in anything other than Asian dishes.
  • newloafofbread
    newloafofbread Posts: 46 Member
    For anyone familiar with it, I made Skyline with them last weekend. It was interesting. I got a brand off Amazon that was known for not smelling fishy and overall they were pretty inoffensive. They were a bit rubbery but it didn't immediately put me off. I'm going to try it again because I have three more packages of them. But yes it's very low calorie, 4oz of pasta is 400 calories, and 6oz of the shirataki is 35 calories. I really want to make it work because Skyline is one of my favorite things to eat.
  • spoonpuppet
    spoonpuppet Posts: 15 Member
    The typical way in Japanese cuisine to prepare them for cooking is by putting them in a pot of boiling water on the stove for a minute, drain the water, then put the pot back on the stove. Stir the noodles around until they sound squeaky, which means the excess water is gone.

    I personally don't use them as a pasta replacement. I do like them as an addition to japanese soups (miso or dashi), table-top hot pots, or simmered dishes (like nikujaga). I actually really like them! Nice textural contrast with the meat and veg in broth :)
  • panchakshara
    panchakshara Posts: 37 Member
    I like cooking them with butter, nutritional yeast, garlic & onion powder and chicken bullion. Also good with soy sauce, nut butter, sriracha, chopped green onions, mushrooms, broccoli, and a protein like shrimp.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    Stir the noodles around until they sound squeaky, which means the excess water is gone.

    i'm mesmerized by the idea of food that squeaks. are you sure that *kitten*'s dead? this makes it sound like you're cooking sea monkeys.

    although, now i think about it i've been able to make mushrooms squeak too.

  • spoonpuppet
    spoonpuppet Posts: 15 Member
    Stir the noodles around until they sound squeaky, which means the excess water is gone.

    i'm mesmerized by the idea of food that squeaks. are you sure that *kitten*'s dead? this makes it sound like you're cooking sea monkeys.

    although, now i think about it i've been able to make mushrooms squeak too.

    That's how it's done :) I've never had an issue with fishy smells or tastes with that technique which put so many people off. Once you've removed the excess water, the noodles are great at soaking up sauces and broth.
  • awinner_au
    awinner_au Posts: 249 Member
    edited March 2017
    Folks you just have to TRY (a little bit harder) ... apologies to Janis Joplin.

    I discovered these a couple of years ago and I think the are so good I have eaten them at least 5 days a week since( OCD and i work at home).

    Here's what I do.

    Open the packet and dump the noodles in a collander and wash them thoroughly. I then chuck them in a non stick frying pan to dry fry them until they squeak as spoonpuppet says. Meanwhile I get a bowl stick 20Ml of satay sauce in , i then pour in 30 ml of black vinegar, add a teaspoon of trumeric and mix the turmeric and vinegar ( the satay sauce sits in the middle of the bowl in a lumpy gloop).

    Once the noodles are ready i dump them in the bowl (this gives the noodle a nice satay flavour). Then heat up some fried tofu puffs ( or fry some hard tofu) the amount of tofu i use is 180g but you can adjust to suit your calorie/macro needs. These then go in the bowl with the noodles. I then fry an egg and heat up some frozen peas in the pan and add these to the bowl and Voila! Yummy lunch and very FILLING.

    (leave the egg out, change the peas for snap peas or mushrooms experiment!)

    Now go try some Natto from the land of the rising sun, if you can keep that down kudos!
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    awinner_au wrote: »
    Folks you just have to TRY (a little bit harder) ... apologies to Janis Joplin.

    I discovered these a couple of years ago and I think the are so good I have eaten them at least 5 days a week since( OCD and i work at home).

    Here's what I do.

    Open the packet and dump the noodles in a collander and wash them thoroughly. I then chuck them in a non stick frying pan to dry fry them until they squeak as spoonpuppet says. Meanwhile I get a bowl stick 20Ml of satay sauce in , i then pour in 30 ml of black vinegar, add a teaspoon of trumeric and mix the turmeric and vinegar ( the satay sauce sits in the middle of the bowl in a lumpy gloop).

    Once the noodles are ready i dump them in the bowl (this gives the noodle a nice satay flavour). Then heat up some fried tofu puffs ( or fry some hard tofu) the amount of tofu i use is 180g but you can adjust to suit your calorie/macro needs. These then go in the bowl with the noodles. I then fry an egg and heat up some frozen peas in the pan and add these to the bowl and Voila! Yummy lunch and very FILLING.

    (leave the egg out, change the peas for snap peas or mushrooms experiment!)

    Now go try some Natto from the land of the rising sun, if you can keep that down kudos!

    No thanks. I'd rather eat something else.
  • aephillips1
    aephillips1 Posts: 17 Member
    I use Miracle Noodle brand. Drain all the liquid from the package and rinse the noodles in running water. Then boil the noodles in fresh water for about five minutes, drain, and put them on a dry skillet on medium heat. They do have a rubbery texture that a lot of people don't seem to like. For this reason, I cut mine with kitchen shears and tend to fry them longer (10+ minutes).

    They are perfect in my chicken noodle soup. This week I have been enjoying them with marinara and meat sauce. For alfredo, I use angel hair style. I have also used them to make pizza crust and chocolate brownies.
  • JenHuedy
    JenHuedy Posts: 611 Member
    I usually use them in Asian dishes. Just rinse then dry fry like previously mentioned. I did try a fake alfredo that wasn't too bad. I rinsed & fried, then added chopped broccoli, leftover rotisserie chicken and a couple of the Aldi garlic & herb cheese wedges (like Laughing Cow).Need to tweak the sauce a bit next time, but not too bad.
  • Jennifer1Gore
    Jennifer1Gore Posts: 6 Member
    I love them. Hungry girl has a lot of great recipes for them, along with how to prepare them so they don't have that fishy smell.
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