This easy Asian-inspired noodle bowl recipe with shrimp and scallops is a delicious way to introduce seafood to your kids!
It might be the noodles. Or maybe it's the carrots (kids LOVE carrots). It might even be the scallops (slightly sweet) … whatever it is, this tasty Asian-style noodle bowl is a hit with kids!
This is the perfect meal for changing up what you serve on busy weeknights. I've been making this for more than a couple of years and let me tell you that the combination of flavors (hello, fresh garlic and ginger!) and textures will have your kids hooked!
Thankfully it's a lot easier to make than you think! While the noodles are cooking, you cook the shrimp and scallops (they cook quick!). Then you toss the noodles, cooked spinach and carrot ribbons, shrimp and scallops together in a simple and flavorful broth. Yum!
For more easy dinner recipes (that can easily be made vegetarian or pescatarian), check out my Veggie Lentil Soup, enchilada bake and bean and rice casserole dishes!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Noodle bowls are created when noodles, protein, vegetables, and a flavorful broth create a delicious and complete meal. If your kids like lo mien or Pad Thai, I'm sure they'll love this recipe!
- Easy Recipe A great thing about shrimp and scallops is that they cook fast. Plus, baby spinach wilts right in, and carrot ribbons are easy if you have a veggie peeler.
- Simple Ingredients Unlike a lot of other Asian-inspired recipes, this recipe calls for simple and easy-to-find ingredients in your local grocery store. It does not call for specialty ingredients like sesame seeds, rice vinegar, fish sauce, or water chestnuts
- Kid-Approved Use what you know your kids like the first time you make this, then change it up the next time you make it. I've made this recipe a lot, so I often change up the noodles. So far I've made this with regular white spaghetti noodles, whole wheat noodles, and rice/quinoa noodles, and they all tasted great. As a bonus, the spinach and carrot add a pop of color. 🤩
- Meal Prep Quite a few steps can be done ahead of time. Depending on the type of noodle you use, you may be able to cook the noodles ahead of time, let cool, and stir in about a tablespoon of oil to keep them from sticking. Shrimp can be defrosted the night before and stored in the fridge until you make this recipe the next day. You can also make the carrot ribbons ahead of time if you'd like.
Dietitian Tip
Tip 1 Noodles or another type of pasta can be used to provide kids with food that they are familiar with and enjoy alongside foods that might be new to them (shrimp, scallops, spinach).
If you have a picky eater, make this with a noodle that you know they like and will eat. Then, over time, try using different types of noodles to enhance food exposure.
Tip 2 What you decide to call this recipe might also make a difference. For instance, some kids might respond better if you say, "we are having a new pasta dish for dinner," while others will get more excited for dinner if you refer to it as a "new Asian bowl recipe" or "Asian style noodle bowls."
Recipe Variations
I've tried to keep this recipe simple while still having delicious Asian-inspired flavors. Still, there are so many ways to change it up!
- Sesame oil Using toasted sesame oil instead of avocado oil for added flavor.
- Green onions If your family likes the flavor of green onions, you can add some in with the other veggies or use sliced green onions as a garnish when serving.
- Fresh Herbs I'm certain that stirring in a small amount of diced fresh herbs like cilantro or Thai basil will taste amazing!
- Veggies If you don't have spinach or carrots, you could easily substitute other cooked fresh vegetables like broccoli, blanched green beans, bell peppers, Bok choy, snow peas, or sugar snap peas.
- Protein Tofu, chicken, edamame, or other protein of your choice can be used in place of all or some of the shrimp and scallops. If you choose chicken, be sure the chicken is very moist. I don't think chicken on the dry side would taste good with how brothy this recipe is.
- Sauce If you prefer a thicker sauce, combine the broth and coconut aminos in a separate bowl and add a small amount of cornstarch to thicken it before adding it to the pan.
Ingredient Notes
- Shrimp and Scallops I like to use Wild Uncooked Argentinian Red Shrimp from Trader Joes. Shrimp is a good source of protein and an excellent source of selenium. Scallops are a good source of phosphorus and protein.
- Broth or stock (vegetable or chicken). I use chicken stock or broth.
- Ginger and Garlic Use freshly minced garlic and fresh ginger (grated) if you can. I have made this with powdered ginger, and it did still taste very good, just not quite as good as when I make it with fresh ginger.
- Less sodium soy sauce OR Coconut Aminos. Coconut aminos is a great alternative to soy sauce, especially for kids with soy-, wheat-, and/or gluten-free diet restrictions. It is very similar in flavor to soy sauce, and it is less salty and slightly sweeter. Either option works great, and both can be found in the Asian section of most grocery stores.
- Noodles Use any kind of noodle. I almost always use Barilla Plus spaghetti pasta because it's what I keep on hand. Still, you can often find a variety of Asian noodles in most grocery stores. Examples include Soba noodles, udon noodles, ramen noodles, Pad Thai noodles, and rice vermicelli noodles. You could even use brown rice noodles. Use what you have or what sounds the best to you 🙂
- Fresh Veggies Spinach and carrots are loaded with a variety of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Specifically, carrots are a good source of vitamin A (beta carotene). They also add wonderful color and texture to this dish.
- Avocado Oil A high-heat cooking oil that has a neutral flavor. Canola oil or olive oil can be used in place of avocado oil.
How To Make This Easy Noodle Bowl Recipe
Here’s a quick overview of the steps to make this easy noodle bowl recipe. For the full list of ingredients and instructions, scroll down to the recipe card.
