Sesame Noodles with Pork
There are days when all I want is a big plate of noodles – and because I haven’t yet found the takeout joint with the tangle of irresistibly creamy-spicy-peanutty noodles, I make them myself. I made this particular batch a couple weekends ago, and have answered a few DM requests for the recipe since – sorry it has taken so long to share. I’m going to leave it here to keep you well fed while the three of us hop on a plane for London – just to go exploring and eat some fish and chips. (Mike has never been overseas, and so I got a crazy deal last fall and surprised him and W. I’m writing this as we pack. SO EXCITED. I love London.)
A pound of fresh Asian noodles is impossibly cheap, and ground pork is about the most affordable of the ground meats – I love it when it’s cooked until crispy, all salty with soy and spiked with ginger and garlic. This isn’t a springy noodle dish, light and bouncy with crisp veggies – it’s dense and chewy, rich from the peanut butter, but the rice vinegar, green onions and cilantro keep it from being too heavy. It’s the sort of thing I want to eat with chopsticks straight from a paper takeout container, but I’ll settle for a shallow bowl and my couch.
Sesame Noodles with Pork

Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil - I use some canola and some sesame - and cook the pork, breaking it up with a spoon, until it's no longer pink and starting to brown. Add the green onions, cilantro, a clove or two of garlic and a good grating of ginger somewhere along the way, along with half the soy sauce and vinegar. As you add half of each ingredient, put the other half into a small bowl or measuring cup, along with the peanut butter, chili paste and a tablespoon or two of sesame oil. Continue to cook the pork until it's nice and crispy, with any excess moisture cooked off.
Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles for a few minutes, or until tender. Drain well.
Spoon the meat out of the skillet to a bowl, add a little more oil to the skillet and add the noodles (half at a time, if all of them makes it too full to handle), and pour over the soy-vinegar-sugar-peanut butter mixture. Toss with tongs to coat well, leaving it over the heat for a minute or two, until any excess moisture has cooked off. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the pork mixture and some extra cilantro, if you like.
Serves 4-6.
Ingredients
Directions
Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of oil - I use some canola and some sesame - and cook the pork, breaking it up with a spoon, until it's no longer pink and starting to brown. Add the green onions, cilantro, a clove or two of garlic and a good grating of ginger somewhere along the way, along with half the soy sauce and vinegar. As you add half of each ingredient, put the other half into a small bowl or measuring cup, along with the peanut butter, chili paste and a tablespoon or two of sesame oil. Continue to cook the pork until it's nice and crispy, with any excess moisture cooked off.
Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles for a few minutes, or until tender. Drain well.
Spoon the meat out of the skillet to a bowl, add a little more oil to the skillet and add the noodles (half at a time, if all of them makes it too full to handle), and pour over the soy-vinegar-sugar-peanut butter mixture. Toss with tongs to coat well, leaving it over the heat for a minute or two, until any excess moisture has cooked off. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the pork mixture and some extra cilantro, if you like.
Serves 4-6.
OMG Julie that looks and sounds amazing, and I can just picture eating it on the couch, in my “lounge wear” while watching tv. I can almost taste it now.
thanks for the great post
jolly good
have a great trip
Thanks Mary-Louise!!
This looks scrumptious! Perfect for cold nights 🙂
I just read this recipe and leapt to my feet to make it. It is about 40 minutes later and I am enjoying a big bowl. This recipe is a keeper! I used brown rice vermicelli and I think I might try ground chicken next time. So, so easy and GOOD!
Yay! so glad to hear it!!
Have a great trip!
Hi Julie! I made these noodles for dinner tonight and they are oh-so tasty! I’m adding them into the dinner rotation for sure. Hope you’re having a great time in London – what an amazing surprise for your husband and son! Memories for a lifetime.
When I go to print the recipe I get a blank page – am I doing something wrong?
It should be fixed now – sorry! thanks!!
Is there any way to sub a port tenderloin for the ground pork in this recipe?
Sure, just cut it into thin strips to saute!
Not that anyone can”t figure it out, there is no instruction in the recipe when and where to add the brown sugar.