This easy yaki udon noodles with sauce recipe is one of my favorite ways to get a super flavorful dinner on the table in under 20 minutes. The Homemade Udon Sauce Recipe is made using a handful of simple ingredients that are probably already in your pantry!
Like most delicious stir fry recipes, this dish is endlessly customizable to your veggie and protein preferences, as well as the contents of your produce bins.
So instead of reaching for a frozen pizza the next time you don't feel like cooking, reach for this package of chewy Japanese noodles and you'll have a delicious, flavorful meal on the table just a couple of minutes later.
What you'll need to make this recipe:
Before we get to the step by step directions, a few notes on the ingredients:
Udon noodles: Most grocery with an international section will carry some kind of chewy udon noodles. If you don't see shelf-stable udon noodles there, check out your local Asian grocery stores. You should find shelf stable, dry noodles, fresh noodles or even frozen udon noodles there.
Shrimp: medium shrimp are a great option in this recipe. Substitute your favorite protein, including white fish, salmon, or tofu. For non-pescatarians, use chicken, beef or ground pork.
Veggies: mushrooms, bok choy and scallions are my favorite combo for this stir fry. But you can use any combination of vegetables in the same measurement.
Full ingredient list and measurements included in the printable recipe card below.
Step by step instructions :
1. Make sauce
First, make the sauce for the udon noodle stir fry. Combine all sauce ingredients, including soy sauce, oyster sauce, chili crisp, mirin, brown sugar, cornstarch and fresh lime juice in a small bowl. Whisk well to combine.
2. Prep noodles
If using vacuum packed, cooked udon noodles, simply remove from their package and pour in hot water in a bowl.
Let the noodles soak in the hot water for about a minute and gently separate the noodles in preparation for stir-frying. Drain and set aside.
3. Prep stir fry vegetables
Heat neutral oil in a large pan, skillet or wok over medium heat. When hot, add minced ginger and garlic and stir fry for one minute. Add cleaned and sliced bok choy, shiitakes and scallions, sautéing for 2 minutes.
4. Shrimp and noodles
Add the shrimp and keep stir-frying for another 2 minutes. Then add udon noodles and sauce to the pan, increasing the heat to medium high.
Bring the sauce to a simmer and toss to coat the vegetables and noodles in the udon sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning.
5. Garnish and serve
If using, drizzle sesame oil over the yaki udon and toss before plating. Serve with additional spring onions, lime wedges and sliced chilis.
Looking for more delicious Asian seafood recipes?
FAQ's and Serving Suggestions:
Most grocery stores large enough to have an international section will carry some kind of chewy udon noodles in their Asian groceries aisle. If you don't see shelf-stable udon noodles there, check out your local Asian grocery stores - you can often find shelf stable, dry noodles, fresh noodles or even frozen noodles there. Just be sure it's udon, which is a chewy wheat noodle, perfect for this savory sauce.
Udon sauce is a slightly sweet and richly flavored Asian sauce made from sesame oil, dark soy sauce, mirin, sugar, oyster sauce, rice wine vinegar, and sugar.
Your choice of protein will work! For pescatarians, shrimp, squid and even chunks of white fish would be lovely. For non-pescatarians, chicken thighs, beef slices or ground pork would all be delicious in this tangy sauce.
Dry sherry or sweet marsala wine are probably your best substitutes, but neither are widely available in Portugal. So if I'm out of mirin, I'll use an equal amount of rice vinegar, and a pinch of sugar to counteract the tartness of the vinegar.
Add an extra 2 teaspoons of regular soy sauce (light soy sauce) and an extra two teaspoons of oyster sauce. Dark soy is richer and deeper than light soy - added more for coloring and flavor than saltiness. So mixing the two will give you a reasonable substitute.
Both are common in Japanese cuisine, but udon noodles are straight and thicker. Ramen are usually wavy, thinner noodles. Both are made with wheat flour and have a chewy texture, but udon noodles are vegan, and ramen noodles contain eggs. While udon are vegan, they are not gluten free, like the rice noodles you see in some stir fry dishes. So be sure if you're cooking for gluten-sensitive guests that you have the appropriate noodle!
Chili crisp is one of my favorite pantry staples. It’s available in your local Asian market or on Amazon. It is a super flavorful oil infused with crispy bits of dried chilies, garlic, onion and any number of other aromatics. Lao Gan Ma is the most popular and readily available brand (it’s the one I always have in my pantry, no matter where I am in the world). If you are looking to substitute for chili crisp, you could use whatever spicy thing you have in the pantry or fridge that your whole family enjoys. Hot sauce, red chili flakes, even cayenne powder.
Almost any vegetable that you and your family prefer will work here and add a fresh taste to the shrimp udon noodle dish. The shiitake mushrooms are my only non-negotiable when I make these fresh udon noodles, but I'll swap out bok choy for bell pepper (green or red pepper), snow peas or yellow onion. If I'm feeling fancy, I might add some baby corn to the frying pan.
To store, transfer the yaki udon stir fry noodles to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, warm in a small saucepan with a few tablespoons of stock or water over medium heat until heated through.
Shrimp Noodles with Homemade Udon Sauce
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Ingredients
For the noodles:
21 ounces udon noodles (1 full package, cooked and vacuum packed)
12 ounces medium shrimp, cleaned and deveined
4-5 cups vegetables (baby bok choy leaves, green onions, shiitake mushrooms)
8 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced or grated
3 tablespoons neutral oil
For yaki udon stir fry sauce:
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
2 tablespoons chili crisp
4 teaspoons dark soy sauce
4 teaspoons mirin
4 teaspoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon sesame oil for serving, optional
Instructions
- First, make the sauce for the udon noodle stir fry. Combine soy sauce, oyster sauce, chili crisp, mirin, brown sugar, cornstarch and lime juice in a small bowl. Whisk well to combine. Set aside.
- Next, prepare your udon noodles. If using vacuum packed cooked udon noodles, simply remove from their package and place into a bowl. Boil enough water to cover the noodles and pour over. Let the noodles soak in the water for about a minute and gently separate the noodles in preparation for stir-frying. Drain and set aside. If using dried udon, drop into boiling water and cook for 8 minutes until tender, but still al dente.
- Finally, prepare the stir fry vegetables. Mince your garlic and ginger, then separate baby bok choy leaves, clean and slice shiitake mushroom and slice scallions.
- Heat neutral oil in a large skillet or wok over medium heat. When hot, add ginger and garlic and stir fry for one minute. Add bok choy, shiitakes and scallions, sautéing for 2 minutes. Add the shrimp and keep stir-frying for another 2 minutes. Add udon noodles and sauce to the pan, increasing the heat to medium high.
- Bring the sauce to a simmer and toss to coat the vegetables and noodles in the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning.
- If using, drizzle sesame oil over the yaki udon and toss before plating. Serve with additional spring onions and lime wedges.
Notes
If using dried udon, drop into boiling water and cook a few minutes less than package directions, until tender, but still al dente.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: Easy Recipes
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Asian
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