Soy Sauce Noodles are a quick and easy recipe to make any night of the week! Using simple ingredients and taking less than 15 minutes these noodles can be on the table with your chopsticks at the ready. These fried noodles with soy sauce tick the taste, texture and Asian street food boxes with ease. They are as simple as instant noodles with a slick savory sauce 😉👌.
Recipes like the Beef Yaki Udon, Chicken Yaki Udon and Pork Mince Noodles are all about noodles with protein be it beef, chicken or pork.
The Shrimp Yakisoba, Seafood Yaki Udon and Tofu Noodle Stir Fry give us more proteins to explore with shrimp (prawns), seafood and tofu.
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🤍 Recipe Highlights
I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the recipe in the points below:
- Simple ingredients: everything you need to make these soy sauce stir fried noodles can be sought from your local grocery store. There is no need to head to the Asian grocer. We use minimal ingredients to create this simple dish.
- Noodles: yup, I reckon you know what I am on about. How good are noodles 😁👌! Paired with a simple sauce and you are onto a winner.
- Street food: instant noodles, egg noodles, ramen noodles or your favorite noodles. Each of these will work for the recipe. Cook them according to the packet instructions and throw them in the pan!
- Dark Soy Sauce: this is the secret ingredient in Asian cooking that turns things a lovely golden brown colour! It is different from regular (sushi) style soy sauce. If you made this recipe with regular soy sauce, it will still work, however, the colour will be lighter than shown in the photos throughout the post.
- Cheap as chips: these instant noodles with soy sauce and sesame oil is a budget friendly meatless noodle recipe. They can be a main dish on their own or a side dish to a meaty main. They also taste a lot better than cup noodles but comes in at around the same price! Special note, the dish is meatless however, the addition of fish sauce means that it is not vegetarian 😉👍.
🥗 Ingredients
The photo below is to show you everything you need to make this easy noodle recipe. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.
As you can see the recipe calls for:
- Peanut oil: an aromatic oil that is excellent to use in Asian recipes. It is much lighter in colour than olive oil and has a very fragrant taste about it.
- Garlic: fresh garlic cloves are best that we finely slice. This adds great texture to the noodles as you can pick up the slices which become soft and caramelised when they are cooked.
- Green onions: these add both an onion flavor as well as pops of colour to the dish. We need only finely slice them with a knife and chopping board.
- Salt and pepper: we use salt and a little bit of black pepper for seasoning in the recipe.
- Sriracha sauce: you will find this in the Asian foods section of the supermarket. It is known for being a (very 🌶🌶) hot sauce. Luckily a small amount of it goes a long way, so our taste buds won't object 😉👌!
- Fish sauce: this is unique in flavor and smell. It enhances the depth of savoriness in the recipe.
- Sesame oil: this is darker in colour than most other oils and adds a lovely richness as well as slickness to the noodles.
- Dark soy sauce: I mentioned above that this is how we get the lovely golden brown colour into the noodles. It is the 'secret ingredient' that works wonders in the recipe.
- Soy sauce: this is regular sushi style soy sauce. It brings the salty umami flavour to the sauce.
- Noodles: instant noodles without the dried packets of seasoning and vegetables is what we are after. You might know these as 2 minute noodles, thin noodles, instant noodles or ramen noodles.
Tasty Tip: I like to provide you with a number of substitutions and variations giving you an array of options when making the recipe. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section (further below) before jumping into the instructions on how to make the recipe which are coming next 😉👌.
🍳 Instructions
Here are the easy steps to make the recipe. We start by gathering the ingredients to make the simple noodle sauce.
- Gather the sauce ingredients (Photo 1)
- Whisk them to combine (Photo 2)
- Add the peanut oil, garlic and green onions (Photo 3)
- Then cook the noodles (Photo 4)
👩🍳 How to Make Soy Sauce Noodles
Start the recipe by gathering the ingredients to make the easy noodle sauce. Then add the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sriracha sauce, fish sauce, salt and pepper to a small jug and whisk to combine. Then set this aside.
