Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles

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Some meals are best enjoyed with fine dinnerware, white linen and a lovely, decanted bottle of French Wine. This dish is not one of those! Our Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles is instead the perfect meal for a quick and easy dinner you can eat on the couch watching your favorite shows on TV. It’s affordable, quick to make, and tastes unbelievably good. Making it perhaps one of the best go-to meals for a midweek dinner for the family

The stand-out ingredient in this dish is without a doubt those delicious Udon Noodles. Thick wheat-based noodles that have a remarkable stretchy, chewy quality to them. Their texture is amazing, as is their ability to soak up flavors of the sauce it’s cooked in. Now widely found in almost every grocery store, they’re a popular noodle option for hearty stir fries such as this one

How to make Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles

This dish is remarkably simple to make. It’s prepared in the same way as you would a classic stir fry. Simply cut up all your Vegetables and Chicken into bite-sized pieces and get them cooking over a high heat. Cook the Noodles separately then add them into the Pan along with a simple homemade Sauce and you’re done

No fussing about at all with this dish! From start to finish you’re looking at about 15 minutes or cooking time. The Noodles can be prepared separately and usually only take a couple of minutes themselves. The Sauce is literally just mixing a few ingredients together in a bowl. So, from start to finish you’re looking at about 20 – 25 minutes for a hearty and delicious dinner. Perfect for a midweek meal for the family!

Fire up your Wok (or a large frying pan big enough to hold all the ingredients) then it’s time to cook the Vegetables. Start with the Mushrooms to get some of their juices running, then add the rest of the veggies. We’re using Carrot, Celery, Scallions, and Onion. You can mix up your vegetables if you like as there’s plenty of others that will work well in this dish such as Snap Peas, Beans, and Bell Peppers to name a few

Once the Vegetables have cooked down, add some Garlic and get it lovely and fragrant. We then remove the Vegetables from the pan and set aside so we can brown the Chicken

Cooking the protein in the Stir Fry

We’ve opted to use Chicken Thighs in this dish. They bring a load of flavor to the Yaki Udon Noodles and are so easy to cook. Unlike Chicken Breast, Thighs don’t tend to dry out, so they lend themselves well to a stir fry where it’s all about combining multiple ingredients in the one pot

We recommend cutting the Chicken into bite-sized pieces before you add them to the pan. This will make the cooking time a lot easier, and prevents having to cut up large pieces of Chicken in a pan with Noodles, which can get a bit tricky

The Chicken should only take about 6 – 7 minutes to be cooked through. Just ensure it’s browned throughout and if you’ve got a meat thermometer, (recommended!) check that the internal temperature of the Chicken is 160F

Alternative proteins to use in this dish

This recipe is for Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles, but you can just as easily replace the Chicken with another protein such as Pork, Beef, or Shrimp. The process of cooking the dish will remain the same, the only difference will be the cooking time of the protein

If this is your first time preparing this dish we’d recommend sticking with Chicken and following our recipe below. If however, you’re a seasoned Stir Fried Udon Noodle Master then by all means experiment with other proteins!

Bringing the Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles together

Once the Chicken is cooked the meal is almost completed. We like to add the cooked Udon Noodles back into the pan at this stage along with a splash of Soy Sauce. Adding the Noodles back at this point isn’t about cooking them (as they’re already cooked from earlier), but it’s more about getting a lovely texture to the Noodles

Giving the Noodles a few minutes in the Pan before the sauce is added will give them a little bit of color and added texture. The real hero of this dish is these noodles and the springy, chewy texture they bring. During this step the only watch out we have is the noodles may stick to the bottom of the pan. So, just keep stirring them and if needed, add a little more Soy Sauce to unstick them

Finally, Add the cooked Veggies and sauce that you prepared earlier back into the pan. Give the Stir Fry a good mix through so the Sauce has evenly coated everything and you’re done! Finish the dish by adding some Green Scallions for some color and texture and it’s ready to eat. It’s so easy!

Make good use of the Scallions by utilizing the white and green parts

Did you know that both parts of the Scallion, the white and green parts, are edible? Many folks only use one part of the Scallion and discard the other but there is no need. This dish makes good use of both parts

We use the green, leafier part of the Scallion as a garnish which is sprinkled over the dish right before serving. The denser white section of the Scallions is finely diced and combined with the vegetables and added to stir fry. You’ll get a sweetness from the white parts when stir fried, and the green parts will provide a sharp, freshness to the dish – perfect as a garnish

So don’t throw out the section you don’t use when preparing Scallions. Slice the whole thing up and use them all in this dish!

Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles Recipe

Ingredients

• 300g / 10 oz. Udon Noodles
• 2 lbs. Chicken Thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 Carrot, diced
• 3 Celery Stalks, diced
• 300g / 10 oz. White or Cremini Mushrooms, sliced
• 1 Brown Onion, diced
• 3 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
• ½ cup Scallions, diced
• ½ tsp. Soy Sauce
• ½ tsp. Vegetable Oil
• Salt
  
  

For the Sauce

• 1 tbsp. Oyster Sauce
• 2 tsp. Dark Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp. Rice Wine Vinegar
• 1 tsp. Sesame Oil
• 1 tsp. Brown Sugar
  
  

Instructions

1. Combine the Sauce ingredients in a small bowl and mix well then set aside. Prepare the Udon Noodles per the packet instructions. Strain and set aside
2. Heat the Vegetable Oil in a large frying pan or Wok over medium high heat. Once hot, add the Mushrooms and a pinch of Salt. Fry for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the Onion, Celery, the White Part of the Scallions, and Carrot along with another pinch of Salt and stir fry for a further 5 minutes
3. Add the Garlic to the pan and mix through. Once fragrant (about 1 minute), remove the veggies from the pan and set aside. Add a little bit more Vegetable Oil in the same pan and add the Chicken Pieces
4. Stir fry the Chicken pieces until browned throughout, then add the Soy Sauce. Mix through then add the Udon Noodles into the pan to give them a little bit of color. After 2 minutes, add the Sauce mixture and Vegetables
5. Mix all the ingredients together then turn off the heat. Garnish the Chicken Yaki Udon Noodles with the Green Scallions and serve while still hot
   
   

Recipe Notes

• When adding the Udon Noodles back into the pan with the Chicken, be sure to stir frequently to avoid them sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add a little more Soy Sauce if needed
• Be sure to season the dish throughout. We recommend adding Salt when the Mushrooms, Vegetables, and Chicken is added
  
  

This Chicken Yaki Udon Noodle dish is a great midweek meal for the family. It’s quick to cook, cheap, and tastes delicious. Ticking all the boxes for a great dinner!

If you’re looking for more affordable and easier to make dinners for the family, good news! We’ve got loads of them on this website! Here are a few of our favorite dinners that are our go-to’s for midweek dinners:

• Puff Pastry Chicken Pot Pie
• Chicken and Chorizo Rice
• Greek Pasta Salad
• Pork Noodle Stir Fry
  
  

Happy Cooking!