Bouncy udon noodles in a delicious aromatic garlic chili oil with succulent shrimp. These quick and easy chili garlic shrimp noodles are ready in 15 minutes with minimal ingredients! A great meal to enjoy on those busy weeknights.
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These Chili Garlic Shrimp Noodles feature chewy udon noodles, juicy shrimp tossed in a garlic chili sauce made with red pepper flakes and a variety of seasonings.
This easy Asian noodle dish is packed with spicy garlic flavors and the best part is it's made with simple ingredients in little time in just one pan.
It's a Japanese-Chinese fusion dish inspired by my garlic chili oil noodles that originate from China, which is super delicious!
These noodles are a great way to add seafood to your diet and if you're not a fan of shrimp or seafood in general, swap it for another protein! You can also add any cooked veggies too!
These noodles are also not super spicy and are more on the mild side but they still have a kick because we're using gochugaru, which are Korean red pepper flakes.
If you prefer it less spicy, feel free to reduce the amount of gochugaru or omit it completely.
I love making these noodles whenever I have frozen shrimp readily available, which is almost always the case. This dish comes together with little effort and tastes incredible!
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Frozen Udon Noodles: these are thick wheat flour noodles that most Asian markets sell in the frozen section. Or substitute with freshly made udon noodles, thick fresh wheat noodles, lo mein noodles or spaghetti prepared according to package directions.
- Jumbo Shrimp: get the easy-peel deveined kind to make life easier! Avoid using small or colossal size shrimp for this recipe. Not a fan of shrimp? Substitute with cooked chicken, pork, beef, extra-firm tofu or eggs.
- Green Onion
- Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil or any heavy scented oils with a low smoke point.
- Fresh Garlic
- Sesame seeds: optional garnish. If you're allergic to sesame, omit this ingredient.
Noodle Sauce
- Sesame Oil: or substitute with sesame seeds. If you're allergic to sesame, omit this ingredient.
- Gochugaru: aka Korean red pepper powder. It's a spicy red chili powder or flake that is seedless sold at Korean grocery stores. Or substitute with Sichuan red chili flakes or crushed red pepper flakes as a last resort.
- White Granulated Sugar: or substitute with cane sugar.
- Chicken Bouillon Powder: aka chicken stock powder.
- Chinese Black Vinegar: a black mild vinegar made of fermented black glutinous rice and used in Chinese cuisine. Or substitute with rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Do not use balsamic vinegar.
- Dark Soy Sauce: this is thicker and darker than regular soy sauce and not the same as regular soy sauce. Or substitute with regular soy sauce but add to taste near the end of the finished dish.
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce, light soy sauce, tamari sauce, coconut aminos or gluten-free soy sauce.
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients or check online stores, like Amazon.
Expert Tips
- Use fresh or frozen good quality shrimp. This makes a huge difference. I love using black tiger shrimp for a meaty chewy or pacific white.
- Use frozen udon or fresh udon instead of vacuum-sealed udon that is shelf stable because the latter will break apart easily and isn't as chewy as frozen or fresh.
- Don't over soak the noodles or they will become soggy when you stir fry them.
- Don't overcook the shrimp. Sauté the shrimp until pink and curled and then remove from heat or the shrimp will tasty rubbery and not tender.
- Cook noodle sauce before adding noodles to bring out the flavours in the red chili pepper flakes by heating them.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make chili garlic shrimp noodles:
- First in a large bowl, soak your frozen udon noodles in hot boiling water just until loosened, about 30 seconds. Strain them and set aside.
- Then heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Fry shrimp until pink, curled and cooked through. Remove and set aside. Do not overcook them.
- Reduce to low-medium heat and sauté garlic and green onions for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Then quickly add to the pan in this order: sesame oil, gochugaru, sugar, chicken bouillon powder, Chinese black vinegar, and both soy sauces, so the ingredients in between don't burn.
- Toss in udon noodles and mix well until noodles are coated in sauce.
- Then toss in the cooked shrimp with the noodles. Remove off heat. Lastly garnish with sesame seeds and more green onions. Enjoy!
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
- Freezer-friendly? I don't recommend freezing garlic chili shrimp noodles because the noodles and shrimp will change in texture.
Pairing Suggestions
Garlic chili shrimp noodles serve well with:
- starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, hot and sour soup, gyoza
- fried rice
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- protein dishes like Mongolian Chicken, Mongolian Beef, Soy Garlic Tofu, Chinese Braised Tofu and more!
FAQ
Garlic chili shrimp noodles can be made up to 4 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.
Udon noodles are not gluten-free because they're made of wheat flour, which contains gluten. However, some brands sell gluten-free udon noodles if you search online.
By omitting the red pepper flakes (gochugaru), you can make these noodles not spicy.
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📖 Recipe
Easy 15-min. Chili Garlic Shrimp Noodles
Ingredients
- 1.10 lb udon noodle frozen, or fresh udon prepared to package instructions
- 10 jumbo shrimp peeled & deveined
- 1 green onion finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds for garnishing
Noodle Sauce
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon gochugaru or red pepper flakes, double the amount for more spicy
- 1 teaspoon white granulated sugar or cane sugar
- ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- ½ teaspoon Chinese black vinegar or apple cider vinegar/rice vinegar/white vinegar
- 2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon regular soy sauce
Instructions
- In a large bowl, soak your frozen udon noodles in hot boiling water just until loosened, about 30 seconds. Strain them and set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Fry shrimp until pink, curled and cooked through. Remove and set aside. Do not overcook them.
- Reduce to low-medium heat and sauté garlic and green onions for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Then quickly add to the pan in this order: sesame oil, gochugaru, sugar, chicken bouillon powder, Chinese black vinegar, and both soy sauces, so the ingredients in between don't burn.
- Toss in udon noodles and mix well until noodles are coated in sauce.
- Then toss in the cooked shrimp with the noodles. Remove off heat. Garnish with sesame seeds and more green onions. Enjoy!
E.B.
I just made this for dinner, but I added a ton of Spinach. It's very easy and very tasty!
Christie Lai
Thanks for making my recipe and sharing this positive review, E.B.! Glad it worked out well with spinach!
Jessie
I am gluten and dairy free. Would Gf spaghetti noodles work?
christieathome
Yes, absolutely! The noodles will be slightly more dense due to the lack of gluten but it will definitely work 🙂
Brooke English
What could I swap in in place of frozen noodles?
christieathome
Shelf stable udon, thick egg noodles, dried ribbon wheat noodles or ramen could work.
Monica
Providing the shrimp is peeled and deveined, this recipe is REALLY quick. Additionally, the recipe is easy to size up for more people. Because my family was so eager to dig in, we forgot to take a picture and tag you, but I will make this dish again as it is now a family favorite.
christieathome
Thanks so much for making my recipe! So glad you and your family enjoyed it!
Randy
So easy to make, deliciousness and quick! What more could I ask for. Thank you!
christieathome
Thanks for making my recipe! Glad you enjoyed it! ☺️
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
That was a great tip for using a little oil to help keep the noodles from sticking together. Bring on the shrimp happiness!