Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles
Equipment
- Small pot
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 8 oz instant noodles of choice
- 2 tbsp butter
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp reserved noodle water
Optional Garnishes
- Sesame seeds
- Red pepper flakes
- Scallions
Instructions
- Finely mince the garlic and set aside.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the instant noodles until about 1 minute before al dente. Reserve a few tablespoons of the noodle water, then drain.
- Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add the soy sauce, sugar, heavy cream, and a bit of the reserved noodle water. Stir until the sauce begins to thicken slightly.
- Add the cooked noodles and continue tossing until the sauce becomes silky and clings to the noodles.
- Serve in a bowl and optionally garnish with sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, and scallions.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Table of Contents
- Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
- Introduction
- Why You’ll Love This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
- Why The Sauce Is So Important For This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
- Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe Ingredients
- How to Make Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles
- What to Serve With This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
- How to Store and Reheat This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
- Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Substitutions
- What to Make Next
Introduction
I always think that you need a great noodle dish to keep in the rotation, and this Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe is exactly that kind of dish you want. Not only is this dish incredibly delicious, but it’s also super cheap to make because this recipe in particular uses instant ramen. It takes less than 15 minutes from start to finish and takes a pack of instant ramen and makes it something incredibly special.
Why You’ll Love This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
Even though this Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe is simple, it does not sacrifice on flavor or take a lot of effort. In this recipe, technique and cooking the right ingredients at the right times is what gives this dish its flavor. For example, when the butter is fully melted, the garlic is introduced to not only cook the garlic, but to also infuse the butter so that garlic flavor spreads more evenly throughout the dish instead of being concentrated in little granules. This is just one example, but this recipe has been engineered to extract maximum flavor from all ingredients to make a dish that you won’t forget!
Why The Sauce Is So Important For This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
The sauce is the most important part of this dish, and it’s what elevates instant ramen into a delicious noodle dish. I previously spoke about the butter and garlic, but the other ingredients help emphasize those original base flavors and balance each other out. The soy sauce provides the primary savoriness while the sugar balances out the acidity from the soy sauce and garlic. Finally, the heavy cream acts as a binding agent, thickener, and improves the overall mouthfeel of the dish and makes it feel more luxurious.
Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe Ingredients
Instant ramen – The base of the dish. It’s the perfect vessel for the sauce and can easily be found in all grocery stores.
Garlic + Butter – The flavor base of the dish and gives the recipe its signature flavor.
Sauce (heavy cream, soy sauce, sugar, noodle water) – Helps further emphasize the garlic butter flavors.
Optional garnishes (sesame seeds, scallions, red pepper flakes) – Adds flavor, texture, and color to the final dish.
How to Make Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles
Finely mince the garlic and set aside.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the instant noodles until about 1 minute before al dente. Reserve a few tablespoons of the noodle water, then drain.
Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant.
Add the soy sauce, sugar, heavy cream, and a bit of the reserved noodle water. Stir until the sauce begins to thicken slightly.
Add the cooked noodles and continue tossing until the sauce becomes silky and clings to the noodles.
Serve in a bowl and optionally garnish with sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, and scallions.
What to Serve With This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe is really great on its own, but it can be further enjoyed with a few more accompaniments. A few of my favorites are:
- Shredded chicken. If you want to add some more protein, shredded chicken breast works super well with the garlic butter flavor.
- Steamed veggies. I find that steamed vegetables taste really great with the garlic flavor as well. My favorites are: broccoli, bok choy, or Chinese spinach.
- Raw cabbage. As weird as it sounds, raw cabbage leaves add some more textural contrast to the dish and that bite of freshness! I like to chop it up and mix it with the noodles.
How to Store and Reheat This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe
This Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Recipe is great for storing in the fridge and for meal prep. Because the starches in the noodles will naturally thicken the sauce as it cools I highly recommend adding a couple tablespoons of water, mixing, then reheating your noodles. You have a couple of options when it comes to reheating your noodles:
- Microwave. The most convenient way of reheating things. I like to microwave on the highest setting for two minutes.
- In a pan. The best way to reheat this dish. You can cook for 3 minutes over medium heat before serving again.
Creamy Garlic Butter Noodles Substitutions
This Creamy Garlic Noodles Recipe Recipe is very flexible, and you can substitute some ingredients depending on what you have available. A few of my favorite substitutions are:
- Any noodle. Any noodle or pasta works instead of instant ramen. I’ve made this with rigatoni and rice noodles, and they have both turned out amazing!
- Honey. A great substitution for sugar.
- Half and half or milk. If you prefer a lighter sauce, half and half or milk work great. If using, simmer for the sauce for a couple minutes longer to further reduce the sauce and naturally thicken.
What to Make Next
Craving another easy meal? You’ll love my Thai Basil Ground Beef!
Want some more noodles? Try my Mongolian Beef Noodles!
Feeling like switching to chicken? Cook my Sticky Sweet Chicken!