- Use a vegetable peeler to make carrot ribbons. Set aside.
- While cooking noodles according to the package instructions, cook shrimp and scallops in separate large skillet over medium or medium-high heat until opaque. Set aside.
- To the same skillet, add ginger, garlic, and avocado oil. Cook until fragrant, about one minute and then add spinach and carrot ribbons. Cook for about three minutes.
- Add broth and coconut aminos OR less-sodium soy sauce to the skillet. Add noodles, shrimp and scallops. Toss to combine. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.
Helpful Tips
- In my opinion, the hardest part is knowing when the shrimp and scallops are done cooking (and not overdone). This is where a food thermometer comes in handy.
- If using frozen shrimp, defrost it according to the package instructions first.
- You will know scallops and shrimp are done cooking with the flesh turns opaque and the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees
- Use a digital instant-read meat thermometer to confirm the internal temperature of the shrimp and scallops.
- Leftovers should be eaten within 2 days.
Questions You May Have
Noodle bowls are typically made with noodles, cooked vegetables, a protein, and a flavorful broth. They are often served in a bowl to hold the broth.
This is a tough question to answer. It's sort of like a salad (or most meals for that matter) in that it's as healthy as the ingredients used to make it. And, it depends on how you define 'healthy'.
Using a simple hand grater works great to grate ginger!
I have found that grating frozen chunks of ginger is easier than grating fresh ginger.
So, when I buy fresh ginger I break it into 1-2 inch pieces, place the pieces in a resealable freezer safe bag and freeze.
When I'm ready to use a piece of ginger, I peel it with a vegetable peeler and then grate it while it's still frozen. So easy!
Yes! Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave.
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📖 Recipe
Easy Asian Noodle Bowl
Ingredients
- ¾ pound shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 pound scallops
- 12 oz spaghetti pasta Whole wheat or traditional. See notes below.
- 1 ½ cup broth or stock chicken or vegetable
- ½ cup Coconut Aminos or less-sodium soy sauce
- 6 oz spinach leaves washed and torn (two very large handfuls). I often use pre-washed baby spinach instead.
- 2-3 large carrots
- 4 cloves garlic minced. use fresh garlic if possible
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger grated
- 2 tablespoon avocado oil divided
- 1 dash pepper
Instructions
- Wash carrots well. Cut the ends off of each carrot and discard. Using the vegetable peeler, peel along the length of the carrot to create ribbons. Repeat until the carrot is too thin to peel. Set ribbons aside. Alternately, you can used spiralized carrots.2-3 large carrots
- Cook noodles according to package instructions. Once the noodles are al dente, drain the noodles, place noodles in a separate bowl, and set aside.12 oz spaghetti pasta
- While pasta is cooking, add one tablespoon of avocado oil to a large skillet on medium or medium high heat (depending on the type of skillet being used). The bottom of the skillet should have a light coating of oil.2 tablespoon avocado oil
- Once the skillet is hot, add a single layer of shrimp and scallops to the skillet. Season with pepper. After 2-3 minutes, flip shrimp and scallops over. Cook for another 3 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove from skillet and transfer to a plate. Set aside.¾ pound shrimp, 1 pound scallops, 1 dash pepper
- To the same skillet, add ginger, garlic, and one tablespoon of avocado oil. Cook until fragrant, about one minute.4 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
- Once garlic and ginger are fragrant, add spinach and carrot ribbons. Cook for 3 minutes, until spinach is wilted and carrots have softened a bit.6 oz spinach leaves, 2-3 large carrots
- Add broth and Coconut Aminos (or soy sauce) to the skillet. Stir to combine. Cook for two minutes.½ cup Coconut Aminos or less-sodium soy sauce, 1 ½ cup broth or stock
- Add the noodles to the skillet. Toss to combine.
- Add shrimp and scallops. Toss to combine. Cook altogether for an additional 3-4 minutes to give the flavors time to come together.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- If you want a crust to form on the scallops, pat the scallops dry before adding them to the skillet.
- Shrimp often cooks faster than scallops. If this happens, either remove shrimp as scallops continue to cook OR move shrimp to the outside of the skillet, while the scallops finish cooking in the center.
- Fresh garlic and ginger are key to making this meal absolutely delicious!
- You can use about one-half teaspoon of powdered ginger in place of the fresh ginger, it just won't taste quite as good.
- Any type of noodle will work well in this recipe - use what your kids enjoy! Whole wheat, brown rice, Udon, or traditional spaghetti noodles. You pick!
- I suggest breaking longer spaghetti noodles in half or in thirds before cooking them - the smaller size makes them easier for kids to eat.
Sheri Berger, RDN, CDCES says
Truly easy and delicious! I loved it and surprisingly my kids did too, yay! Thanks, Kristi!
Kristi says
I'm go glad you all loved it!!
Bethany says
Delicious family meal. We all love it and so quick to make. Made it with ground ginger and loved the taste. Family said to make it again!
Kristi says
Yay! And, yes, ground ginger is an easy substitute for fresh!
Britt K says
This sounds amazing. As a pescatarian, I'm always on the search for delicious seafood based meals - and this fits the bill. I can't wait to make this and give it a try. Working it into the rotation with our meal planning in the coming days.
Kristi Ruth says
Thank you! I certainly hope your family enjoys this as much as we do! I just made it again tonight-so easy and super good!