Last week I was looking through my fridge for something to cook for lunch. I spied the leftover noodles, and decided to make a pan-fried noodle dish, which became a quick and straightforward recipe for sesame fried noodles.
The recipe I used is from a blog called “Give Me Some Oven,” except I used minced garlic instead of garlic powder, and made my choice of vegetables carrots and spinach in place of the green onions the original recipe used. Also, I cut back the amount of pasta used for this recipe from one pound to a half-pound.
Sesame noodles can be served hot or cold, depending on the ingredients you have; I chose hot because I wanted the spinach leaves to wilt and the carrots softened. It doesn’t take too much time to prepare the ingredients, with cooking time at 15 to 20 minutes.
The sriracha mixes great with the salt and pepper, giving the dish a spicy flavor, but if you want a mild meal, you can leave out the sriracha spice and add an extra tablespoon of sesame seeds.
The ingredients can be purchased at Stop & Shop, and may be pricey if you have to purchase all of the seasonings and oils used in the recipe. Most of what I used for the sesame fried noodles came from the many leftovers I had in the fridge and the spices I already had in my spice rack.
Pan-Fried Sesame Noodles
½ lb. linguine
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 cup fresh spinach
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. sriracha
In a large pot, cook the pasta for 8 to 10 minutes in boiling water on medium heat. Drain the pasta in a colander, and mix in some butter or oil, so the pasta doesn’t stick together. (Also, sesame oil can blend in with the noodles and be used for cold sesame noodles.)
Pour the sesame oil into the pan, then add the minced garlic, the sesame seeds, and the vegetables, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes on medium heat. Combine the cooked noodles with the rice vinegar and soy sauce in the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Top off with another tablespoon of sesame oil, ginger, salt and pepper, and sriracha, blending the flavors for two minutes. Serve with a side of salad and enjoy an easy dish to prepare for lunch or dinner.