Cold Sesame Noodles Recipe
Nutty and accompanied by sweetness, tang, and crunch, this refreshing cold sesame noodles recipe is easy to recreate at home for a night of takeout fake-out.
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I love cold sesame noodles. I remember eating them as a kid, slurping cold strands of noodles coated in a creamy peanut butter dressing. At the time, I never would have thought to mix peanut butter with ingredients like soy sauce, vinegar, and scallions and expect it to taste good, but my 12-year-old self had a lot to learn.
I wanted to recreate the cold sesame noodles I ate all those years ago while focusing on using the best ingredients to make it even better and fresher than I remember. Thinly sliced cucumber is a typical garnish, but I prefer scallions for their more intense flavor. I also prefer using all-natural peanut butter.
When creating my own recipe, I began with the peanut butter as the base and added other essential ingredients, like soy sauce, rice vinegar, and grated ginger, a little at a time and adjusting them as necessary until I achieved the flavor I was looking for.
The result is a nutty sauce from the peanut butter and toasted sesame seeds, punctuated by the tang of soy sauce and rice vinegar, sweetened slightly from some brown sugar, and heated just a pinch with red pepper flakes.
Be warned, these cold sesame noodles are addicting. Even after they become leftovers—assuming you have leftovers—and the noodles have absorbed much of the sauce, they’ll still taste delicious.
I hope you love this cold sesame noodles recipe as much as I do! And if you’re looking for some more takeout recipes, try this bok choy fried rice.
Why You’ll Love This Cold Sesame Noodles Recipe
- It’s a great summer dish: Well, it’s great year-round, but you only need to use the stove to boil the pasta.
- It’s budget-friendly: These noodles mainly rely on pantry ingredients you’re likely to already have.
- It’s kid-friendly: Pasta tossed with peanut butter? That alone should please kids.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Spaghetti: This provides the ideal thickness for these noodles.
- Sesame Oil: This is essential for a bold sesame flavor.
- Peanut Butter: I recommend an all-natural peanut butter.
- Low-Sodium Soy Sauce: Use gluten-free or coconut aminos, if you’d prefer.
- Rice Vinegar: I don’t recommend a substitution, as rice vinegar works here for it’s milder flavor.
- Fresh Ginger: Do not replace with ground ginger.
- Brown Sugar: You can use light or dark, but I prefer dark.
- Red Pepper Flakes: These are for that necessary touch of heat.
- Toasted Sesame Seeds: You can buy toasted or toast them yourself.
- Scallions: Fresh scallions finish this dish with a brightness and freshness.
See the recipe card below for more information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make This Cold Sesame Noodles Recipe
- Boil the spaghetti: Boil the spaghetti and drain it, reserving up to 1/2 cup of pasta water. Rinse the spaghetti under cold water and toss it in a bowl with the sesame oil. Store the spaghetti and reserved pasta water in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Make the sauce: Combine all remaining ingredients, except for the scallions, in a small bowl. Pour the sauce over the noodles and toss everything together, adding some reserved pasta water to thin it out.
- Finish: Garnish the noodles with the toasted sesame seeds and scallions.
Pro Tips
Rinse the spaghetti after boiling it: This will wash away the starch and help prevent the spaghetti from sticking together, which is important because you’ll need to chill it first, coated only in sesame oil.
Assemble and add the peanut sauce to the noodles right before serving: If you toss the sauce with the cooked spaghetti and place it in the refrigerator to chill, it will absorb a lot of the sauce and become dry.
Thin out the sauce with reserved pasta water or regular water: Reserve 1/4 to 1/2 cup of pasta water and store in the refrigerator until you’re ready to dress the spaghetti with the peanut sauce, which will help thin it out. You can also use a few tablespoons of tap water.
Use all-natural peanut butter, if possible: I recommend Crazy Richard’s. It contains just one ingredient — 100% peanuts — and its loose texture works well for this recipe because it’s easier to coat the spaghetti with it.
Suggestions for Variations and Substitutions
- Add other veggies like carrots and cucumber, sliced into thin matchsticks.
- Toss in some chopped peanuts for added crunch.
- You can substitute the dark brown sugar with light brown sugar.
- If you don’t have sesame oil, use a neutral oil to coat the spaghetti. Just note that this will mellow the sesame flavor.
- Drizzle with chili oil for more heat.
Recipe FAQs
If you add the sauce to the hot noodles, they’ll absorb much of it as it cools in the refrigerator. Adding sesame oil first helps keep the noodles from sticking together as they get cold.
Yes, as they were apparently introduced by Shorty Tang, a Chinese immigrant who introduced this dish at his restaurant in Manhattan’s Chinatown. It became hugely popular throughout the 1970s and a mainstay of Chinese restaurants throughout New York City.
Storage
Refrigerator
Store in an airtight container and consume within 3 days.
Freezer
I don’t recommend freezing these noodles.
More Asian-Inspired Recipes
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Cold Sesame Noodles Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons peanut butter (Recommended: Crazy Richard's) (Note 1)
- 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger grated
- 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar (Note 2)
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes or more to taste
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds toasted (Note 3)
- 4 scallions sliced, green parts only
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Reserve about ¼ to ½ cup of pasta water. Drain and rinse the spaghetti under cold water. Toss it in a bowl with the sesame oil until it's evenly coated. Transfer the bowl and the reserved pasta water to the refrigerator and chill for 1 hour.12 ounces spaghetti, ½ cup pasta water, 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- When you're ready to serve the noodles, add the remaining ingredients, except for the sesame seeds and scallions, to a small bowl. Mix the ingredients with a whisk until a smooth sauce develops. Pour the sauce over the noodles and stir everything together thoroughly. The sauce will be thick, so add some reserved pasta water to loosen it up (If you forget to reserve the pasta water, you can use regular tap water instead.) ½ cup + 2 tablespoons peanut butter; 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce; 3 tablespoons rice vinegar; 2 teaspoons fresh ginger; 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar; ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Sprinkle in some toasted sesame seeds and scallions and continue to stir until everything is well incorporated. Serve in bowls and garnish with the remaining sesame seeds and scallions. Enjoy!2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted; 4 scallions, sliced, green parts only
