If you’re a Pan-Asia cuisine fan, Pei Wei Asian Kitchen is your place to be!
Ah, Asian dishes. I particularly love Thai, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. These cuisines have a lot of vegan options you can choose from.
Pei Wei serves made-to-order Pan Asian fare in an open kitchen style and offers vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options. It only uses house-made and fresh ingredients to ensure quality dishes on the table. But most of all, its vegan options will keep you coming back!
So before taking a trip to Pei Wei, let’s check what vegan options you can have.
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Pei Wei, Bringing The Asian Flavors
In the summer of 2000, Pei Wei’s dream of serving authentic Asian dishes came true when its first brick-and-mortar location opened in Scottsdale, AZ, under P. F. Chang’s China Bistro (PFCB).
The restaurant was named Pei Wei Asian Diner to offer fast, made-to-order Pan Asian dishes. By 2010, Pei Wei had more than 160 locations throughout the U.S. and continued its presence in Dubai, Kuwait, and South Korea.
Pei Wei was also one of the restaurants to accept payments via ApplePay. It also had its Pei Wei Test Kitchen restaurant in Scottsdale to test new menus and ask for the public’s real-time feedback.
During the restaurant’s rebranding campaign, it rolled out a new inclusion of quinoa and a salad category on its menu to promote healthy eating.
In 2017, Pei Wei separated from P. F. Chang’s China Bistro and moved its headquarters from Scottsdale to Irving, Texas.
The following year, the restaurant’s name was changed to Pei Wei Asian Kitchen with a new tiger logo.
In 2019, PWD Acquisition LLC acquired Pei Wei.
Pei Wei also offers catering services for all events by Pick Up or Delivery.
Pei Wei Vegan Options
Luckily for hungry vegans, there are many options that you can have on request. Even those made with meat or poultry can be modified according to your preference.
So let’s go ahead and check what vegan options you can order from Pei Wei. These options, though, may not be available in all locations, but you can always check with the staff.
- Main Entrees
- Firecracker with Vegetables and Tofu
- Sweet & Sour Regular with Vegetables and Tofu
- Teriyaki Fried Tofu
- Thai Dynamite with Vegetables and Tofu
- Honey Seared Regular with Vegetables and Tofu
- Don’t worry about honey. Pei Wei doesn’t use real honey in it.
- Pad Thai
- Ask to order it without egg or chicken and ask to prepare it in an allergen-free wok.
- Protein
- Five-Spice Tofu and Vegetables
- It includes carrots, snap peas, broccoli, and your choice of steamed or fried tofu.
- Five-Spice Tofu and Vegetables
- Sides
- Brown Rice
- White Rice
- Edamame
- Extra Vegetables
- Cauliflower Rice
- Cauliflower Rice
- Lettuce Cups
- Mongolian Green Beans
- Mixed Salad Greens
- Noodles
- Dressings and Sauces
- Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette
- Chili Paste
- Miso Side Salad
- Lime Vinaigrette Dressing
- Dumpling Sauce
- Wasabi Vinaigrette
- Lettuce Wrap Sauce
- Sweet Chile Sauce
- Sweet Mustard Sauce
- Kid’s Wei Options
- Orange Chicken
- Order without chicken and opt for tofu and vegetables instead
- Sweet & Sour with Five Spices Tofu and Fresh Vegetables
- Orange Chicken
That’s a lot of vegan options, right? And, of course, you can Build-Your-Own bowl, which means you can choose your own ingredients according to your preference. How cool is that?
Some of its dishes and sauces that are typically vegan-friendly are not plant-based in Pei Wei. Its teriyaki sauce, for instance, contains honey.
If you see the Japanese Teriyaki Bowl, that’s automatically considered off the menu since the teriyaki sauce itself involves honey in the making.
Pei Wei also has Vegetable Spring Rolls that contain eggs. Its Korean dishes, including noodles, also have eggs as well as oyster and fish sauce.
Pei Wei’s wontons and Fortune cookies also contain animal by-products.
There could be slight changes in most locations, but you can always ask for any possibilities for your vegan dishes. Pei Wei’s menu looks promising to vegans, which is a great sign for us to dine in at one of its locations.
What Is Pan-Asia Cuisine?
Pan-Asia cuisine includes almost all the dishes and delicacies of Asian countries, including Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, Japan, India, China, and Mongolia, among others.
Each dish is uniquely and authentically prepared and served according to how it’s done in the respective countries of origin.
Don’t confuse Pan-Asian cuisine with Asian fusion, though.
