Beef yakisoba is a Japanese stir fry dish made with ramen-style noodles, chopped veggies, and meat. This comforting dish is then flavored with yakisoba sauce, a sweet and savory condiment with similarities to Worcestershire sauce. In this healthy beef yakisoba recipe, I’m using lean strips of steak, piles of veggies, and you can make the yakisoba sauce sugar free. You’ll love this spin on authentic beef yakisoba because it is healthier while remaining delicious!

Yakisoba is the Japanese term for “fried soba” or “fried buckwheat noodles.” However, the dish yakisoba is typically made with Chuka soba (a Chinese wheat flour noodle) rather than a buckwheat noodle.  

What counts as an authentic beef yakisoba recipe to you will depend on what you are accustomed to. Everyone puts a slightly different spin on this Japanese street food. I’ve even seen low carb and keto yakisoba using shirataki or zucchini noodles! 

Perhaps you’re in Canada and most familiar with beef yakisoba from Edo Japan. Edo’s version of this noodle dish has beef, broccoli, mushrooms, cabbage, and carrots topped with the house teriyaki sauce. 

Or if you’re from the western U.S., maybe you’ve tried beef yakisoba from Kabuki Japanese restaurant. Kabuki pairs thinly sliced beef and noodles with a mélange of cabbage, onions, and bean sprouts. Yum! 

Many of us though (particularly in the U.S.) may be most familiar with Maruchan yakisoba. Plastic packages of inexpensive ramen noodles with dry seasoning packets tend to be popular with college students. If this is what yakisoba means to you, let me show you why homemade beef yakisoba is better! 

🍜 Healthy Yakisoba Recipe Ingredients 

Here’s what you need to make beef yakisoba: 

• 1 lb lean beef, cut into thin strips (454g; sirloin, flank steak, or skirt steak) 
• Black pepper, to taste 
• 5 teaspoons cooking oil, divided 
• ½ cup sliced onion 
• 1 clove garlic, minced 
• 1 medium red pepper, sliced 
• ½ cup matchstick carrots 
• 1 cup shredded cabbage 
• 4 ounces mushrooms, sliced (113g) 
• 28 ounces fresh stir fry noodles (794g) 
• Beef yakisoba sauce (see next section) 
• Optional garnishes (pickled ginger, sliced scallions, toasted sesame seeds, red pepper flakes)

Get a printable recipe card below! Cabbage, carrots, onions, and bean sprouts are often used in yakisoba recipes. Other veggies, like kale, broccoli, and cauliflower could also work here. 

Lean cuts of beef such as sirloin, flank steak, or skirt steak are the best choices for beef yakisoba. For the best results, cut the beef into thin strips against the grain. 

I used two packages of Ka-Me Hokkien Stir-Fry Noodles for this recipe. They are fresh noodles sold in a shelf-stable package in the grocery store aisle. They don’t need to boil and take only 2 minutes to heat. 

If you’d like to use a whole grain noodle good for yakisoba, try gluten free Lotus Foods Millet and Brown Rice Ramen. These noodles are heartier than regular rice noodles making them a good substitution for yakisoba noodles (which are usually made with wheat). Start with 14 ounces of dry ramen (397g) and cook them in water according to the package directions before adding to the stir fry. 

You’ll need a good knife and a wok for stir frying the ingredients. If you don’t have a wok, another wide and flat sauté pan should also work well. 

🥩 Yakisoba Beef Sauce 

With this flavorful sauce, you don’t need to marinate the beef: 

• 6 tablespoons beef stock 
• ¼ cup ketchup 
• 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar 
• 3 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce 
• 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger root 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced 
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

Most recipes for beef yakisoba sauce contain Worcestershire sauce and ketchup, both ingredients with added sugar. Skipping the Worcestershire and using a no added sugar ketchup makes my version refined sugar free. Even without the Worcestershire, there is still plenty of umami flavor from soy sauce, mushrooms, and other ingredients in the dish. 

Beef Yakisoba Garnishes

Yakisoba is typically served with a variety of garnishes and toppings. Here are some ideas: 

• Pickled ginger 
• Oyster sauce 
• Seaweed 
• Bonito fish flakes 
• Toasted sesame seeds 
• Crushed red pepper flakes 
• Sliced scallions 

😋 Beef Yakisoba Recipe 

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Slice the vegetables and cut the beef into strips. Make the sauce by whisking the stock, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and sesame oil together. Once we get cooking, things move fast! 

Frequently Asked Questions 

How do Japanese home cooks make yakisoba? 

Here’s a simple authentic Japanese yakisoba from a food blogger in Japan. It has pork belly, so you know it’s got to be delicious! 

What are the differences between ramen, udon, and soba? 

“Ramen” commonly refers to a Japanese noodle soup. It has a rich and savory broth, Chinese-style wheat or egg noodles, plus meat and veggies. Ramen noodles tend to be long, thin, and springy. 

In the U.S., “ramen” often evokes a just-add-water microwave meal made with thin noodles sold in a hard brick with a salty seasoning packet. (Yup, the homemade version is definitely the more nutritious option!) 

Udon are thick and chewy wheat noodle from Japanese cuisine. Udon can be used instead of ramen or Chuka soba in this dish. If you make this substitution, it may be more correct to call your dish yaki udon. 

Another type of Japanese noodle is soba. Soba is a buckwheat flour noodle, though sometimes wheat flour is also added, so it isn’t necessarily gluten free. You can also make this beef yakisoba with soba noodles if you’d prefer. 

How do you make beef yakisoba gluten free? 

Make this beef yakisoba without gluten by swapping the soy sauce for gluten free tamari or coconut aminos. Many yakisobas use Worcestershire sauce (which may contain gluten) and wheat noodles (which always have gluten). With this recipe, you only need to swap the soy sauce for gluten free beef yakisoba. 

👨‍🍳 More Healthy Beef Recipes 

After you make this beef yakisoba, don’t miss my other healthy recipes using beef: 

• Air Fryer Roast Beef 
• Air Fryer Taco Meat 
• Instant Pot London Broil 
• Keto Beef Jerky (EPIC Bar Copycat Recipe) 
• Meatloaf in the Air Fryer 
• Keto Big Mac Salad