Garlic Noodles
These garlicky buttery noodles are inspired by Helene An’s garlic noodles at San Francisco’s Thanh Long restaurant. It’s a simple and delicious dish that pairs well with seafood.
Ingredients
- 1 lb ramen, spaghetti, egg noodles or lo mein cooked al dente
- 1 cup pasta or noodle water
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 3 tbsp garlic finely minced
- 1.5 tbsp Maggi Seasoning
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano freshly grated
- 1 scallion thinly sliced for garnish
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Set a large pot of water to boil for the noodles. Cook the noodles al dente. Reserve a cup of pasta water and set aside. Then drain the noodles in a colander.
- In a small bowl, add the sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce and Maggi seasoning and mix the ingredients together.
- Set a large skillet over low heat. Add the butter to the pan. Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Make sure to stir the garlic frequently so that it doesn’t char. Browned garlic will make the noodles taste bitter.
- One the garlic becomes fragrant in the pan, add the Maggie, oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar to the garlic butter. Raise the heat to medium and stir all the ingredients together. Cook the sauce while stirring for about 1 minute. Then transfer the cooked noodles to the sauce and add about a half cup of noodle/pasta water. The starchy water will help the garlic sauce emulsify. Mix vigorously with tongs for about 30 seconds. If the noodles look a bit dry, then add more pasta water. Remove the pan from heat. Taste the noodles and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Transfer the noodles to a bowl and add the grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Mix the noodles and cheese together.
- For garnish, add more grated cheese, scallions and red pepper flakes (optional). Serve immediately. Enjoy!