Shrimp and Noodle Stir Fry

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This shrimp and noodle stir fry is a delicious and easy Asian-style recipe to make on the griddle or in a skillet. With a simple sweet and savory soy-based sauce and succulent bites of shrimp, this easy stir fried noodles recipe is even better than Chinese takeout!

The Idea Behind this Easy Noodle Stir Fry

We’ve made fried rice on the griddle about a hundred different ways (literally), and over the years we’ve developed our go-to method that involves making a “well” in the rice and sautéing a bunch of fresh minced garlic in butter inside the rice well. The garlic becomes beautifully fragrant before getting mixed with the rice, and the butter adds a nice richness to the dish.

Then, we add our favorite concoction of Asian staple ingredients to make a quick sauce, and we’ve got a recipe for fried rice success.

Since we love our rice recipe so much, we decided to try the exact same method but with noodles. And it was a smashing success! We went one step farther by adding shrimp to make it a more complete meal, but you can easily add your own protein, or just make the stir fry noodles as a side dish with your favorite Asian recipes – like sesame chicken or Mongolian beef.

Shrimp and Noodle Stir Fry Video

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Ingredients Notes and Substitutions

Our shrimp stir fry noodles recipe is very versatile, so you can substitute a different protein, use a different type of noodle, or add in your favorite vegetable mixture. Here’s a look at the ingredients and some suggested substitutions:

• shrimp – We wanted the shrimp to resemble the size of the diced peas and carrots, so we opted for a 41/50 count of peeled and deveined shrimp. Then we cut each shrimp into 3 pieces. The smaller shrimp are perfect for this recipe, and they’re also more budget-friendly.
• noodles – The options are pretty much endless here. We used a Cantonese-style egg noodle for this recipe, but we’ve also had success with Chinese lo mein noodles (the type that we used for this Mongolian Ground Beef Noodles). To replicate our dish exactly, look for the Blue Dragon Cantonese Egg Noodles.
• peas and carrots – We recommend the frozen peas and carrots mix, but you can also use fresh, raw diced carrots.
• onions – We used both regular yellow onion and green onions for this stir fry noodles recipe. The whites and greens of the sliced green onions are used at different stages of the recipe.
• soy sauce and oyster sauce – These are the base of the quick Asian sauce. We prefer to use low-sodium soy sauce because the oyster sauce has quite a bit of salt.
• mirin – A sweet Japanese rice wine that balances the savory notes of the soy sauce.
• crunchy garlic chili sauce – This is optional, but it’s one of our absolute favorite ingredients to add to Asian recipes! We HIGHLY recommend the Chef Troy’s Crunchy Garlic Chili Oil, available at some grocery stores and Amazon.
• eggs – Optional, but we like the extra texture and pop of flavor that the scrambled eggs add. Not to mention, adding the eggs is a budget-friendly way to add more protein to the dish.
• sesame oil – Used as a finishing oil to add that nutty, sesame flavor that’s reminiscent of Chinese takeout.

Pre-Cooking the Noodles

As with making fried rice, it’s best to start this dish with cooked, drained, and cooled noodles. We just cooked our noodles per package instructions, boiling them in water on the stovetop. Then when the noodles are done cooking, follow these steps:

1. Drain the noodles well.
2. Add a small amount of oil (about 1 tablespoon) to the bottom of a large sheet tray and spread it out a bit – similar to greasing a pan.
3. Spread the cooked noodles out in a thin, even layer on the sheet tray.
4. Allow the noodles to cool completely before starting your stir fry. You can even cover the sheet tray with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.

How to Make Shrimp and Noodle Stir Fry

Here’s a look at the cooking process for these shrimp stir fry noodles. The complete instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.

Step 1: Sauté the diced vegetables. Start by sautéing onions, carrots, peas, and whites of the green onions. Cook until about half way tender, then move to the side of the griddle to make room for the noodles – or for skillet cooking, cook until about 75% done and then transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Step 2: Begin frying the cooked noodles. Add a bit of your favorite cooking oil to the heated surface. Spread the cooled noodles out in an even layer and cook untouched for about 1-2 minutes. This helps to create a slight char on the noodles, adding a bit of extra texture and flavor. Then stir fry the noodles to warm.

Step 3: Make a well in the noodles and sauté the garlic. Make a “well” in the center of your pile of noodles. Add a few tablespoons of butter and the minced fresh garlic to the well, and stir it around a bit. Allow the garlic to cook in the butter for about 1-2 minutes to release the aromatic flavors of the garlic.

Step 4: Add shrimp to the garlic and butter. When the garlic becomes fragrant and has a bit of color to it, add the cut shrimp to sauté in the butter and garlic.

Step 5: Add the sauce to the stir fry noodles. Add the shrimp and garlic to the noodles and sauté together briefly. Then, slowly pour the prepared sauce over the shrimp and noodle stir fry.

Step 6: Stir fry the shrimp and noodles together. Toss everything together, ensuring the sauce fully coats the noodles. Sauté for an additional 2-3 minutes, until the sauce has thickened to your liking. *Remember, the sauce will continue to thicken a bit as the noodles cool also.

And then your shrimp noodle stir fry is done! Sprinkle with the tops of the green onions and sesame seeds to garnish, and serve the noodles immediately.

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