Pan Fried Noodles
Get all your veggies in with this tasty (and easy) dinner.
If you love to cook every day then you already know that good seasoning is often the most important part. Without the right blend of spices, it won’t taste quite right. When it comes to these Asian style pan fried noodles the technique is incredibly simple, but the seasoning is where you shouldn’t take any shortcuts.
For this recipe there’s a hearty blend of veggies in the mix, each one enhanced by the deep, rich sauce that coats everything in the pan. It’s a blend of soy sauce, cornstarch, sesame oil, and hoisin sauce.
This gives the just right amount of oomph to the other ingredients. If you think you don’t need hoisin sauce for this recipe think again- using soy sauce alone won’t give the rich complexity that hoisin sauce adds to these noodles. Some ginger powder and onion powder in with the veggies kicks up the flavor even more.
The noodles I got for this recipe are plain Japanese style ramen noodles, the ones that don’t come with any seasoning packet. I find these hold up well in the cooking process and don’t fall apart as easily as the ramen soup ones. However if the latter is what you have on hand then it will definitely work, too.
You can use soba noodles, Chinese egg noodles, or even rice noodles for this dish. Just follow the package directions for cooking before you add them to hot oil to crisp them up.
As much as I like leftovers, these noodles really are the best when eaten piping hot as soon as they’re made. This is because when you fry the noodles they get a little crisp, something that gets lost when they sit in the fridge for a long time.
There’s also an element of freshness to this dish as soon as it’s ready. Fresh lime juice, peanuts, and sesame seeds on top of the noodles make this main dish taste so more-ish and satisfying.
You can add to this meal anything you desire, from tofu to chicken, beef, or pork. You can add some chili to make it more interesting or switch up the veggies to create different flavor combinations. However you mix it up keep that classic, hoisin-based sauce for the perfect foundation for your creation every time.
Pan Fried Noodles
Diet: Vegetarian Vegan
Ingredients
- 9 oz yakisoba, Chinese egg noodles, or plain ramen noodles
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 cups chopped broccoli
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 cups sliced carrots
- 1/2 orange bell pepper
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
- 2 green onions chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
Preparation
- Prepare noodles to package directions then drain. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in large skillet or wok over medium to medium heat. Add onion, broccoli, garlic, bell pepper, carrots, red pepper flakes, onion powder, ground ginger, salt, and pepper. Cook for 8 minutes or until veggies are tender.
- Remove veggies from pan and add remaining oil to skillet. Add noodles to pan and cook until crispy around the edges, about 4 minutes. Flip or turn noodles once during cooking.
- In a small bowl whisk together soy sauce, hoisin sauce, cornstarch, and sesame oil. Add veggies back to pan along with sauce. Toss to fully combine and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from heat. Drizzle with lime juice and top with sesame seeds, green onions, and peanuts.
Recipe adapted from Crunchy Creamy Sweet.