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Instant Pot Khow Suey (Vegan)

By Manali Singh

5 from 10 votes

Feb 23, 2020, Updated May 23, 2023

Burmese Khow Suey- noodle dish with coconut milk soup and served with an assortment of toppings like fried garlic, fried onion, cilantro etc. The dish is traditionally made with meat but this vegan version includes veggies like mushrooms, carrots cooked in the coconut milk flavored soup!

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VVeganEFEgg FreeNFNut FreeDFDairy Free

Khow Suey is a Burmese noodle dish with coconut milk broth and served with an assortment of toppings like fried garlic, fried onion, cilantro etc.

The dish is traditionally made with meat but this vegan version includes veggies like mushrooms, carrots cooked in the coconut milk soup.

PS: This is my version of khow suey. I do not claim it to be authentic, maybe it’s far from it but it’s the way I like it and I hope you do too! 🙂

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Have you guys ever had Burmese food? I first tasted Burmese food here in the US and instantly loved it.

The tea leaf salad, curries, samosa soup were all so flavorful and pleasing to my taste buds.

One of my favorites Burmese dish is Khow Suey, a noodle based dish in which egg noodles are cooked and served in a coconut milk based soup.

It is one of those comforting dishes that I  love having on a cold, rainy day (which is like most days here in Seattle)!

There are noodles, a creamy broth and so many delicious toppings, what’s not to like?!

This khow suey recipe might not be authentic as I have modified it to my taste and preferences but it tastes good, that I can promise.

Like, usually the dish is made with meat but since I am a vegetarian, I made this khow suey with veggies.

Also besan (gram flour) is generally used to thicken the dish but I don’t use it here.

You can make this on a stove-top or like me use your Instant pot to make the broth. It comes together really quickly!

This Khow Suey

✓ is packed with flavors

✓ comforting meal for cold days

✓ vegan

✓ made in the Instant Pot

The flavor of this khow suey comes from coconut milk (of course) and a paste that I make with ginger, garlic, lemongrass and cilantro.

The curry leaves and dried red chilies also add to the depth of flavor.

Personally, I like using a can each of full fat and lite coconut milk for the broth. You may use only full fat coconut milk here but then the broth will be super creamy and I prefer a liter version.

Since the flavor of the soup depends so much on the coconut milk, I highly recommend using Chakoh Coconut Milk. From all the canned coconut milks that I have tried, it is my favorite by far.

I like making the soup in the IP while I boil the noodles separately on stove-top. When testing this recipe, I did try cooking the noodles in the IP along with the soup but it did not work. It all just clumped up together with noodles absorbing all the soup.

So, it’s best to do the two things separately.

I used ching’s veg hakka noodles here but you can use any noodles you like here.

For the veggies, I have added sweet corn, mushrooms and carrots here.

You can add beans, baby corn, even cauliflower or broccoli would be good but they will turn very mushy in the instant pot in the specified time.

So, my suggestion would be to chop the cauliflower into large florets (> 1 inch) and then pressure cook for 3 minutes, preferably on low pressure.

As for the broccoli, it is best to add after the broth is cooked. Add the broccoli, cover with a glass lid and let sit for 5 minutes until it’s slightly soft.

You can even add crispy fried tofu here. Fry tofu while the broth if cooking and then add it to the bowl before serving the dish.

And now coming to the best part about this dish! The toppings!

Khow Suey Toppings

Now, the best part about this dish are the toppings! They really elevate the flavor of khow suey.

Here are the ones I love the most- crispy fried garlic, fried onion, cilantro, chili flakes, lime wedges, peanuts and green onions.

They make the dish so much more flavorful.

You can even add a boiled egg (hard or soft boiled) as a topping if you like eggs.

A drizzle of chili oil on top is great too if you like it spicier.

Hope you guys would enjoy this dish as much as we did.

Method

1- Boil the noodles according to instructions on the package. I used Ching’s Veg Hakka Noodles and boiled according to instructions on the package and then drained using a colander.

2- To a blender add ginger, garlic, 2 tablespoons oil, lemongrass, cilantro and turmeric powder.

3- Grind to a smooth paste and set aside.

4- Press saute button on the Instant Pot. Once it displays hot, add 2 tablespoons oil and then add broken dried red chilies and curry leaves. Saute for few seconds.

5- Then add the ground ginger-garlic-lemongrass-cilantro paste to the pot. Saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.

6- Add in the coconut milk.

7- As you can see the bottom of the pot burnt a bit while stirring the paste so after you add coconut milk, use a wooden spatula to scrape the bottom.

