This spicy Chili Garlic Noodles recipe is a quick and easy 20-minute meal that’s perfect to make on busy weeknights. It’s a restaurant quality dish that’s faster and better than take-out!
Noodles are life. I grew up eating various kinds of noodles in my Filipino family. We feasted on Filipino noodles like Pancit Bihon and Pancit Canton, and Chinese noodles like Prawn Chow Mein and Beef Lo Mein. As I got older, Thai food became a quick favorite with Thai Red Curry Noodles and Pad Thai.
Spicy Asian noodles are a favorite not just for the flavor, but also for how quickly they come together. And my new favorite noodles dish is this Chinese Chili Garlic Noodles.
These noodles are the perfect side dish for almost any meal, and also make a nourishing lunch or dinner main course as well! Most importantly, it tastes amazing – like your favorite noodles from your neighborhood Chinese restaurants!
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🌟 Why this recipe works
This chili garlic noodles recipe is a winning recipe for so many reasons. It’s sure to become a favorite in your own house and a dish that is put in your regular dinner rotation!
- Fast – You can whip up these flavorful noodles in about 15 minutes!
- Easy – There are no complicated cooking techniques here. It’s a simple recipe that is perfect for beginning home cooks!
- Versatile – This recipe is a vegetarian and vegan recipe as it’s written. But you can easily add your favorite choice of protein – whether it’s tofu, chicken, shrimp, pork, or beef. You can also add your favorite vegetables.
🛒 Ingredient notes
Ready to make these super tasty noodles? Here’s a quick look at the ingredients you’ll need. The full ingredient list is in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Noodles – You can use almost any type of noodles, but this recipe is especially delicious with rice noodles. We love this package of stir fry rice noodles.
- Chili garlic sauce – You can use homemade chili garlic sauce or store-bought sauce. This is what gives these noodles that big umami flavor. You can adjust the heat level of this dish easily by using more or less chili garlic sauce. The amount in this recipe makes what I would consider medium-spicy noodles. If you love spicy food, add more!
- Soy sauce – I love the deeper, richer flavor of Shoyu soy sauce but you can use any regular soy sauce. Use light soy sauce for a lighter flavor or dark soy sauce for a richer flavor.
- Oil – You’ll need peanut oil or vegetable oil to stir-fry the garlic and ginger, and toasted sesame oil in the sauce.
- Brown sugar – This adds some depth and some sweetness to balance the sauce.
- Ginger and garlic – Minced garlic and grated ginger add big flavor to these noodles.
- Green onions – Thinly slice two stalks of scallions, AKA green onions or spring onions.
- Cilantro – chopped fresh cilantro adds a bright herbal finish to this dish.
✅ Step-by-step instructions
Detailed instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here’s a visual step-by-step guide with photos to help you make this easy noodle recipe.
- In a large pot of water, cook the noodles according to package instructions. In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, and sesame oil. Set aside.
- In a large wok or large skillet over medium-high heat, add the peanut oil (or canola oil or vegetable oil).
- Add the garlic and ginger to the wok and stir-fry for 1 minute.
4. Add the cooked noodles to the wok.
5. Add the sauce.
6. Toss the noodles in the sauce to coat the noodles.
Plate and garnish with sliced green onions, sesame seeds, chopped cilantro.
Enjoy!
👩🏻🍳 Substitutions, add-ins, and recipe FAQs
Substitutions:
- In place of the chili garlic sauce, you can use sambal oelek, sriracha sauce, or chili garlic paste.
- Instead of rice noodles, you can use wheat noodles like lo mein wide noodles, egg noodles, soba noodles, udon noodles, or brown rice noodles. You can even use pasta like linguine in a pinch!
- Don’t like cilantro? You can simply leave it out! Or, use fresh parsley instead.
Add-ins:
- Want to add vegetables? Try adding snow peas, broccoli, bell peppers, carrots, and cabbage.
- Want to bulk up this noodle dish with protein? Try adding stir-fry cubed tofu, chicken, pork, beef, or shrimp.
- For a richer sauce, consider adding some oyster sauce or hoisin sauce.
Chili garlic sauce is usually made of 4-5 simple ingredients, including chili peppers, garlic, sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper. You can find it usually in the Asian aisle of most local grocery stores and in any Asian grocery store. This is our favorite store-bought chili garlic sauce.
Store noodles in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 or 4 days.
Place a serving of noodles in a microwave-safe bowl and sprinkle 1-2 teaspoons of water over the noodles, then microwave in 30-second increments until reheated through.
🍽 Serving ideas
These yummy garlic chili noodles are amazing as a main course on their own. If serving as a main course, try serving it with Asian appetizers like Thai Curry Puffs, Air Fryer Crab Rangoon, Filipino Spanish Bread, and Asian Carrot Cucumber Salad.
But they especially shine as a side dish that you can serve with SO many different dishes!
Here are a few main course recipes we love to serve these noodles with:
- Thai Basil Shrimp
- Ground Turkey Teriyaki
- Thai Basil Beef
- Easy Kung Pao Chicken
🍷 🥂 Wine pairings
The perfect wine pairing for spicy noodles is a white wine with good acidity. The ideal wine pairing is an off-dry Riesling. It’s also delicious with an Albariño or a white Vinho Verde.
In the mood for red wine? Serve these spicy chili garlic noodles with a light-bodied red wine such as a Gamay or a Pinot Noir.
🍳 Kitchen tools and equipment
Ready to make this recipe? Here are the kitchen tools and equipment you’ll need:
- Wok – You can make this noodles recipe in a large wok or in a large non-stick skillet
- Wooden spoon – Use a wooden spoon to stir fry the ingredients in the wok.
- Tongs – Kitchen tongs or a set of sturdy chopsticks make it easy to twirl and toss the noodles in the sauce.
More Asian noodle recipes
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to leave a 5-Star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card, and if you really loved it, please leave a comment further down on the page. Thank you!
Chili Garlic Noodles
Equipment
- 1 large pot
Ingredients
- 8 ounces rice noodles
- ¼ cup Shoyu soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Chili Garlic Sauce
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 scallions, sliced thinly
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
- 2 Tbsp peanut oil
Instructions
- In a large pot, cook the rice noodles according to package instructions. While the noodles are cooking, make the sauce.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, and sesame oil. Set aside.
- Heat the peanut oil in a large wok or skillet. Once hot, add the ginger and garlic and stir to cook for 30 seconds to one minute.
- Drain the noodles and add the cooked noodles and the sauce to the wok. Toss to coat the noodles with the sauce.
- Increase the heat to high and stir-fry, constantly stirring, for 2 minutes.
- Remove from heat and garnish with scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds.
Notes
- Use regular or dark soy sauce instead of Shoyu soy sauce.
- Use dark sugar instead of light sugar if you want a richer flavor.
- Want less heat? Use less chili garlic sauce.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was just what I was looking for! We really liked it, however the way it was written was confusing. It said to mix all the sauce ingredients together, the soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, ginger, garlic, sugar & sesame oil together. The next step said to quickly stir fry the garlic and ginger…. I believe it would have been even better with the quick stir fry and adding the rest of the sauce ingredients to the noodles.. I added chopped roasted peanuts for a little crunch, and will make again for sure, thanks