15 Minute Garlic Fried Noodles: In only 15 minutes, and a lot of garlic, you can make this delicious Asian inspired side dish!
I repeat. 15 minute Garlic Fried Noodles. Also known as The Easiest Rice Noodle Recipe Eveerrrr. As a garlic-loving and rice noodle-loving family, this recipe is a staple in our house. make it all of the time. When we don't have time. When we're out of ideas. When we just want something we know we all will love.
Not only is it made in just minutes, but this easy rice noodle recipe can be customized in so many ways! Add a protein. Add a veggie. Add both! The possibilities with these garlic noodles are endless!
Ingredients Needed
AND these garlic noodles are made with only 6 ingredients!
- Rice Noodles - This will make the recipe gluten-free and is what keeps it ready in just 15 minutes.
- Garlic - Duh
- Butter - We always use salted for this recipe but if you only have unsalted, no problem.
- Soy Sauce - Regular soy sauce is best. We've made it with low sodium but then we end up adding salt...
- Coconut Sugar - You could also use light brown sugar, no problem, or even maple syrup or honey.
- Green Onions - Because what's garlic without onions?
Which Rice Noodles to Use
All rice noodles are not the same! And your local grocery store may only carry one brand/size so be sure to check what it is because it will affect your cooking time. We always love to go to our local Asian market to get our rice stick noodles and for this recipe, we prefer to use a thin one, size 1, or Small (S). The wider they are, the longer they will take to cook.
We love to use these noodles for these garlic noodles.
Rice noodles are not like pasta noodles - you don't boil them and they cook quickly so the hardest part of this recipe is just making sure that you don't overcook your noodles.
To Cook Rice Noodles: Just heat about 6 cups of water to almost boiling (I use our stovetop kettle), then pour the water over the noodles, making sure they're completely submerged. Then let them soak for about 3 to 4 minutes until they're al dente. Remember, they still have to go in your hot pan and there's nothing worse than a mushy noodle! Once al dente, drain the water and then rinse the noodles in cold water so they don't keep cooking.
Quick and Easy to Make
Saute garlic and onion in butter. While you're waiting for your water to boil, mince the garlic, dice the onions, and then sauté them in butter for about 2 minutes, then add your coconut sugar and mix until it's all incorporated.
Add soy sauce and let it all simmer for another minute.
Drain noodles and add to the pan. Add the noodles a tong full at a time, not all at once. This will make the mixing and even incorporation of the sauce and garlic easier for this rice noodle recipe.
Stir. Let the garlic noodles fry and soak up all the deliciousness!
Top with some more fresh green onions, add your favorite hot sauce or garlic chili paste if you want, and you're done! 15 Minute Garlic Fried Noodles for the win!
So much flavor. So much garlic! This made the perfect side dish for our Maple Soy Glazed Chicken Thighs! Although really, I would totally whip a batch of these noodles up for a quick lunch or a side for nearly any dish.
Customizable
Add a protein like chicken, shrimp, or pork!
Add more veggies like mushrooms, cabbage, or carrots.
Add some crunch from some peanuts!
Swap out the butter and add some additional flavor with Peanut Oil or Sesame Oil.
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FAQs
No problem - you will just need to let your noodles soak longer to ensure they're cooked.
Sure can. Follow the cooking instructions for the pasta and then add to the pan.
No problem - you can use light brown, maple syrup, or even honey.
No problem - you can buy them here on Amazon.
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
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15 Minute Garlic Fried Noodles
Ingredients
- 8 oz thin rice noodles 1 MM or S
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 cup green onions, diced and divided. about 2 bunches
- 6-8 cloves garlic minced
- 1-2 tablespoons sugar coconut or light brown sugar. Or you could use hoisin.
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari, or a gluten free soy sauce
Instructions
- Soak rice noodles in almost boiling water for 4 minutes until al dente. Drain then rinse with cold water to stop cooking and set aside.
- Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet on medium to high heat. Add about 3/4 cup of the scallions and all of the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes until garlic is fragrant.
- Add sugar and mix in until it's all incorporated. Add soy sauce and let simmer together for 1 minute.
- Add noodles and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes until noodles have fried and absorbed the sauce.
- Plate, top with more green onions, your favorite hot sauce or chili garlic sauce and enjoy!
Julie
We made this tonight and it was super easy and delicious! We added broccoli and mushrooms and substituted the coconut sugar with pure maple syrup. This is a keeper!! Thank you for sharing 😊
Tracy
Yum!! Thank YOU for sharing, Julie. Great additions and subs!
Donna
Yum! Sometimes the simplest recipes are the yummiest. I had to cover it with a pan and add a little bit of water to steam the noodles a tad more. I also used plain white sugar but about a teaspoon or so. Next time I'd double the garlic because we're garlic lovers. It's a great starter recipe and can def be adjusted as preferred. Will make again!
Tracy
That's great to hear, Donna! Thanks so much for sharing!
VS
Thanks for the wonderful recipe and especially the tips on "cooking" the noodles. It's more like they just need to be heated. For the first time our rice noodles weren't mushy. Substituted brown sugar and threw in some peanuts. Turned out great! Next up will be crockpot Pho!
theresa dean
no coconut sugar what can i sub with?
Tracy
Brown sugar works great, too!
THERESA JONES
i tossed some shrimp in while i was cooking the garlic and onions. so delicious!v
Tracy
Yum!! So happy you enjoyed it 🙂
Jessica
This is my first time following one of your recipes! I just made these, but with pad thai noodles & added napa cabbage...it is taking all my self-restraint not to gobble up the entire batch. YUM. So easy and delicious; thank you!
Tracy
That's the exact same problem I have, Jessica! LOVE the addition of the napa cabbage! Yum!!
Tamara
I drizzled some Sriracha sauce on top, so good! I served with tofu and green beans.
Tracy
Ooooh great idea!! So glad you enjoyed it!
Beth
I made this and added some speghetti squash noodles that I needed to use. I also used coco aminos and Bragg's amino mix instead of the sugar and soy sauce...yummy. I served it with chicken thighs cooked in yoshida sauce
Mo
Sticky sweet garlicky goodness!
Super simple too.
thx for sharing!
Tracy
So glad you enjoyed it, Mo!!
Jen
I tried this tonight & it was really good! I added mushrooms & carrots to this, along with a splash more of soy sauce while the noodles were sauteeing. It was really good!!!
Was wondering if anyone knows the nutritional information for this recipe?
Tracy
Hi Jen! What great additions!!
Here's the nutritional information!
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 2
Amount per serving
Calories 633
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17.4g 22%
Saturated Fat 11g 55%
Cholesterol 46mg 15%
Sodium 1483mg 64%
Total Carbohydrate 112.7g 41%
Dietary Fiber 5.4g 19%
Total Sugars 13.4g
Protein 9g
Vitamin D 12mcg 60%
Calcium 93mg 7%
Iron 3mg 19%
Potassium 197mg 4%
Farwin
It cannot get easier than this. Looks so yummy !
Jackie Burns
Sorry to say this, but our family found this very bland. Cooked as written, didn't add or omit anything.
ClancyCat
I agree. I was shocked at how bland it was; all my husband could taste was the sweetness of it--and even that was "barely." Garlic? Nothing. I can only assume that the brand and quality of the rice noodles *somehow* affected the outcome. I seemed to have FAR too many noodles (I only made 6oz of noodles with 1.25x the sauce, mind you) for the sauce, which I should have had plenty of sauce for the noodle amount. I kept them, but I'm going to do a lot of retrofitting for further consumption as leftovers. IDK, sesame oil, some shrooms, something to give it some flavor. Such a bummer.