Next place a large wok or frying pan onto the stove top and turn the heat to high. Add the peanut oil then the sliced garlic and green onions. Fry these for 2-3 minutes until they soften and the garlic turns a lovely golden brown colour.
Next read and follow the packet instructions to cook the noodles. Once done use a colander over the sink to drain the noodle water and discard this.
Next add the cooked noodles to the wok with the garlic and green onions. You can see me having done this in the photo below.
- Pour the sauce over the noodles (Photo 5)
Next, grab the sauce that you made earlier, give it another quick stir and then pour this into the wok also.
- Toss and allow the noodles to heat through (Photo 6)
Next use kitchen tongs to toss the noodles so that the sauce is consistently coating the noodles, garlic and green onion. You can see what this will look like in the photo above.
And just like that our pan-fried noodles will be done (less than 15 minutes woot) and calling for the eating.
Get ready to garnish the dish and have chopsticks at the ready 😉👍.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
This is a pretty filling, quick and easy noodle recipe. There is not a lot of side salads, potatoes or breads that pair well. Yet if you are looking for an appetizer the Air Fryer Spring Rolls will work and fit the theme.
Bowls and chopsticks are basic necessities and you can throw some sliced green onions on the noodles as well. These add both pops of colour and texture.
There is the crunchy little garlic pieces, the oniony green bits and the slick saucy noodles. It is an winning combination yet one where minimal effort is needed to create maximum yum!
👍 How to Guide
How to Store
Store leftover noodles in a sealed airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. They need to be reheated before being consumed.
How to Reheat
Portion the noodles into bowls, cover with cling wrap and then heat for 1-2 minutes in the microwave until warmed through.
How to Freeze
This recipe is best cooked and consumed. It is not suitable to freeze.
😉 Substitutions and Variations
Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:
- To add some extra vegetables to the noodles, think Asian greens. Bok choy, cabbage or broccolini will work. Pan fry them at the same time as the garlic and spring onions.
- Chopped bell peppers or green beans are other vegetables that you can consider using if you wish to.
- For protein add cooked shrimp, chicken or leftover pork.
- You can use different noodles to the ones you see in the photos throughout the post. Some suggestions are udon noodles, singapore noodles, lo mein noodles, sesame noodles or thin egg noodles. Note: I haven't tried the recipe with rice noodles in case you are wondering.
- Or if you want to use regular spaghetti, I won't stop you!
- Drizzle some chili oil over the top if that is your favorite way to eat a bowl of noodles 😉👍.
- For extra garnish add some sesame seeds (toasted or not) to the top of the dish when serving.
💡 Tasty Tips
Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:
- This is a quick recipe that doesn't take long to bring together. If you have the garlic and green onions prepped and ready to go it will help you to move quickly through the steps.
- You can boil the kettle and use that water to cook the noodles if you wish too (saves waiting for the stove top to boil the water).
- Give the sauce another quick stir before pouring over the noodles to ensure that it is consistently mixed together.
- You can use tongs to chopsticks to toss the sauce and noodles. After a few minutes you will see that they are consistently tossed.
🤓 Frequently Asked Questions
How to fry noodles with soy sauce?
Start making the noodle sauce by combining the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sriracha sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper. Whisk to combine then set aside. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, drain them and add to sliced garlic and green onions that have been lightly fried in peanut oil. Pour the sauce over the dish and then use tongs to toss and combine.
How do you flavour plain noodles?
Adding flavor to plain noodles is easy and very worth the end results. Here are some ideas to try:
- Add some Asian green vegetables.
- Add some sliced, grated or shredded carrot.
- Or add some shredded leftover chicken.
- Cook some pork mince (ground pork) to add to the noodles.
- Or do the same and add some cooked shrimp.
- Add a sprinkle of your favorite nuts.
- Fry some vegetables such as bean shoots, cabbage or mushrooms.
- Top with a runny or boiled egg.
- Add some lightly fried pan fried tofu.
Which Soy Sauce is good for noodles?
