Curry Udon Noodle Stir fry. This saucy, flavourful curry udon recipe is delicious and has a mild spicy kick from the curry. It’s packed with veggies and bouncy fish balls. Easy to make in 20 minutes!
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I love curry and I love udon. Together the two make such a wonderful pairing. Especially when it’s with aromatics, leafy greens and chewy fish balls. This is a quick Japanese-inspired noodle dish that I created years ago because I love fish balls!
This easy curry udon noodle recipe comes together in 20 minutes with simple ingredients. It works well for lunch or dinner as main dish on a busy weeknight. It also works well for leftovers or meal preparation. If you love fish balls and udon, this is a scrumptious noodle dish that the whole family will enjoy!
What makes this so easy are the prepared fish balls as you simply need to cut them in half and stir fry them and they don't need to cook for too long! If you're not a fan of fish balls, I share other udon noodle recipes below.
Ingredients
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Frozen Udon: or substitute with fresh udon. Both of these have that chewy texture. As a last resort, you can substitute with the shelf-table vacuum sealed udon but please note that these break apart easily and aren't as chewy. The frozen kind doesn't take long to blanch. Avoid boiling these as they will be stir-fried later.
- Fish Balls: you can find these in the freezer or refrigerated section at the Asian market. Or substitute with shrimp, scallops, sliced chicken thighs, pork or tofu.
- Carrots Matchsticks: or substitute with snow peas, snap peas, baby corn
- Bok Choy: or substitute with yu choy sum or baby gai lan
- Garlic chives: aka Chinese chives that you can find at the Asian grocery store
- Green onions
- Fresh Garlic
- 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.
Noodle sauce
- Oyster sauce: Or substitute with vegetarian stir fry sauce. Do not confuse this with Hoisin sauce, which looks similar.
- Dark soy sauce: this is thicker and darker than regular soy sauce and not the same as regular soy sauce.
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.
- Curry Powder: ideally an Asian curry powder like Japanese curry powder
- White granulated sugar
- Chicken bouillon powder
- Sesame oil
- Cold water
- Cornstarch: or potato starch
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients.
How to make Curry Udon Noodle Stir-Fry
- In a small bowl, combine noodle sauce ingredients until combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with frozen udon noodles, pour in hot boiling water and allow this to soak just until loosened, about 30-60 seconds. Strain immediately and set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat, fry fish balls. Fry until golden brown on both sides, about 3-4 minutes.
- Fry garlic and the vegetables until veggies have softened.
- Toss in noodles, noodle sauce and green onions until combined. Once everything is tossed together, remove off heat and enjoy!
Storage & Reheating
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.
Expert Tips
- If you’re using frozen udon noodles, only blanch them until loosened. Do not boil them as they will be frying in the pan later.
- Fry the fish balls until golden and crispy for a delicious texture.
- Stir fry the veggies until wilted and avoid overcooking them.
- Once the noodles are tossed into the sauce and other ingredients, remove it off heat and don't over stir-fry.
📖 Recipe
Easy 20-min. Curry Udon Noodle Stir-Fry
Ingredients
- 2.2 lbs udon noodle frozen kind recommended
- 1 ½ cups store-bought fish balls halved
- 2 cups bok choy ends trimmed and washed
- 2 cups garlic chives chopped into 2-inch segments
- 1 green onion finely chopped
- 1 cup carrot matchsticks
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
Noodle sauce:
- 3 tablespoon curry powder (to make less spicy: use 1.5 tbsp)
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce or sub with vegetarian stir fry sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoon regular soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon powder (aka chicken stock powder)
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch
- ½ cup water cold
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine noodle sauce ingredients until combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with frozen udon noodles, pour in hot boiling water and allow this to soak just until loosened, about 30-60 seconds. Strain immediately and set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat, fry fish balls. Fry until golden brown on both sides, about 3-4 minutes.
- Fry garlic and the vegetables until veggies have softened.
- Toss in noodles, noodle sauce and green onions until combined. Once everything is tossed together, remove off heat and enjoy!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
That was a great tip for how to handle the frozen udon noodles... I really need to give this a try!
Caleb - Never Ending Journeys
Such a flavorful stir fry idea! I love the use of fish balls, too!