Chinese Restaurant Cold Sesame Noodles

Submitted by Puffjelo

"I love these from my local takeout joint. More traditionally, these are made with egg noodles, or lo mein noodles. But I really like making them with the thicker white Japanese udon noodles, even though I know it's mixing origins. This recipe is my personal adaptation of Sam Sifton's NY Times recipe."

 

• Ready In: 20mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 3

ingredients

• 1 lb udon noodles
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil, plus a splash
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon chinese rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons and 1 teaspoon Chinese sesame paste
• 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon smooth peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons chili paste with garlic (to taste)
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 1⁄2 tablespoon sesame seeds, for garnish

directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook until barely tender, about 5 minutes; they should retain a hint of chewiness. Drain, rinse with cold water (if you'd like to try something different, sometimes I leave the noodles somewhat warm), drain again and toss with a splash of sesame oil. Some udon noodles come with microwave instructions, feel free to use those.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons sesame oil, the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame paste, peanut butter, sugar, ginger, garlic and chili-garlic paste. (Two notes: 1- I use sriracha sauce in place of the chili-garlic paste. 2- If you don't have Chinese sesame paste, I usually use tahini and just a touch more sesame oil).
3. Pour the sauce over the noodles and toss (you may have extra sauce, which you can reserve to use for another serving later). Transfer to a serving bowl, and garnish with scallions and sesame seeds.