These garlic udon noodles are savory and creamy but most importantly, they can be whipped up in less than 15 minutes! This 6-ingredient recipe can be used as a base sauce for udon noodles, rice noodles, and egg noodles, making this the perfect recipe for WFH lunches!
I came up with this recipe because I was craving udon noodles packed with umami flavor but quick and easy to make. For this recipe, I used Sanuki frozen udon noodles blocks, which can be found in the frozen section of most Asian grocery stores. These kinds of udon noodles are my favorite, we always have a stash of these in my freezer for quick noodle cravings. These noodle blocks are already pre-cooked, so they only need a quick dip in hot water for them to unwind from their block form. Be sure to keep an eye on them, it only takes about a minute for them to “cook”.
What you’ll need:
- garlic
- onion
- dark soy sauce
- oyster sauce
- sesame oil
- Sanuki udon
- optional garnish: green onions, sesame seeds, and an egg yolk
- optional proteins: feel free to add any protein to this dish such as pork, beef, shrimp, etc!
How to make garlic udon noodles:
- To a heated pan with cooking oil, add the minced garlic and sliced onions. Sautè the garlic and onions for a few minutes until the onions are slightly translucent on medium heat.
- In the meantime, bring a pot of water to a boil. Once the water is at a boil, add the frozen Sanuki udon and let it thaw for 1 minute. Drain the noodles and set them aside.
- To the pan with sautèed garlic and onions, add 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp oyster sauce, and 1 tbsp sesame oil. Stir the sauce using a wooden spoon.
- Add the drained udon noodles and stir to coat the noodles in the sauce.
- This is a dry noodle dish, so don’t worry if it doesn’t look like much sauce
- Transfer the noodles to a plate and enjoy!
- optional: Garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds.
- I even topped mine with egg yolk, totally optional depending on your comfort level. Although, adding an egg yolk adds extra creaminess and umami to the noodles.
- The noodles are still hot, so the egg yolk cooks as you stir it into the noodles. Just be sure you are using fresh eggs!
Garlic Udon Noodles
Ingredients
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup onion sliced
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 blocks Sanuki udon noodles frozen
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
optional toppings
- 2 tbsp green onions chopped
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- 2 egg yolks fresh
Instructions
- Heat cooking oil on a pan at medium heat. Add the minced garlic and sliced onions. Sautè the garlic and onions for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook until the onions turn slightly translucent.
- In the meantime, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the frozen udon blocks and let them thaw for about 1 minute. The noodles are ready when they start to unwind from the block form. Watch the noodles carefully, as it "cooks" pretty quickly. Drain the noodles and set them aside.
- To the pan, add 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp oyster sauce, and mix to combine. Add the drained noodles to the pan, stir to coat the noodles well with the sauce. Transfer the noodles to a plate and enjoy!
- optional: garnish with chopped green onions, sprinkle of sesame seeds and fresh egg yolk (only the freshest!)