8- Make sure there’s no brown bits and nothing stuck at the bottom of the pot.

9- Then add the veggies (mushrooms, carrots, sweet corn) and the salt.

10- Add in the vegetable broth.

11- Close the lid and press the manual or pressure cook button. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position.

Quick release the pressure.

12- Open the lid and squeeze in fresh lime juice. If the soup looks thick, you may add more broth at this point.

For the toppings- heat 2 to 3 tablespoons oil in a pan. Then fry sliced garlic until golden and crispy. Remove on paper and then in the same oil fry the sliced onions until golden brown.

To serve Khow Suey, place the coconut soup in a large bowl and add the boiled noodles. Top with fried garlic, fried onion, chopped cilantro, chopped green onions, red chili flakes and lime wedge. Serve hot!

If you’ve tried this Instant Pot Khow Suey Recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram to see what’s latest in my kitchen!

Instant Pot Khow Suey (Vegan)

5 from 10 votes

By Manali Singh

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 25 minutes mins

Servings: 4

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Burmese Khow Suey- noodle dish with coconut milk soup and served with an assortment of toppings like fried garlic, fried onion, cilantro etc. The dish is traditionally made with meat but this vegan version includes veggies like mushrooms, carrots cooked in the coconut milk flavored soup!

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 5 oz noodles I use ching hakka noodles, or use any egg noodles

For the paste

• ▢ 2 inch ginger roughly chopped
• ▢ 9-10 garlic cloves roughly chopped
• ▢ 2 tablespoons oil I used avocado oil
• ▢ 2 stalks lemongrass chopped (after removing hard outer layer)
• ▢ 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

Coconut Broth

• ▢ 2 tablespoons oil I used avocado oil
• ▢ 3 whole dried red chilies
• ▢ 15 curry leaves
• ▢ 2 x 13.5 oz can coconut milk I used Chakoh brand, one can full fat and one lite
• ▢ 4-5 oz mushrooms sliced
• ▢ 2 carrots cut into rounds
• ▢ 1/2 cup sweet corn I used frozen
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
• ▢ 2 cups vegetable broth
• ▢ 1 small lime juice of

Toppings

• ▢ 2-3 tablespoons oil for frying
• ▢ 4-5 large garlic cloves sliced
• ▢ 1 medium onion sliced
• ▢ chopped cilantro
• ▢ chopped green onions
• ▢ roasted peanuts
• ▢ red chili flakes
• ▢ lime wedges

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Instructions 

• Boil the noodles according to instructions on the package. I used Ching's Veg Hakka Noodles and boiled according to instructions on the package and then drained using a colander.
• To a blender add ginger, garlic, 2 tablespoons oil, lemongrass, cilantro and turmeric powder. Grind to a smooth paste and set aside.
• Press saute button on the Instant Pot. Once it displays hot, add 2 tablespoons oil and then add broken dried red chilies and curry leaves. Saute for few seconds.
• Then add the ground ginger-garlic-lemongrass-cilantro paste to the pot. Saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add in the coconut milk. As you can see in the pictures above, the bottom of the pot burnt a bit while stirring the paste so after you add coconut milk, use a wooden spatula to scrape the bottom. Make sure there's no brown bits and nothing stuck at the bottom of the pot.
• Then add the veggies (mushrooms, carrots, sweet corn) and the salt.
• Add in the vegetable broth.
• Close the lid and press the manual or pressure cook button. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position.

  Quick release the pressure.
• Open the lid and squeeze in fresh lime juice. If the soup looks thick, you may add more veg broth at this point.
• For the toppings- heat 2 to 3 tablespoons oil in a pan. Then fry sliced garlic until golden and crispy. Remove on paper and then in the same oil fry the sliced onions until golden brown.
• To serve Khow Suey, place the coconut soup in a large bowl and add the boiled noodles. Top with fried garlic, fried onion, chopped cilantro, chopped green onions, red chili flakes and lime wedge. Serve hot!

Stove-top Instructions

• To make the dish on stove-top, boil the noodles as directed. To make the broth, follow the same steps and after adding the veggies, coconut milk and broth, cover and cook for around 10 minutes until veggies are done. Then squeeze in lime juice.

Notes

1. Use gluten-free noodles to make this gluten-free.

Nutrition

Calories: 563kcal, Carbohydrates: 51g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 30g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Sodium: 1173mg, Potassium: 498mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 5872IU, Vitamin C: 89mg, Calcium: 67mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Burmese

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