Asian fusion is a combination of ingredients from different countries, made into one distinct dish carrying flavors of other dishes. From the name per se, it’s a fusion of different Asian culinary techniques to make a unique dish with familiar Asian flavors.
Pei Wei serves Pan-Asia cuisine from Korean, Japanese, Thai, and more.
Pan-Asia Cuisine Health Benefits
Pan-Asia cuisine hosts a lot of health benefits due to the fresh ingredients used in most dishes. Vegan or not, Pan-Asia provides ingredients that are a great source of protein, Omega-3 fatty acids, and other essential vitamins and minerals.
Most Asian dishes also don’t use a lot of dairies, meat, and other ingredients that pose dangers to human health. One example is the use of beans, which are filled with protein and vitamins.
Using vegetables such as broccoli, lettuce, carrots, and other raw veggies is important in keeping Pan-Asia cuisine healthy.
These vegetables are known for bringing powerful antioxidants to the body and anti-cancer properties.
Antioxidants, for instance, help fight free radicals that damage our cells, which causes heart diseases, strokes, cancer, and other adverse health issues.
According to health experts, these free radicals in the human body cause oxidative stress, which triggers cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders. Even eye diseases are also troubling to those who are unable to fight against free radicals.
Having been known for providing Omega-3 fatty acids, Pan-Asia cuisine is great for those who are dealing with high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, as well as inflammation.
Omega-3 is classified as essential fat, which helps in aiding these types of health issues. This can help reduce the levels of your blood pressure and triglycerides.
Yes, it’s a great way of maintaining your heart rhythm. That’s Omega-3.
Another dish commonly eaten after sushi is Gari, a type of tsukemono, also called Sushi Ginger or Pickled Ginger, which is great for fighting against common colds.
The great thing about it is that it’s typically vegan-friendly as it’s only made by marinating it in sugar and vinegar. If you’ve been eating Asian dishes, you’ll also notice that vinegar is commonly used in most dishes, known for providing anti-bacterial properties.
So, both vegan and non-vegan can benefit from eating Pan-Asia cuisine. And, of course, vegans have the healthiest vitamins and minerals they can get from many Asian dishes.
Healthiest Vegan Pan-Asia Dishes
Being vegan isn’t difficult in Pan-Asia cuisine. This is because most of these dishes don’t use meat or other animal-sourced products.
From tofu, beans, tempeh, and quinoa, among others, you’ll be face to face with many healthiest ingredients that many cuisines don’t have.
So if you’re just starting to enjoy Pan-Asia cuisine, here’s a list of some healthiest vegan dishes you can try. I personally picked these dishes because I’ve tried them myself, and I even want to have them every week when I can!
- Grilled Tofu and Asparagus
- Thai Coconut Curry Corn Soup
- Kung Pao Tofu
- Quinoa Fried Rice
- Kimchi Fried Rice
- Avocado Cucumber Sushi Roll
- Mirin and Maple Tempeh Stir Fry
- Vegetable Lo Mein with Crispy Tofu
- Asian Zucchini Noodles
- Thai Lettuce Wraps
- Soba Miso Soup
- Vegan Pho
There are still a lot of vegan Pan-Asia dishes you can try out there. You only have to make sure that they’re prepared the vegan way because sometimes, there could be alterations like adding animal by-products.
Best 10 Pan-Asia and Asian Fusion Restaurants In The U.S.
In the U.S., there are plenty of restaurants that serve Pan-Asia fare and Asian fusion dishes. They are everywhere, and of course, they offer many vegan-friendly options.
So if you’re in the neighborhood, you should check out these restaurants because they deserve a good hit!
- 888 Vietnamese Restaurant in Austin, TX
- Momofuku Ssäm Bar in New York
- Pok Pok in Portland, OR
- Mission Chinese in San Francisco, CA
- Lotus of Siam in Las Vegas, NV
- Rasika in Washington, D.C
- Alan Wong’s in Honolulu
- Nobu Miami Beach in Miami, FL
- Kata Robata in Houston, TX
- O-Ya in Boston, MA
If you happen to know different restaurants around that serve Asian dishes, feel free to try them out. Apart from being one of the healthiest dishes, it’s also easy to have them vegan-friendly on request.
The Bottom Line
Pei Wei, in any way, looks great for vegans, even if it’s not a vegan restaurant, because of its healthy options for those who follow the plant-based diet.
Pan-Asia cuisine is everywhere, and you can easily find it in your neighborhood. You can also check other Asian-inspired restaurants like HuHot Mongolian Grill because they have one of the best salads.
Here’s a detailed guide for this restaurant if you can check it out. Enjoy being vegan!
