Garlic Sesame Soba Noodles

Simple and delicious garlic sesame soba noodles in 20 minutes. Enjoy them warm or as a cold sesame noodle salad with the veggies of your choice! It’s fast, healthy, and requires minimal effort for a foolproof, gluten-free, meat-free mid-week meal!

Quick, Simple, + Versatile Sesame Soba Noodles Recipe

On days when we want a quick, simple, low fuss meal on our tables in under 20 minutes, noodles and stir-fries often come to the rescue. We’ve previously shared recipes for a simple veggie chow mein, udon edamame stir fry, and a shiitake-asparagus-tofu stir fry. Now, it’s the turn of these garlic sesame soba noodles!

With just a handful of pantry staples and a couple of extras, this sesame noodle recipe is simple, budget-friendly, and makes for a delicious last-minute midweek meal. Even better, with several ways to adapt the recipe, you can enjoy it as a side or main, warm with all your favorite stir-fry veggies, or as a cold sesame noodle salad with crisp veggies like shredded carrots, cabbage, and bell peppers. It’s up to you!

What Are Soba Noodles?

Soba noodles are a type of long noodle made from buckwheat flour (soba is simply the Japanese name for buckwheat). Buckwheat noodles are darker than regular wheat noodles and have an earthy, subtly nutty flavor. Buckwheat is also naturally gluten-free – though some varieties of the noodle include wheat flour.  

Even better, buckwheat noodles pack in additional fiber and protein over regular noodles. They also boast several health benefits thanks to several healthful plant compounds, antioxidants, and numerous vitamins and minerals. These include being anti-inflammatory, blood sugar control, improving heart health, and even cancer prevention.

When combined with a simple, savory, zingy ginger garlic sesame noodles sauce, this vegan soba noodle recipe is a delicious and foolproof way to pack in nutrients. You might also enjoy this warm soba salad with cucumbers or chap chae-style soba noodles.

The Ingredients

This vegan soba noodles recipe requires a handful of pantry staples and just a few extras, with plenty of opportunity for versatility.

• Soba noodles: Use 100% buckwheat noodles (which are gluten-free) when possible, as some versions contain wheat.
• Aromatics: These aromatic Japanese soba noodles rely on a combination of garlic and fresh ginger.
• Sesame oil: Toasted sesame oil packs in tons of flavor and shouldn’t be substituted with another oil.
• Soy sauce: Use dark or light/ reduced-sodium soy sauce. For a gluten-free option, use tamari or coconut aminos.
• Chili paste: You can use chili paste, chili sauce, sriracha, chili garlic paste, etc. Adjust the amount to taste or omit it entirely if you want mild sesame sauce noodles.
• Vegetables: We used yu choy. Bok choy or broccolini would also work or refer to the FAQs for more ideas.
• To garnish: We used sliced green onion/scallions (the white and green parts) and sesame seeds (raw or toasted. We prefer the latter).

Optional add-ins & Recipe Variations

There are several simple ways to adapt this garlic sesame noodle recipe, including:

• Chili: To increase the spice in the sesame ginger noodles, you could add some red pepper flakes or chili oil to make delicious chili garlic noodles.
• An acid: Add a small splash of either lemon or lime juice or rice wine vinegar to add zing and depth to the sesame oil noodles.
• Sugar: A pinch of sugar or maple syrup helps to balance the flavors, especially when an acid is added.
• Protein: Easily boost the protein in this garlic sesame noodles recipe with the addition of tofu (crispy or puffed), tempeh, or your favorite meat alternative like ‘chicken strips.’
• Tahini: Add some tahini (or possibly peanut butter) for a creamier sauce.
• Nori: While this isn’t cheap, if you have some at home, some shredded seaweed is a delicious garnish for the healthy soba noodles.
• Veggies: There are plenty of quick-cooking stir-fried veggies you could add to the sesame noodles recipe. Check the FAQs for all our top recommendations.

How to Make Ginger and Garlic Sesame Soba Noodles?

• 1) First, cook the soba noodles according to their package instructions (this usually takes between 5-7 minutes).

Immediately after cooking them, drain and rinse the noodles. This is important to remove excess starches and stop the noodles from clumping up.

• 2) Meanwhile, prepare the soba sauce. To do so, first finely mince/grate the ginger and garlic. Then, combine them with the sesame oil, soy sauce, and chili paste, and whisk together.

• 3) In a skillet, add the chopped yu choy (or veggies of your choice) and allow it to wilt slightly.

• 4) Then, add the noodles to the pan along with the sauce and sliced green onions and cook for a minute, mixing well.

• 5) Finally, serve garnished with sesame seeds (and optionally some more green onions). Enjoy!

The Cold Soba Recipe:

After cooking the soba noodles, drain them and place them in a bowl with cold water or rinse under running cold water.

Then, toss with the sauce and any raw veggies and enjoy the cold sesame noodles immediately.  

FAQs

Top Recipe Tips and Notes

• Don’t overcook the noodles: They are best enjoyed while al dente, with a slight chewiness.
• Rinse the cooked noodles: This can help remove excess starches from the cooked soba noodles and avoid a clumpy mess.
• Toast the sesame seeds: This simple step packs in a ton of extra flavor. Add the seeds to a dry skillet and toast over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant and golden.
• Adjust to taste: We all have different levels of preferred garlic, ginger, spice, saltiness, etc. So tweak the amounts to your liking.
• Soba noodles vary: Different brands have different results, and some even contain wheat, so read the ingredients list and feel free to experiment with several brands.

How to Serve?

Once the sesame soba noodles are ready, enjoy them as a simple side dish or main. Top up the dish with a protein, dumplings, and/or veggies for more of a ‘fully loaded’ noodle bowl or serve alongside simple sides like this edamame salad.

How to Store?

You can store any leftover sesame soba noodles in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Enjoy the leftovers as a chilled soba noodle salad OR reheat them in the microwave or on the stovetop.

More Vegan Sesame Recipes

• Oven-baked sesame fries
• Sesame noodle salad
• Sesame asparagus
• Spicy sesame tofu stir fry
• Sesame zucchini fritters
• Sesame potato puffs

Photos by Alfonso Revilla