These spicy Sesame Garlic Ramen Noodles are easy to make gluten-free and are dressed in a sumptuous creamy tahini peanut butter sauce. You can have this delicious takeout-inspired meal on the table in 15 minutes!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Nothing says “comfort” like a big bowl of noodles. Just take my Vegan Mac and Cheese and Thai Basil Noodles for example! Both recipes are loaded with noodles full of flavor to warm you inside and out.
Add my Garlic Sesame Noodles to the list of healthy vegan comfort foods because they’re so delicious!
These spicy garlic noodles are:
- Easy. Boil noodles. Whisk sauce. Toss. That's literally the entire recipe. You'll have dinner ready in less than 20 minutes!
- Budget-Friendly. Pasta dishes are consistently listed in all the roundups about budget cooking because noodles are CHEAP! Even if you splurge for artisan or non-traditional brands, this easy recipe will consistently come in at under $2 a serving.
- Super Versatile. Add some marinated tofu or tempeh crumbles to add a hit of protein, or any extra veggies to round out your cravings. For even more ideas on how to customize this recipe, jump down to the "Optional Variations" section.
- Light and bright. Now that the weather has begun to warm, I'm craving all the cool, refreshing dishes I've been missing all winter long. This recipe is perfect for serving warm or room temp, and plays nicely with basically all the veggies you can get your hands on.
PRO TIP: Keep some extra peanut dressing for easy and flavorful weekday lunches; it’s delicious on salad bowls, zoodles, grain bowls, and more!
Ingredients & Substitutions
These vegan sesame garlic noodles can be made with just a handful of pantry ingredients. Here's what you'll need to gather:
- Noodles - Any long pasta will work in this spicy garlic noodle recipe. I used gluten-free spaghetti, but ramen, linguine, rice noodles, soba noodles, and vegetable noodles also work very well.
- Spicy Garlic Sauce - This isn’t your average peanut sauce! This salty, savory, and creamy spicy sauce is made with garlic, tamari, peanut butter, tahini, broth, rice vinegar, and sriracha. Here are some suggestions if you need to sub some items:
- Tamari - This gluten-free sauce gives it little extra flavor and saltiness. You can use soy sauce if you don’t need the dish to be gluten-free. If soy is off the table, try using Bragg's Liquid Aminos (not GF) or coconut aminos (GF).
- Peanut Butter - If nuts are a no-no, feel free to sub in more tahini, another seed butter, or some almond butter.
- Rice Vinegar - Sub apple cider vinegar or Chinese black vinegar.
- Sriracha - Sub chili garlic sauce, gochujang, or sambal oelek.
- Sesame seeds - Not only do white or black sesame seeds act as a great garnish and give each bite a slight crunch, but they’re also surprisingly healthy! They can help with iron absorption, lower blood pressure, maintain bone health, and decrease inflammation. Who could ask for a better garnish?
- Other Toppings - This is totally optional, but a great place to have fun. I like adding sliced green onions or scallions, roasted peanuts, and maybe even a little more sriracha or chili sauce.
How To Make Spicy Garlic Sesame Ramen
It's super easy to put these spicy vegan garlic noodles together. Here's how it's done:
Step 1: Cook the noodles. Boil the noodles of your choice according to the package directions.
Step 2: Make the spicy garlic sauce. Whisk all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl until you have a smooth mixture.
Step 3: Mix everything together. Place the cooked noodles in a bowl, pour the sauce over top, and add the sauteed tofu. Mix everything until it’s well combined. Serve the garlic sesame ramen noodles in individual bowls with sesame seeds and scallions, then serve!
Serving Suggestions
While these spicy garlic sesame ramen noodles are a delight all on their own, there are plenty of ways to zhuzh up your meal. Here are a few ideas:
- Add veggies such as shredded carrots, cucumber, cabbage, celery, and/or peppers. You could also add some steamed/sauted broccoli, mushrooms, bok choy or spinach.
- Add protein - I love added sauteed marinated tofu to the sauce-covered noodles for extra protein and texture. Feel free to replace this with any plant protein you love, such tempeh crumbles, soy curls, teriyaki tempeh, seitan, or grilled tofu steaks.
- Topping options - Toasted sesame seeds (white or black), sliced green onions, chopped roasted peanuts, garlic chili sauce, or red pepper flakes.
Optional Variations
It’s quite easy to customize these garlic sesame ramen noodles to your preferences and taste buds. If you're having some trouble, check these tips out:
- Don't want it too garlicky? Cut down to 1 or 2 cloves of garlic (or ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder).
- Worried about the spice level? If you think the sauce might be too spicy, you can omit the sriracha/chili sauce or use my peanut sauce instead.
- Adjust the flavor You can experiment with the flavors by adding more garlic, chili spice, or red pepper flakes.
- Is the sauce too thick? Feel free to thin it out with a little hot water until you reach the desired texture.
- Too thin? Add a little more tahini or peanut butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Often traditional Chinese egg noodles are used, but my recipe for sesame noodles is made vegan by swapping in any long vegan noodle of your choice.
To make this dish vegan-friendly you can use noodles such as spaghetti, linguine, vermicelli, udon, or ramen.
To make them both gluten-free AND vegan, use rice noodles, buckwheat soba, chickpea or another bean-based spaghetti, brown rice ramen, or even yuba noodles.
Want to add a little extra nutrition? The peanut sauce is delicious when paired with zucchini or sweet potato noodles.
Any leftovers will need to be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. They’ll stay fresh for up to 5 days.
Yes, you can for up to 2 months but I don't recommend it. They can get soggy once defrosted.
Tahini is slightly different as it’s made with raw sesame seeds. Sesame paste, on the other hand, is made from roasted or toasted sesame seeds.
