Vegan Peanut Noodles

My absolute favourite dish! This Vegan Peanut Noodles recipe is simply addictive and will have got you asking for seconds! Inspired by Thai peanut noodles.

Find the recipe for my all-time favourite comfort food dish below: Vegan Peanut Noodles! I've first made this dish a couple of years ago and it was inspired by a Thai peanut salad I saw on Facebook (sadly I don't recall the source!). Over the years I've made this dish plenty of times. It has easily become my favourite dish to make and I've even served it to family and friends.

Everyone who's had these Vegan Peanut Butter Noodles over the years has been absolutely wowed by how delicious this recipe is. It also smells amazing, so whenever I ate this dish as an office lunch before, I've always received plenty of questions about what great smelling lunch I'm having. Everyone that's tried them loved them so far and I regularly get messages from people asking for the recipe as they have some serious cravings for this dish.

This is my absolute number 1 favourite dish - and not just because I love peanut butter... This dish is simply fantastic and so easy to make - and it is also the most delicious peanut sauce recipe that I have tried so far!

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients and pantry staples to make this easy dish:

• Noodles - Udon noodles are my personal favourite noodles to use in this recipe! But I've tried a whole bunch of different options throughout the years and they've all been delicious. See some alternatives in the variations below!
• Courgette - Adding some colorful veg to the dish! I always cut my courgette into strips and then into thin sticks. This way they mix really well with the noodles and sauce! If you have a spiralizer, you can also spiralize them.
• Carrot - Julienne style! Simply peel and slice your carrots into strips, then cut them into 2- inch long strips. I've found that this shape works best in this dish and would recommend cutting them long and thin instead of chunky, so they mix well with the whole dish. If you have a spiralizer, you can also spiralize them - or roughly shred them in a food processor to make it quicker.
• Peppers - I like to use red bell peppers and yellow bell peppers for this recipe, they're my favourite and add a great mix of colors to this dish! Make sure to thinly slice the peppers, this way they work best in this dish.
• Peanut butter - An essential for this delicious recipe! Use smooth peanut butter in this dish to create a delicious and smooth sauce! Aim for unsweetened, natural peanut butter - however, if you only have sweetened to hand, simply omit the sweetener from the ingredients below. I love to use Pip&Nut Smooth Peanut Butter for this noodle recipe.
• Soy sauce - I use tamari, which is usually a little stronger in flavor than regular soy sauce. If you're using regular soy sauce, simply add a little more than the recipe calls for to get the same flavor effect from the sauce. Remember that you can always season with more soy sauce later, so don't go too overboard.
• Vinegar - When I first created this recipe I liked to use rice vinegar, but over the years I've not always had rice vinegar to hand and realised that this dish turns out just as delicious with apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, coconut vinegar and pomegranate vinegar. Just stay away from any thick and balsamic vinegar, basically.
• Oil - I love to use toasted sesame oil in this recipe - the lightly toasted, nutty and smokey flavor is simply something that compliments the dish really well! You can also use peanut oil, regular sesame oil or a flavor-neutral alternative such as canola oil (rapeseed oil).
• Sriracha - Adding a subtle kick to the dish! Please feel free to leave this out, if you're sensitive to spice. I love a little sriracha, but I wouldn't classify this dish as spicy. I think a small amount like I used in this recipe is perfect to compliment the flavor profile, but you can adjust the spice level to your personal preference. And if you like super spicy food, you can always drizzle more on when serving!
• Maple syrup - Adding a little sweet balance to the sauce flavor! You can replace it with brown sugar or agave syrup or leave it out entirely. Check if the peanut butter you're using already contains sugar - maybe you don't need to add any sweetness at all.

For garnish (optional):

• green onions
• fresh cilantro
• crunchy peanuts
• sesame seeds
• red pepper flakes

Equipment

• sharp knife
• frying pan or skillet
• saucepan
• large bowl & whisk (or a fork)

Optional: spiralizer & food processor

Recipe Instructions (Step-by-Step)

If you're making this dish for the first time, make sure to fully read all instructions first.

