These sweet, salty, and downright addictive Garlic Noodles have been a staple in my kitchen for years—literally! This is one of my OG recipes, first published nearly 16 years ago, and to this day, it’s still one of my favorites. I mean, the reviews speak for themselves! With a short and simple ingredient list full of pantry staples, these noodles come together in no time and are perfect as a base for glazed meat or a side to quick stir-fried veggies.
All recipes are rigorously tested in our Nashville Test Kitchen to ensure they are easy, affordable, and delicious.
“I made this for lunch today—easy and delicious—and ended up devouring three portions myself 😅 thanks for the great recipe!”
Shara
Easy Garlic Noodles Recipe
Who said noodles had to be boring?! Not me, that’s for sure. In this easy recipe, I make a simple sauce using oyster sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce, and toasted sesame oil and toss it with delicate angel hair pasta, garlic (of course), and melted butter. Add in some green onions for a fresh bite, and you’ve got a dish that’s totally addictive… BEWARE.
Quick & Easy Garlic Noodles
Servings 4Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp oyster sauce* ($0.23)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar** ($0.06)
- 2 tsp soy sauce ($0.10)
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil ($0.40)
- 8 oz angel hair pasta*** ($0.54)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1/2 bunch green onions ($0.35)
- 4 Tbsp butter ($0.50)
Instructions
- Add the oyster sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce and sesame oil to a bowl and stir until combined.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes). Drain the cooked noodles in a colander, then set aside.
- While the pasta cooks, mince the garlic and slice the green onions. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Once the butter is melted and bubbly, add the garlic and onions (save a few for garnish) and sauté until they are soft and fragrant (1-2 minutes).
- Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the drained pasta and oyster sauce mixture to the skillet, and stir well to coat the pasta. If your pasta is stiff or sticky making it hard to stir, sprinkle a small amount of hot water over the pasta to loosen it up. Garnish the pasta with any reserved sliced green onions, then serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
How to Make Garlic Noodles step-by-step photos
Make the sauce: In a small bowl stir together 2 Tbsp oyster sauce, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 tsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp toasted sesame oil. Stir until combined.
Cook the pasta: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook 8 oz. angel hair pasta according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
Prep the aromatics: While the pasta is cooking, mince 4 cloves of garlic and slice about 4 green onions (1/2 bunch).
Sauté the aromatics: Heat 4 Tbsp of butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the minced garlic and most of the sliced green onions (save a few for garnish). Sauté the garlic and green onions until soft and fragrant (1-2 minutes).
Add the noodles and sauce: Remove the skillet from the heat, then add the cooked and drained pasta and the prepared sauce. You can add a very small amount of hot water to the pasta to loosen it up, if needed.
Serve: Toss the ingredients in the skillet until the pasta is evenly coated with sauce. Garnish with the reserved green onions and serve.
Recipe Success Tips!
- Don’t burn the garlic! I cook the minced garlic over medium low until fragrant, which only takes 1-2 minutes. Avoid cooking it for much longer because burnt garlic gets bitter fast.
- Loosen up the noodles. If they seem a bit sticky, I sprinkle the noodles with a little hot water (reserved pasta water will work here too) to loosen them up.
- Adjust to taste. You can absolutely tweak the balance of sweet, salty, and umami flavors to make it just right for you. Some readers like to use half the amount of brown sugar I’ve listed in the recipe card, while I think it’s the perfect amount. You can always taste the sauce before adding it to the pasta and adjust as needed.
What Else Can I Add?
This is a great base recipe to which you can add all sorts of other ingredients! I love these garlic noodles as a side dish, but you can add protein and vegetables to make it a meal. Here are some optional extras I think you’ll like:
- Shitake mushrooms
- Shrimp (cook with the butter and garlic, remove from the pan, and then add it back in at the end)
- Bok choy
- Teriyaki chicken
- Cracked red pepper flakes
- Soy ginger glazed chicken
- Air fryer tofu
- Sesame seeds
- Beef (see my garlic noodles with beef and broccoli for inspiration)
- A fried egg
- Crushed peanuts
- Sriracha
Storage & Reheating
These garlic noodles are a staple in my weekly meal prep. I just pack them into individual airtight containers and keep them in my fridge for up to 3-4 days. To reheat, I pop them into the microwave until heated through. The noodles do soak up some of the sauce during storage, but I don’t mind that too much. I wouldn’t recommend freezing this one as the noodles can get dry.
More Easy Noodle Recipes
Our Garlic Noodles recipe was originally published 12/3/2009. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be better than ever 3/28/25.
So good! Just what I needed. Doubled the sauce. EXACTLY WHAT I WANTED- THANK YOU!
Since I’m vegetarian, I replaced the oyster sauce with hoisin. Easy and delicious.
This was great! I added some chicken and roasted broccoli.
I’ve been using this site since I was a grad student back in 2015, but after all these years, this is my first review!
I fricken love these noodles. They’re fast and amazing every single time. There’s another recipe on the site here that adds beef and broccoli too if you want more protein!
holy fuck that was good, used fettuccine instead of angel hair
I want to learn how to cook
Totally delicious!
I have made this so many times. I used less sugar and more garlic. When I don’t have green onions I have substitute them with red onions that are cooked until transparent, not caramelized. I made it for a pasta class last weekend. Everyone loved it, is always a success.
Absolutely love this recipe! I always add way more garlic and it’s a bit sweet for my liking so I more than half the sugar. Totally addicting and I can’t wait to make this again. Would also highly recommend making this with Trader Joe’s Thai wheat noodles. Those absorb the flavor soooo well.
These were so easy and tasted incredible!! We’ll definitely be making these again!!
❤️
This is a staple. We make it with grilled teriyaki chicken thighs.
We made this and added raw shrimp when we got to the butter step. It was UNBELIEVABLE! * chefs kiss*
I make this recipe often it is so tasty
This is our go to recipe. My son’s girlfriend said it was too sweet, so I made it different the next time. I had to add more sugar because it tasted better the 1st I made it. To each his own, the sweet makes it for me. I prefer this over garlic noodles at a restaurant any day!! I’d give you more stars if I could.
Over all good.. but too sweet for me as well. Maybe add a lil sweet soy instead.
This is really good. I can’t use the oyster sauce so I use teriyaki sauce instead. If I use a sweeter teriyaki I cut down on the brown sugar. But really… great recipe.