Having cold sesame noodles with cucumbers is a more traditional way of serving but I've seen them prepared anywhere from cold to room temp to warm.
I actually prefer them served warm because they’re much more comforting for me that way, but you do you!
More Vegan Takeout-Inspired Recipes
If you make this recipe and LOVE IT, please give it 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐!
📖 Recipe
Garlic Sesame Ramen Noodles (Vegan + Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 8 oz gluten free spaghetti or other pasta of choice
Garlic Sesame Sauce
- ¼ Cup tamari or soy sauce if not gf
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable broth or hot water
- 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar (can substitute apple cider vinegar)
- ¼ Cup tahini
- 3 Tablespoons creamy peanut butter (see notes)
- 3 cloves garlic minced, (or ½ teaspoon of garlic powder)
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon powdered ginger
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 Tablespoon sriracha or chili garlic sauce
Toppings
- 2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
- 3 scallions chopped
- 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts (optional)
- vegan protein of choice (see notes)
Instructions
- Cook noodles to package directions.
- Add all sauce ingredients to a bowl and stir until smooth.
- When noodles are cooked, add them to a large bowl with the sauce.
- Top with sesame seeds and scallions and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional information data is computer generated and only an estimate so it should be used only as a guide.
Here are some of my old pictures if you'd like to check them out.
Mary Ellen Valverde MS, CNS, LDN is a Licensed Nutritionist and Certified Nutrition Specialist who empowers vegans to feel clear and confident about what is uniquely nourishing to them. Mary Ellen's recipes and nutrition information have been featured on Yahoo News, Parade, VegNews, LIVESTRONG, Dr. Axe, Greatist, LIVEKINDLY, Brit+Co, Well+Good, and more.
Nidhi Vinod says
These noodles were delicious, I added your bbq tempeh and greens on the side. It was a perfect meal. Thank you for these amazing recipes.
Mary Ellen says
Hi Nidhi! So happy you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for coming back and leaving a review!
Brittany says
Wow you were not exaggerating... I hate tempeh and this recipe changed my mind! My husband bought a package of it for me and I’ve been putting off using it. I just made this recipe and am eating it as I type this and it is delicious. I didn’t have almond butter so I used chunky peanut butter and it still turned out great, and the fact that it only took about 15 minutes is amazing. Thanks for the recipe, and I can’t wait to try your other ones 🙂
Mary Ellen says
I'm so glad you enjoyed the tempeh and the noodles, Brittany! I usually can only eat tempeh if it's cooked correctly and this is one way I love to do it. 🙂
Peanut butter is a great substitution for the almond butter. I've actually done that myself as well when I ran out of almond butter.
I appreciate the view and you letting me know that you liked the recipe!
Shari says
This was super simple & super yummy for a busy weeknight dinner! Will definitely be making again
Mary Ellen says
I'm so glad that you enjoyed it Shari! Thanks so much for coming back and letting me know.
kimmythevegan says
Totally thought I commented on this... but I guess not. I must have commented on your guest post maybe. Anyway - this looks super delicious and I can't wait to try making it... maybe not spicy though, which may defeat the purpose haha ;p
Mary Ellen says
I think you did comment on the guest post! I remember you saying something about the spice. It should be fine with a little less spice (though I love anything spicy). ?
shaheen says
Nom nom I wonder if I could do this with plainole spaghetti as I am not a huge fan of noodles.
Mary Ellen says
Shaheen, I'm sure you could use any type of pasta you'd like! I actually used spaghetti in the recipe!
meaganleanne says
I love Thai-style dishes especially with the little crunchy peanut pieces. I can't wait to give this a try!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Meagan! Those little bits are actually tempeh but peanuts would be really tasty as well! You can sub peanuts if you have any problems with soy.
ModVegan says
I thought it might have peanuts in it from the picture, but I was happy to go to the actual recipe and find out it doesn't (we have allergies in my family). I can't wait to try the recipe - believe it or not, I haven't actually used tempeh yet, so this seems like a good place to start!
Mary Ellen says
Oh good! I almost put peanuts in it and I'm glad i didn't! I hope you like it! Tempeh can be tough sometimes to get it just right but i find this cooking technique is so simple and tasty.
Christine @ Run Plant Based says
This noodle dish looks and sounds amazing, anything with spicy peanut flavors. Yum and thanks!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Christine! I'm all about spicy peanut flavors too!
leecros says
Oh man, these noodles look great, Mary Ellen! I'm avoiding soy a bit these days, but I think tempeh is a little easier on my system. Do you have any thoughts on what I could substitute (if anything)?
Mary Ellen says
The tempeh is broken up and kind of reminds me of crumbled sausage. A non-soy vegan sausage would work I think. I found this page: http://www.peta.org/living/food/guide-soy-gluten-free-meatless-meat/ and the non-soy and non-gluten option of Neat might work if you crumble that up.
Beans like lentils might work as well if you kind of crisp them up a bit. Let me know if you try something else and how it goes. I can put it as an addition to the recipe.
kateringforveggies says
Well deserved Mary Ellen! These noodles look delicious. It might even convince me to try tempeh again... My past experiences with it have been very disappointing!
Mary Ellen says
Honestly, I don't like blocks of tempeh much. I've had some versions that were okay at restaurants but when I try to make it before using this technique, I didn't much like it either. If you do try it, let me know what you think. I'd love to hear.
Julie Wunder says
These nooodlessss look so good!!!!! Can't wait to try them.
Mary Ellen says
Thank so much Julie! Let me know what you think when you try them!
Deborah @ Confessions of a mother runner says
We are on a similar yummy page today! Thanks for linking up for meatless Monday
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Deborah! Loving the noodle posts!