Peanut butter pork noodles is a great recipe for a quick and easy dinner. Seared pork mince, with udon noodles and a peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar and lime sauce, finished with chilli crisp.
Peanut Butter Pork Noodles
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Category
Dinner
Servings
1
Prep time
10 minutes
Cook time
15 minutes
What do I cook when Katelyn’s out and it’s just me at home? Noddles! Here is my new go-to quick noodle dinner with pork mince and peanut butter. It takes 25 minutes from start to finish and it’s very easy to make. We’re going to sear the pork mince and make sure we get some good colour on it, then use the peanut butter as the base for our sauce with soy, rice vinegar and lime juice. We’ll toss it through soft udon noodles and finish with chilli crisp on top. It’s rich, salty, sour and spicy.
Ingredient Notes
Peanut butter: For this recipe I used smooth peanut butter because the pork mince and chilli crisp offer so much texture, I wanted a velvety smooth sauce to complement the noodles. If you don’t have peanut butter, you can substitute it with any other nut butter you can find like almond or hazelnut. Just note that peanut butter gives you the best flavour for this dish.
Udon noodles: I love udon noodles as they’re thick, chewy and smooth. The fresh vacuum-packed noodles take about 1-3 minutes to cook and dried udon takes 9-10 minutes. If you can’t find udon, use ramen or hokkien noodles.
Soy sauce: I use a good chinese-style light soy sauce for this one. I wouldn’t recommend a dark soy as it will overwhelm the dish. If that’s all you have, use half the amount.
Equipment
Medium pot (for boiling noodles)
Medium saucier (for the sauce)
Chopping board
Chef's knife
Tongs
Ingredients
-
1 tbsp neutral-flavoured oil (peanut oil)
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150g pork mince
-
Sea salt, to taste
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3 Spring onion
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2 garlic cloves
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1 heaped tbsp peanut butter
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¼ cup (60ml) soy sauce
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2 tbsp rice vinegar
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1 lime, juice
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2 tsp chilli crisp
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1 packet, soft udon noodles
Directions
Prep
Place a medium pot half filled with lightly salted water onto the boil.
Finely slice the spring onions. Keep the white and green parts separate and set both aside.
Peel, crush and finely chop the garlic then set aside.
The Sauce
Heat a medium saucier over high heat. Add the oil and let it heat for 30 seconds. Add the pork mince, breaking it apart with a wooden spatula once it hits the pan. Spread it into a single layer and season with a pinch of salt.
Sear for 4-5 minutes until golden brown on all sides.
Add the sliced spring onion whites and garlic then stir through the pork.
Add the peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar and lime juice. Use the spatula to break up the peanut butter and emulsify it into the sauce. Add 2-3 tbsp of boiling water from the noodle pot and continue cooking for a further 2-3 minutes. At this stage you want the sauce to be slightly looser than you want the final dish, since the noodles will absorb some of the liquid.
Add in the chilli crisp, stir and turn the element off.
Cook noodles and combine
Add the packet of udon to the boiling water and cook until tender. Use tongs or chopsticks to stir the noodles while boiling to prevent clumping (for fresh noodles 1-3 minutes or dried 9-10 minutes).
Use tongs to carefully remove the udon noodles from the boiling water and transfer them into the sauce pan. Add the sliced spring onion greens and toss the noodles through the peanut butter sauce.
If the sauce feels too thick, add another splash of the noodle water. It should be glossy and just coat the noodles. Serve immediately.
Recipe notes
Chef Tips
Sear your pork, don't stew it
You need a high heat and hot pan to sear your pork mince properly. Make sure you break it up as soon as it's in the pan and then spread it out into a single layer. Leave it to develop a good colour and slight crust and then stir to get the other sides. If you constantly stir, or if the pan is too cold, the mince stews in it's own juices and doesn't develop the maillard flavour.
Save your noodle water
Similar to pasta, we're going to use the salty boiling water from the noodles in the sauce to help emulsify it.
Storage
This is best served straight away. It will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for a day. Gently reheat in a pan with a splash of water.
FAQs
Can i swap the pork? Yes, you can use chicken mince, beef mince or crumbled or firm tofu. Chicken mince will cook faster than pork or beef.
Can I use a different noodle? Yes, instead of udon, you can use ramen or hokkien. I wouldn't go for a thin noodle like soba or vermicelli.
Can I make without peanut butter? Almond butter, cashew butter or hazelnut butter all work but in my opinion, they don't give it the same flavour. You could also use tahini but it will be a lot more of a savoury flavour.
Can I scale it up? Of course, just double or triple the recipe. Just use a bigger saucepan for the mince or cook in batches as you don't want it to overcrowd the pan.
