Next Post
Sheet Pan Chipotle Salmon Tacos with Pineapple Jalapeño Salsa.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
We love these 20 Minute Red Curry Basil Garlic Oil Noodles on the busiest of nights. Homemade basil garlic oil with Thai red curry and frizzled scallions. All tossed with quick-cooking (and delicious) ramen noodles and ready in just about 20 minutes. Not only is this a healthy (vegan) noodle bowl, this dish is delicious for nights you’re craving saucy noodles, but need them to be homemade – and quick.
Lately, my family has been requesting a lot of chicken fried rice or quick stir-fries with a Thai-style sauce. Anything with a little soy and a touch of heat is their favorite. I don’t mind because most of these dishes are pretty quick. But after making chicken fried rice for the third time in one week, I needed a change of pace.
Since they were still looking for something saucy and soy-based, I went the noodle route. Ever since I made chili oil noodles a few weeks ago, I’ve been into making noodles with an oil-based sauce.
They’re so easy to do, and always so delicious.
The garlic chili oil noodles recipe I’m sharing today are truly so super simple, but wow, the flavor is so delicious. I really wanted to incorporate some Thai basil flavors and use up all the fresh Thai basil I had in the fridge.
Thai red curry paste with Thai basil and a few dashes of tamari (gluten-free soy sauce) is one of my favorite combinations. So I thought, “why not toss that up with some noodles?”.
These ended up coming together in just minutes and they really are so delicious.
The details
The oil is the heart of this recipe. The noodles are, of course, important, but it’s really the oil that adds all the flavor. You’ll want to start out by warming together the sesame oil and green onions (or scallions, or shallots…what do you call them ??♀️) on the stovetop. Warm until the green onions are super fragrant and frizzled up.
Basically, you’re frying the onions in the oil, which creates a really wonderful flavor. Once the onions are frizzled up, stir in the Thai red curry paste. Allow the curry paste to cook a minute or so to really intensify the flavors.
At this point, I start adding the garlic, ginger, and chili flakes to a bowl big enough to toss the noodles in. Then add lots of fresh Thai basil as garnish. If your grocery store doesn’t carry Thai basil, regular Italian basil works too.
When the oil is ready, pour it over the garlic and basil. The heat from the oil will cook the garlic and you’ll immediately smell all the fresh basil.
The rest is simple. Boil the noodles according to package instructions. I love using Brown Rice Ramen (which you can find at Whole Foods and in many grocery stores). These taste just like real deal ramen noodles, but they’re much healthier, gluten-free, and vegan.
Toss the noodles with the oil and a bit of tamari, then serve them up warm!
These saucy noodles are currently the go-to favorite. You can even include chicken for added protein. Sautéed vegetables and a fried egg would be delicious additions too!
Looking for other fun noodle recipes? Here are some favorites:
Crispy Sesame Garlic Chili Oil Noodles
Stir Fried Honey Ginger Sesame Noodles
Creamy Thai Turmeric Chicken and Noodles
Lastly, if you make these 20 Minute Red Curry Basil Garlic Oil Noodles, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
20 Minute Red Curry Basil Garlic Oil Noodles
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 376 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sesame or peanut oil
- 1/3 cup green onions, sliced
- 1-3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 3-4 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon ginger, grated
- crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh Thai or regular basil
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 4 squares brown rice ramen noodles, or 6 ounces rice noodles
- 1/3 cup tamari or soy sauce
Instructions
- 1. In a skillet, cook the sesame oil and green onions over medium heat until very fragrant, 3-5 minutes. Lower the heat, stir in the red curry paste, cook 2 minutes.2. in a large bowl, mix the garlic, ginger, basil, cilantro, and season with chili flakes. Pour the hot oil over the herbs.3. Cook the noodles according to package directions, then drain. Toss the warm noodles and tamari/soy sauce with the oil.4. Serve the noodles with additional green onions.
