Quick Sesame Noodles with Cucumber — 15-Minute Dinner
Boil noodles, whisk a sauce, toss it together. Dinner is done.
It's one of those nights where you need dinner to just happen. These sesame noodles are the answer: boil some noodles, whisk together a sauce from pantry staples, toss in some cucumber for crunch, and you're eating in 15 minutes flat. No hovering over the stove, no complicated technique. The sauce is savory, slightly nutty, and a little tangy — it coats every noodle and tastes like you put in way more effort than you did. Serve it at room temperature or cold straight from the fridge. Both are great.
Ingredients
- 8 oz spaghetti or lo mein noodles — any long pasta works
- 1 unit English cucumber — thinly sliced or cut into matchsticks
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tbsp peanut butter — creamy
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp chili garlic sauce or sriracha — optional, adjust to heat preference
- 2 unit garlic cloves — grated or finely minced
- 2 unit scallions — thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds — for topping, optional
Method
- 1 Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook your noodles according to package directions until just tender. Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water before draining.
- 2 While the noodles cook, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, peanut butter, rice vinegar, honey, chili garlic sauce, and grated garlic in a large bowl until smooth. If the sauce is thick, add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen it.
- 3 Drain the noodles and rinse briefly under cold water to stop cooking and cool them down slightly.
- 4 Add the noodles to the bowl with the sauce and toss well to coat every strand. Add a little more pasta water if needed to get things moving.
- 5 Add the sliced cucumber and most of the scallions and toss again.
- 6 Divide between bowls. Top with remaining scallions and sesame seeds. Serve immediately at room temperature, or refrigerate and eat cold — both are great.
Variations
- Add protein — Toss in a soft-boiled egg, shredded rotisserie chicken, or pan-fried tofu to make it more filling without adding much time.
- Nut-free swap — Replace peanut butter with tahini (sesame paste) for a nut-free version that keeps the same creamy, savory flavor.
- Even faster — Use pre-cooked udon noodles from a package — they just need a quick rinse in hot water and they're ready to sauce in under 5 minutes.
Notes
The sauce keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days, so you can make a double batch and use it on grain bowls, salads, or more noodles throughout the week. Leftovers reheat okay but are honestly best eaten cold or at room temp. If the noodles clump after refrigerating, toss with a small drizzle of sesame oil to loosen.
Equipment that helps
- Large mixing bowl — Big enough to toss the noodles and sauce together without flinging noodles across the counter.
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