Garlic Chilli Oil and Zucchini Instant Ramen Noodles
Soft, chewy ramen noodles mixed with fresh, juicy slivers of zucchini (courgette), then doused in an intensely fiery and hot chilli oil. Top it with a crispy pan-fried egg and a sprinkling of fresh green onions. Hungry yet? These garlic chilli oil noodles are so straightforward, yet packed with fierce flavours: umami from dark soy sauce, the heady aroma from garlic, the nuttiness of sesame, and the velvety richness of egg yolk, to name but a few. Extraordinary.
Who doesn’t love ramen noodles? If you’re anything like me, you’ll have countless memories associated with eating ramen noodles. One of my personal favourites was a Back to The Future marathon complete with basic veg ramen. Yum. They’re perfect as a comfort food, when you’re too tired to cook, or when you’re short on funds.
There are so many ways to elevate instant ramen noodles without adding much extra time or cost. Garlic chilli oil noodles with zucchini is my go-to — it’s ready in less than 15 minutes. You’ll never be eating plain ramen again!
No time? No groceries? No problemmm. Garlic chilli oil noodles to the rescue!
Is this Recipe Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free, or Nut Free?
Garlic chilli oil noodles are nut free. They’re also adaptable to become vegan and gluten free if you require.
To make garlic chilli oil noodles vegan, simply omit the fried egg topping. If you still want extra protein, choose a plant-based one like homemade tofu, tempeh, or seitan — or just eat the noodles as they come.
To make the recipe gluten free, just replace the ramen noodles with gluten-free ramen noodles or rice noodles. Since soy sauce isn’t gluten free either, tamari is the perfect substitute.
What is Chilli Oil?
A common Chinese condiment, chilli oil is made by infusing chilli flakes, aromatics, and spices in a neutral oil. Typically the ingredients will include neutral oil, chili flakes, Sichuan peppercorns, bay leaf, cinnamon, star anise, garlic, and shallots.
The chilli oil in this recipe is a little different. We’ll only be making the amount required to use in the noodles, and as such we won’t be infusing the ingredients. Instead, we’ll be flash-cooking it. That means that we’ll leave out the aromatic spices (most of their flavor comes through infusion!), but also add a few extra ingredients. We’ll be using neutral oil, chili flakes, garlic, sesame seeds, dark soy sauce, black vinegar, salt, and a pinch of sugar. This will form our sauce.
Ingredients for Garlic Chili Oil Noodles
- Noodles: I use ramen noodles because they’re quick, easy, and cheap. However, rice noodles, egg noodles or even spaghetti would work here.
- Neutral Oil: Any will do here – canola, vegetable, or sunflower are the most commonly available choices.
- Garlic: Lots of it!
- Chilli Flakes: You can vary the amount used according to how spicy you want.
- Sesame Seeds: This is optional, but they add a great crunch
- Dark Soy Sauce: Substitute with Tamari for a Gluten Free option.
- Black Vinegar: If you can’t find this ingredient, feel free to substitute it with Balsamic Vinegar
- Zucchini: Sliced very thin, the zucchini gets flash-cooked and therefore retains a little bite. It’s refreshing and juicy, a perfect contrast to the spicy noodles.
- Green Onions: The perfect touch of freshness for garnish. Substitute with cilantro (coriander) or garlic chives.
- Sesame Oil: Just a little dash right at the end will elevate your garlic chili oil noodles to the next level!
- Fried Egg: Optional, but the yolk adds an extra depth of richness.
Variations for Garlic Chili Oil Noodles:
One of the best things about this recipe is how truly adaptable it is. You can vary the ingredients in the chilli oil, the toppings, and the noodles!
- Adjust the spice. These Garlic Chili Oil Noodles are spicy. But if you want the flavour without the heat, feel free to dial down the spiciness by cutting the number of chili flakes used in half (or even less!)
- Make it Vegan. The only thing preventing this recipe from being vegan is the fried egg on top. Replace it with a Vegan-friendly omelette or another topping.
