This 15-Minute Sesame Noodles recipe is quick and easy to make and can be served warm or cold. Feel free to add in extra veggies or proteins (such as chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, tofu, etc.) if you’d like!
Got 15 minutes?
Let’s make some sesame noodles! ♡
This was actually one of the very first recipes that I shared on the blog way back in 2009, and it has been one of my back-pocket, most-used, and most-loved recipes ever since.
As you can see, it’s ridiculously quick and easy to make, basically just taking however long your stove requires to heat and cook a batch of pasta. It’s tossed with a yummy simple sesame sauce made entirely with pantry ingredients. (So no chopping required!) It works goes well as a side dish with just about anything, or can also be gussied up with extra veggies or proteins to make it a main. It is just as delicious served hot outta the pan, or nice and cold as a pasta salad. And most importantly — these sesame noodles are totally tasty.
We make them constantly to serve with stir-frys, soups, salads or baked/grilled proteins. And they are always a hit with any crowd. So if you love noodles as much as we do, I thought I would bump this one back to the top of the blog today so that you can bookmark and keep in your back pocket as well!
Sesame Noodles Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Sesame Noodles Ingredients:
To make this easy sesame noodles recipe, you will need:
- Noodles: I’ve always just made this recipe with basic linguine. But virtually any kind of noodles will work here!
- Soy sauce: I use low-sodium soy sauce.
- Rice vinegar: Or you could substitute red wine vinegar as well.
- Toasted sesame oil: One of my favorite ingredients ever — so much flavor!
- Ground ginger and garlic powder: I’m taking a shortcut here, so that you don’t have to get out your cutting board. But you’re welcome to sub in fresh ginger and garlic if you’d like.
- Chili garlic sauce: I love the flavor of this sauce, but sriracha or other any other hot chili sauces that you like would also work.
- Black pepper: Freshly-cracked is a must here! I also love adding extra to the noodles just before serving.
- Green onions: We will toss these into the noodles themselves, but feel free to sprinkle on a few extras as a garnish.
- Toasted sesame seeds: These are another optional garnish, but I love the extra flavor and crunch that they add. Don’t forget to lightly toast the sesame seeds to bring out their flavor!
How To Make Sesame Noodles:
To make these sesame noodles, simply:
- Cook your pasta. Whatever kind of pasta you choose, just cook it al dente according to package instructions.
- Whisk together the sauce. Meanwhile, as the pasta is cooking, whisk all of your sauce ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.
- Toss everything together. Then once the pasta’s ready to go, drain it completely. Then toss it with the sauce and green onions.
- Taste and season. See if it needs any extra salt, pepper, sesame oil and/or chili garlic sauce.
- Serve warm or cold. Then serve the noodles up right away if you’d like, garnished with your favorite toppings. Or — transfer them to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Possible Variations:
Guys, the sky’s the limit with variations on this one! Feel free to:
- Add in protein. Feel free to add in some chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, or tofu to your noodles, either stir-fried in a separate sauté pan or baked separately in the oven.
- Add in veggies. Just about any stir-fry veggies would work well with these noodles, such as asparagus, bell peppers, broccoli, carrots, green beans, mushrooms, onions, peas, squash or zucchini.
- Add in greens. Sautéed bok choy, cabbage, kale, spinach or other greens would also be delicious mixed in.
- Make it peanut-y. Feel free to add in 2-3 tablespoons of natural peanut butter to the sauce to make it more of a peanut sauce.
- Make it sweeter. Sounds odd, but I also love this recipe with a tablespoon of maple syrup added. It makes for a nice sweet and salty balance.
- Make it spicy. Feel free to double or triple the amount of garlic chili sauce in the recipe if you would like an extra kick.
- Use different noodles. Any kind of noodles — from ramen to rice noodles, udon, soba, yakisoba, lo mein noodles or sweet potato noodles — would work well in this recipe.
- Use zoodles. Want to make this gluten-free and healthier? Try subbing in zucchini noodles for half (or all!) of the noodles.
What To Serve With Sesame Noodles:
These sesame noodles would go well with a number of other dishes, including:
- Stir-Fry: Pretty much any kind of stir fry would pair delicious with these noodles, such as my Magical Garlicky Tofu, Chicken and Broccoli, Sesame Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry, Pineapple Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry, or Sizzlin’ Spicy Szechuan Stir-Fry,
- Soup: I love serving these noodles with my Egg Drop Soup, Hot and Sour Soup or Miso Soup.
- Proteins: Any of your favorite proteins, such as Chicken, Beef, Pork, Shrimp, or Tofu, would be delicious served alongside (or mixed into) these noodles.
- Veggies: The noodles would also pair well with a side of Everything Roasted Asparagus or Miso Roasted Brussels Sprouts.
Enjoy, everyone!
Sesame Noodles
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 -6 servings 1x
Description
This easy sesame noodles recipe can be made in just 15 minutes, and can be served either warm or cold. It’s also great with some extra veggies or proteins mixed in!
Ingredients
- 1 pound (16 ounces) uncooked pasta (I used linguine)
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce or sriracha
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
- 1/2 cup thinly-sliced green onions
- optional toppings: toasted sesame seeds, extra green onions, extra black pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions in a large stockpot of generously-salted water.
- Meanwhile, as the pasta is cooking, whisk together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ground ginger, chili garlic sauce, garlic powder and black pepper together in a bowl until combined.
- Once the pasta is ready, drain it. Then immediately toss the pasta with the sauce and green onions until combined.
- Serve warm or cold, sprinkled with your desired toppings. Or transfer to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Notes
Recipe edited in January 2019.
These are sooo good! I actually made them with ramen and used sautéed red onions instead of green onions and added some pan fried tofu. It’s now one of our favorite dinners.
Planning on making these tonight with rice noodles and chicken thrown in. Simple and fast is what I like!
Trying this tonight for dinner. Recipe looks good, but I’m adding a bit of honey because I’m thinking there is so much savory/salty going on that it could use a touch of sweet to balance? Thanks, and your photos are gorgeous!
Could you stir in a little peanut butter?
Absolutely!
I have a soft spot for sesame noodles, and these look amazing!!
Oh yeah!!Just cooked this up for my girls. I love how you can pretty much throw anything in it also. I had some sauteed chicken left over that I cubed up and threw in. Found you via Lista. Thanks!
This looks delicious!!! I’ll definitely make this recipe some time next week.
Oh yummy! These simple to make noodles look very delicious!
Love how quick and easy this is but it sounds so tasty. Have a great trip to El Salvador; really looking forward to following along on instagram.
Talk about last minute prepping for trips!!! It’s surely hectic but you’re going to have such AN AWESOME TIME!!!! Happy Happy journey!! This bowl of noodles is just about the easiest, yet flavorful dish that I have ever come across! Making these for dinner tonight! :)