Standard Soy Sauce from the supermarket is great for noodles. That being said however, there is both light soy sauce and dark soy sauce versions available. If you want your noodles to have a golden brown colour like Asian restaurant noodles, you will need to use a combination of both types of soy sauce.
Can I put soy sauce in ramen?
Absolutely! Soy sauce is an excellent addition to ramen, adding umami flavor to the noodles.
😍 More Easy Noodle Recipes
You don't have to be a noodle lover (but you may become one 😂👌)to start down the path of enjoying Asian street foods. These recipes are simple with basic ingredients and far better than ordering in or getting take out:
- Mongolian Beef Noodles
- Beef Noodle Stir Fry
- Salmon Noodle Stir Fry
- Seafood Yaki Udon
- Chicken Summer Rolls
- Chicken Corn Noodle Soup
- Ginger Beef Noodles
- Chilli Garlic Noodles
- Chicken Noodle Stir Fry
- Prawn Stir Fry Noodles
It is time to get saucy with our noodles my friend. Wok on! You can also find all of my noodle recipes or homemade takeout in the one spot.
Adrianne
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📖 Recipe
Soy Sauce Noodles
Equipment
- 1 Wok
- 1 Non stick utensil
Ingredients
Simple Noodle Sauce
- 2 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce Note 1
- 1 tablespoon sriracha sauce Note 2
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce Note 3
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt Note 4
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Soy Sauce Noodles
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil
- 4 cloves garlic thinly sliced, Note 5
- 4 green onions finely chopped
- 4 packets instant noodles Note 6
Garnish (optional):
- green onions sliced
Instructions
- Noodle sauce: add the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, fish sauce, sriracha sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper to a glass jug and whisk to combine then set aside.
- Noodles: read and follow the packet instructions to cook the noodles. Then use a colander over the sink to drain them once cooked and discard the water.
- Garlic and green onions: place a large wok onto the stove top, turn the heat to high and add the peanut oil. Then add the sliced garlic and green onion pieces and cook for 1- 2 minutes until softened and the garlic has turned golden brown.
- Combine: add the cooked drained noodles to the wok with the garlic and green onions. Then pour the sauce over the top and use tongs to toss and consistently combine.
- To serve: portion into bowls, garnish with sliced green onions and provide chopsticks for serving.
Notes
- Note 1- Dark soy sauce: this will be in the same aisle at the supermarket and will say 'dark' or 'premium' soy sauce. Pick up the bottle and roll it around a little. You will see that the colour is darker, the consistency thicker and it is less hard to 'see through'.
- Note 2- Sriracha sauce: is hot stuff baby! If you are new to it, take it slowly, less is more!
- Note 3 - Fish sauce: the flavour mellows with this one in the wok. It is not 'too fishy'. Try it as it brings a unique Asian taste to the dish.
- Note 4 - Kosher salt: you can omit the additional salt if you don't enjoy a lot of salt in your food. The soy sauces are strong and salty, so again, less is more!
- Note 5 - Garlic: have a look at the photos to see how I slice the garlic. We want to do this for texture. Minced garlic or garlic from a jar won't cut it for this recipe!
- Note 6 - Noodles: you can use packet noodles, dried noodles, instant noodles or 2 minute noodles. Cook according to the packet instructions (but don't use the seasoning or dried bits of stuff in the packet).
Nutrition
Recipe published January 2021, updated in September 2023 with new photos and a rewrite due to reader feedback about fish sauce not being vegetarian and different names for shallots and green onions across countries. (I hear ya!)😉👌. Thanks for the input.
Kate says
FYI, shallots and scallions are not the same thing. As someone with food allergies, this can be important.
Adrianne says
Thanks Kate for your feedback. I appreciate you letting me know. I will make an update to note this in the post. Have a great day!
Matilde says
Came here with the same comment as above, as it is still not changed in the recipe. Shallots are basically mild and sweeter white onions.
Adrianne says
Ok thanks Matilde for your feedback! Apologies for the delay, I have been away. Will update it this week, thanks I appreciate you keeping me up to date.