- Add toppings. Don’t fancy zucchini with the noodles or the egg on top? No problem. Try tofu, seitan, tempeh, pak choy, broccoli, green beans, kale, carrots, mushrooms, or Chinese leaf instead.
- Change up the garnish. Use coriander (cilantro), Thai basil, or Garlic Chives in place of Scallions (Green/Spring Onions) for a different variation of flavor.
- Switch out the noodles. I love using ramen because it’s quick, easy, and cheap. But this dish will also work with rice noodles, egg noodles, or even spaghetti (shh!).
How to make the BEST Garlic Chili Oil Noodles
- Use stock to cook your ramen. We won’t be using the flavour packets that come with dried ramen, but I do like to cook my noodles in a little vegetable stock. This really increases the umami factor and adds an extra depth of flavour to eat bite. I add a Knorr Vegetable Stock cube to the boiling water and let it dissolve, then add my ramen and cook.
- Prep everything while your ramen is cooking. The cooking of the Garlic Chili Oil sauce will happen very quickly, so it’s imperative that you have the garlic prepped and all ingredients measured out beforehand.
- Reserve a little garlic chilli oil to cook your egg in. If you’re topping with a fried egg, I like to take out about 1 tsp of the chilli oil and use it to cook my egg. This is totally optional though.
Why you’ll LOVE this Recipe:
- Ready in 15 mins
- Quick, easy, and great for beginners
- Cheap and budget-friendly
- Vegetarian and nut free
- Easily adaptable to be vegan and gluten free
- Can be served hot or cold
Garlic Chilli Oil and Zucchini Instant Ramen Noodles
Ready in 10 minutes, and so much better than instant ramen: these Garlic Chilli Oil Noodles are fiery, garlicky, rich and savoury.
Ingredients
- 1 litre Water, to cook the Noodles
- 1 Knorr Vegetable Stock Cube
- 3x 70g (210g) Dried Ramen Noodles
- 200g Zucchini, julienned *
- 2 Green Onions, finely chopped
For the Sauce
- 4 tbsp Neutral Oil
- 6 (17g) Garlic Cloves, finely minced
- 1 tbsp Chilli Flakes **
- 2 tsp Toasted Sesame Seeds
- 1.5 - 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp Black Vinegar ***
- 1/2 tsp Salt, or to taste
- 1/2 tsp Sugar, or to taste
- Drizzle Sesame Oil
For the Egg Topping (optional)
- 1-2 tsp Oil (you can reserve some chili oil)
- 2 Eggs
Instructions
- Begin by cooking the ramen noodles. Add 1 litre water to a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Once it comes to a boil, add the stock cube and stir to dissolve. Add the ramen noodles and cook to package instructions. Separate and stir occasionally with chopsticks.
- Once the noodles have cooked, drain them and set aside.
- Make the chilli oil. Add oil to a medium saucepan over low-medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add finely chopped garlic, chilli flakes, and sesame seeds. Cook gently until the garlic just starts to colour, and then immediately add the soy sauce, black vinegar, salt, and sugar. Stir well.
- Next, add the zucchini to the saucepan. Cook it for a few seconds, and then add the cooked ramen noodles. Turn off the heat and toss everything together really well. Check for seasoning and adjust as necessary.
- Optionally, cook your topping. If you want to top with an egg, add 1-2 tsp oil to a frying pan over high heat. Once the oil is hot, crack your eggs. While cooking, spoon some hot oil over the yolks.
- Serve the Garlic Chili Oil Noodles hot or cold.
Notes
* To Julienne means to very finely slice.
** Adjust the quantity of chili flakes to your preference. This is spicy recipe, so if you have a low tolerance reduce the amount to your comfort level.
*** If you can't find black vinegar locally, I have included a link. However, feel free to substitute with the more commonly available Balsamic Vinegar instead.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 668Total Fat: 45gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 36gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 3110mgCarbohydrates: 54gFiber: 5gSugar: 5gProtein: 13g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
