This Peanut Udon Noodles recipe only requires 20 minutes to make and is flavorful, spicy, and completely vegan! This is the perfect quick and easy weeknight meal.
For quick and easy weeknight meals, it is hard to beat Asian-style recipes. They are so fast, flavorful, and make great use of pantry sauces and ingredients! I love to whip up some Stir-Fried Broccolini with steamed rice and tofu, or some Vegan Chickpea Broccoli Stir-Fry on a busy night.
And today, I have another quick and easy recipe to add to the list: Vegan Spicy Peanut Udon Noodles. This recipe is creamy, flavorful, and puts your pantry to work using ingredients like peanut butter, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. And it's all ready in just 20 minutes!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This recipe is ready in 20 minutes, so it's the perfect weeknight dinner recipe.
- And it makes great use of simple pantry ingredients.
- These Peanut Udon Noodles are flavorful, spicy, and completely vegan!
- This recipe is packed with vegetables like cabbage and carrots.
- And most importantly, it is absolutely delicious!
Ingredient Notes
Fresh or Frozen Udon Noodles: Fresh or frozen udon noodles are way bouncier and chewier than their dried counterparts, so I highly recommend taking a trip to your local Asian market to grab some. Personally, I love frozen udon noodles because they keep longer and have fewer ingredients.
Creamy Natural Peanut Butter: Your peanut butter should only have peanut and salt in it for this recipe! The kind that has added sugar is too sweet for this recipe.
Sambal Oelek: Sambal Oelek is a spicy ground chili paste. It adds a little spicy flavor to these Vegan Peanut Udon Noodles.
Unseasoned Rice Vinegar: I always keep unseasoned rice vinegar in my pantry. It is great for making vinaigrette, or a quick sauce to dip dumplings into, or a quick peanut sauce like this recipe!
Soy Sauce: I used lower-sodium soy sauce for this recipe. Tamari or shoyu will also work!
Vegetables: This recipe uses ginger, garlic and, green onions for flavor, and cabbage and carrots for some veggies!
How to Substitute Dry Udon Noodles
Fresh and frozen udon noodles already have water in them, while dry noodles don't, so the weight of noodles you should use is very different!
This Vegan Peanut Udon Noodles recipe calls for 20 ounces of fresh or frozen udon noodles. If you use dry noodles, use 8 ounces.
Instructions
Step 1. Heat olive oil in a 10 to 12-inch stainless steel skillet over medium heat.
Add the garlic, ginger, and sliced green onions and cook, stirring frequently until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Step 2. Next, add the shredded cabbage and carrot and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes.
Then, add the soy sauce and use a wooden spoon to scrape any bits up that are stuck to the bottom.
Cook for about 2 more minutes, until the cabbage has softened.
Step 3. Add peanut butter, rice vinegar, sambal oelek and ¼ cup of water and stir until a creamy sauce forms.
Step 4. Remove from heat and add cooked udon noodles. Use tongs to toss everything together, adding additional water if needed to thin the sauce out.
Serve with green onion tops and crushed peanuts.
Recipe FAQs
Store any leftover noodles in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
To reheat, place some noodles in a skillet, add a little water to loosen the sauce, and heat until warm.
Ramen noodles are much thinner than udon noodles. Udon noodles are thick, bouncy, and plump.
Yes! It is important to rinse the excess starch off the noodles so they don't clump together.
Expert Recipe Tips
If you can't find udon noodles, you can substitute 8 ounces of soba noodles, or even ramen noodles!
If you hate chopping, you can use coleslaw mix in place of the shredded cabbage and carrots in this Vegan Peanut Udon Noodles recipe! Use about 3 cups.
I used ½ cup of water in total to thin the peanut sauce out. You may need a little more or less, depending on the heat of your skillet!
Looking for More Quick Weeknight Dinner Ideas?
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Peanut Udon Noodles
Equipment
- 1 10-12 Inch Stainless Steel Skillet
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Chefs Knife
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
Ingredients
- 20 Ounces Fresh or Frozen Udon Noodles See note!
- 2 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Large Cloves of Garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoon Minced Ginger
- 1 Small Bunch of Green Onions, thinly sliced White and light green parts only!
- 2 Cup Shredded Cabbage I used green cabbage, but napa cabbage is also great
- 1 Medium Carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks see note
- 2 tablespoon Soy Sauce
- ¼ Cup Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
- 2 tablespoon Unseasoned Rice Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Sambal Oelek or other fresh ground chili paste
- ¼-1/2 Cup Water
- To garnish: crushed peanuts and thinly sliced green onion tops
Instructions
- Cook udon noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse thouroughy so they don't stick together.20 Ounces Fresh or Frozen Udon Noodles
- Heat olive oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, ginger, and sliced green onions and cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until fragrant, for 1 minute.2 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 3 Large Cloves of Garlic, minced, 1 Small Bunch of Green Onions, thinly sliced, 2 teaspoon Minced Ginger
- Add shredded cabbage and carrots and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Then, add soy sauce and use the spoon to scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking for 2 more minutes or until the cabbage and carrots are tender.2 Cup Shredded Cabbage, 1 Medium Carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks, 2 tablespoon Soy Sauce
- Add peanut butter, rice vinegar, sambal oelek, and ¼ cup of water, and stir until the sauce is creamy.¼ Cup Natural Creamy Peanut Butter, 2 tablespoon Unseasoned Rice Vinegar, 1 tablespoon Sambal Oelek, ¼-1/2 Cup Water
- Remove from heat and add the noodles, and use tongs to toss everything together. If the sauce is not loose enough, add up to ¼ cup more water while you are tossing everything together. Top the noodles with green onion tops and crushed peanuts and serve!To garnish: crushed peanuts and thinly sliced green onion tops
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