Well, it’s that time of year when colds go round and round. Hubby brought home something and inevitably shared it with me. Now we’re both home recovering, sipping on cold medicine and sucking on cough drops that are just plain gross. Le sigh. I can’t take the cough drops anymore, so I’m going to my tried and true congestion cure, hot and spicy food. I don’t really feel like cooking (or doing anything), so it has to be quick and easy. This Shallot Chili Oil Noodles recipe says it’s ready in 15 minutes, and I have an extra shallot I need to use up. Perfect!
These spicy shallot chili oil noodles can be made in 15 minutes for a comforting, quick, & easy vegan noodle dish! Be prepared to fall in love, because these garlic chili oil noodles are truly addicting!
The Ingredients
I did my usual rooting of rooting around my kitchen for ingredients as I made my shopping list. I didn’t find all the ingredients, but I had most of them and most were staples for me. For example, I always keep garlic, avocado oil, brown sugar, chili crunch, red chili flakes, and soy sauce on hand.
Ever since I tried Ojingeo Bokkeum (Spicy Stir-Fried Squid), I have kept gochugaru on hand. It’s so good sprinkled on just about any savory food! I also had a newly opened bottle of dark soy sauce left over from Tôm Rim (Vietnamese Caramelized Shrimp) as well as an extra shallot.
That left me to shop for scallions, noodles, and black vinegar. I chose lo mein noodles because they were the only wheat noodles available. The recipe doesn’t specify the type of noodle, but the blog post does say the author used udon noodles. She also mentioned using other types of noodles, so I wasn’t too worried I couldn’t find udon noodles. However, the recipe does specify the amount at 5-6 ounces, but I used the entire 8-ounce package (there was plenty of sauce for the extra noodles).
Scallions are always available, but I couldn’t find black vinegar locally. Fortunately, I had planned to make this recipe a while back and had ordered the black vinegar. Don’t worry, there are plenty of substitutes if you don’t have it or don’t want to order it. Balsamic apple cider, red wine vinegar, and more can be subbed. The “10 Best Black Vinegar Substitutes for Cooking” by Val at Also the Crumbs, Please has a comprehensive list of black vinegar alternatives.
The Process
Quick and easy recipes usually move fast, so I put a pot of water on for the noodles and did the prep work while it came to a boil. I could tell this recipe would move fast when I read it over, so there wouldn’t be any time to prep between steps.
No worries, though, because the prep work was all basic kitchen skills. Most of the ingredients just needed to be measured, but the fresh items had to be minced and diced. It wasn’t a lot, and it went by quickly. In fact, the prep work was done right after the water began boiling.
The noodles had to boil for 4 minutes, so I added them to the boiling water and began making the chili sauce. Things were a little hectic because I had to keep the sauce ingredients moving as they sauteed while periodically stirring the noodles so they didn’t stick together.
Making the sauce went by in a flash. Once the pan was preheated, I simply added the ingredients in the order listed and stirred while they cooked. It doesn’t get much easier.
The final step was to add the noodles to the pan and toss to coat. The 1-quart saucepan I used was too small, so I had to use a mixing bowl to sauce the noodles. It worked, but that meant I had an extra dish to wash. And this was when I noticed a few noodles stick together. I guess I didn’t stir enough, but it wasn’t a meal-ruining kind of thing by any means. A larger saucepan would have worked (4 quarts), as would a large skillet (10″-12″) or saute pan (4-5 quarts).
To serve, I divided my freshly made Shallot Chili Oil Noodles into two ramen bowls and garnished them with generous amounts of chili crisp and scallions. And I admit the chopsticks were mostly for the photos. Sick me wasn’t patient enough to use them and brought out the forks real quick.
Timing
This recipe listed 5 minutes to prep, 10 minutes to cook, and a total time of 15 minutes. I went a little over the time listed, but this was still a super-quick dinner. Here’s how my time was spent:
- 11 minutes to prep and boil water for the noodles
- 6 minutes to cook the sauce and toss with the noodles
- 5 minutes to cook and strain the noodles
- 17 minutes total