• Step 1 - Noodles & Preparation: Prepare the noodles according to packaging instructions. Whilst they're cooking, wash and chop up all the veg into thin strips.
• Step 2 - Vegetables: Add a little (sesame) oil to your frying pan over medium heat and sauté the veg whilst you're whipping up the vegan peanut sauce.
• Step 3 - Peanut Butter Sauce: For the peanut sauce simply combine all ingredients in a bowl and slowly begin to whisk them up. The vinegar in the sauce will help in breaking down the thick peanut butter, but you will need to slowly whisk for a few minutes to break it all down. Continue to whisk until smooth.
• Step 4 - Assembly: Once your noodles are cooked, drain them and add them to the softened veg in the frying pan. Remove the pan from the heat and add your peanut sauce. Stir well to combine.
• Step 5 - Garnish (optional): Serve your vegan peanut noodles with crunchy peanuts, a sprinkle of sesame seeds or green onions.

Serving

You can serve these peanut noodles on their own or top them with crunchy peanuts, a sprinkle of sesame seeds or green onions and fresh cilantro.

If you love a bit of spice, you can also add some chili flakes aka red pepper flakes, sriracha or sprinkle with shichimi seasoning.

Storage

You can store the finished dish in an airtight container and enjoy it the next day - just as delicious! This recipe also tastes fantastic with cold noodles and it's delicious as a cold noodle salad in summer!

Variations & Substitutions

Of course, you can replace a few ingredients if you don't have them handy - however, swapping the peanut butter would be tricky 😉

• Noodles - I love this dish with udon noodles, but if you don't have them to hand,  you can easily go with your noodles of choice. Here are some I've tried and tested, and they were all delicious:
  • rice noodles
  • tagliatelle
  • stir fry noodles (those ready-made packs from the grocery store!)
  • edamame pasta
  • buckwheat spaghetti
  • soba noodles
  • thai noodles
  • ramen noodles
  • courgetti (spiralized courgette)

Check the package instructions of your noodles to see if they need to boil or simply be covered in hot water to cook. If you want to use gluten free noodles, I recommend choosing rice noodles.

• Hot Sauce - If you do not have Sriracha at home, simply use another hot sauce you have to hand or if you're not a fan of a little spice, just leave it out entirely! The amount depends on how spicy you like your food to be of course and is down to trial and error - better start with a little, you can always add more hot sauce later, if you are one of that sort.
• Vegetables - You can swap out any of the veggies (carrots, peppers & courgettes) for other vegetables of your choice! Broccoli florets, peas, baby corn and mangetout all work really well, just make sure to cut them up into bite-size pieces and steam them upfront where needed.
• Vinegar - The vinegar serves 2 main. roles in this recipe: Adding acidity and breaking down the peanut butter into a smooth sauce. If you don't have any suitable vinegar to hand, you can also use the juice of a lemon.
• Ginger - add a naturally spicy kick by grating fresh ginger into your peanut sauce
• Coconut - For an extra creamy peanut sauce, stir 2 tablespoons of coconut milk into the sauce!
• Garlic - grate 1-2 cloves garlic into the sauce, delish!
• Oil - if you love the taste of toasted sesame, add a few teaspoons of toasted sesame oil into the peanut sauce or simply drizzle the oil over the finished dish.
• Protein - add some tofu for extra protein or some Seitan such as my Vegan Chicken pieces!

Optional additions for this easy vegan recipe

• lime juice: drizzle the dish with a little fresh lime juice before serving for an extra zing!
• sesame seeds: like it crunchy? Me too! I love adding a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top, so delicious!
• chopped peanuts: another delicious and crunchy addition for your bowl of peanut noodles! Go for the raw or roasted kind, both add a tasty nuttiness.
• green spring onions

Related Recipes

If you love noodles just as much as I do, try my Vegan Pad Thai with tempeh or this flavor-loaded Vegan Black Bean Ramen. And I'm sure you're also going to love this easy recipe for vegan Sesame Noodles for dinner this week.

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