Garlic Chili Oil Noodles (Printable)

Fragrant noodles coated in spicy garlic chili oil create a bold, quick, and satisfying meal.

# What You'll Need:

→ Noodles

01 - 7 oz wheat noodles (Chinese wheat noodles or linguine)

→ Aromatics

02 - 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
03 - 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts separated)
04 - 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

→ Chili Oil

05 - 2 1/2 tablespoons chili flakes (Sichuan or Korean preferred)
06 - 1/2 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns (optional)
07 - 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
08 - 1/2 teaspoon sugar
09 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Oil

10 - 3 tablespoons neutral oil (canola, sunflower, or grapeseed)

→ Sauce

11 - 1 1/2 tablespoons light soy sauce
12 - 1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar (Chinkiang vinegar)
13 - 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (optional)
14 - 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

# How to Make It:

01 - Boil noodles according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 2 tablespoons of cooking water, and set noodles aside.
02 - Combine garlic, white parts of scallions, chili flakes, Sichuan peppercorns (if used), white pepper, sugar, salt, and toasted sesame seeds in a heatproof bowl.
03 - Warm the neutral oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering without smoking.
04 - Pour the hot oil carefully over the chili-garlic mixture to release aroma and flavor, then stir to blend thoroughly.
05 - Whisk together light soy sauce, black vinegar, dark soy sauce (if using), toasted sesame oil, and reserved noodle water in a large bowl.
06 - Add the drained noodles to the bowl, then pour the infused chili oil over them.
07 - Toss noodles until evenly coated and glossy. Garnish with green scallion parts and extra sesame seeds as desired.
08 - Serve immediately, stirring noodles again before eating for optimal flavor distribution.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Ready in twenty minutes, but tastes like you spent hours coaxing out flavors.
  • The chili oil is pure magic—spicy, garlicky, and somehow addictive enough that you'll want to drizzle it on everything else you eat.
  • Completely vegan and endlessly customizable depending on what you have in your pantry.
02 -
  • The oil absolutely must be hot enough to bloom the spices but not so hot it burns the garlic—if you pour it and smell burnt rather than aromatic, you've learned what I learned the hard way.
  • Don't skip the noodle cooking water; the starch in it helps the chili oil coat the noodles instead of pooling at the bottom of the bowl.
03 -
  • Use the best quality vinegar and oils you can find—these few ingredients are doing all the heavy lifting, so they matter more than you'd think.
  • If you can't find Chinese black vinegar, substitute rice vinegar in a pinch, but add a tiny splash of soy sauce to compensate for the depth you're missing.
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