This post was originally published on March 9, 2022
T! How do you cut those cut green onion “shard” garnishes?
Hey Erin,
I very thinly slice them on an angle. Let me know if you have any other questions!! xx
Do you think this recipe would work without the fresh herbs? Do you have any recommended subs that could be used in their place? I don’t want to buy any that will go bad when I am out of town this weekend!
Absolutely LOVE all of your recipes!
Hey Annette,
You could use dried herbs in their place but for this recipe I honestly think fresh is best:) Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Super super tasty-was a hit in my family. Doubled the recipe and I followed it to the letter EXCEPT I used brown rice pad thai noodles, and then I added leftover chopped grilled chicken thighs and some very finely chopped broccoli.. Just needed to make it a complete meal (I have 3 perpetual starving high school hockey players, and an always hungry husband to feed), it was great! I think this is what I love most about Tieghan’s meals; you can customize them to fit what’s in your pantry…
Hi Jessi,
Happy Friday!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Thanks for your kind message:) xx
This was sooo yummy! I tossed in some stir-fried baby broccoli with the noodles and didn’t realize until I was doing the dishes that I completely forgot to add the soy sauce. It was still very flavorful and that say a lot about a dish when you forget a main ingredient!
Hi Julie,
Happy Friday!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xx
Going to try this weekend, looks amazing! Is the thai basil the one that tastes a little like licorice?
Hi Rebecca,
Yes, that is correct. Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This is also great for Catholics – Fridays during Lent when we are abstaining from meat!
Looks so delicious!
I hope you love the recipe Mary!!
Can’t wait to try this, it looks delicious and my celiac (GF) vegan daughter thanks you!!!
I hope you love the recipe Nicole!!
This looks delish! I have trouble with those rice noodles, they stick together a lot and end up gummy instead of chewy. Do you alter the instructions on the package for altitude (hi from Boulder!)? Thanks 🙂
Hi Amber,
Rice noodles can be tricky, I typically just follow the package instructions, I find if you work quickly with them that you can avoid the stickiness. Ramen noodles also work really well in this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Can you sub gochujang For the chili paste? How will that change the recipe? Thank you for all of your amazing recipes!! I make multiple a week 🙂
Hi there,
Sure, that will work well for you, it shouldn’t change the recipe very much! I hope you love the dish, let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Making it for next week lunch!
I hope you love the recipe!!
This is exactly what I did because at the last minute I realized I was out of Thai red curry paste lol. I just did one tbsp of the gochujang because it is thicker and spicier than red curry paste. Turned out terrific!
Hi Jen,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! Love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
I have a daughter allergic to peanuts and sesame. What other oil could I use?
Grapeseed oil is a good neutral tasting oil with a high smoke point, but it does have a relatively low shelf life so if you get it, use it up quick.
If you want something with more flavor, perilla (it’s a plant related to mint) oil is popular in Asian cooking and also has a high smoke point, but it’s pretty hard to come by outside of Asian grocers.
Sunflower seed oil’s also a nice, nutty flavored oil.
I made this for dinner tonight with some quick fried halibut chunks on top. The noodles were amazing!8
Hi Brenda,
Happy Friday!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xx
avocado oil, canola oil, corn oil
Hi there,
The sesame and peanut oils really give a lot of the flavor to this sauce, you could try a neutral oil but I’m afraid you would love a lot of the flavor. Here are some other recipes you might like:
https://fett-weg.today/15-minute-garlic-butter-ramen-noodles/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/better-than-takeout-dan-dan-noodles/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/beef-ramen-noodles/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I cook a lot of your recipes and alter them for us because My daughter has deadly allergies to dairy , wheat , eggs , tree nuts, peanuts and sesame . They still come out very delicious! We substitute olive oil for sesame or peanut oil .
Thanks so much Lela! Love to hear this!!
J.A. I was out of peanut oil so used canola tonight. It was still a hit!
Oh my gosh, yum!! I worked with what I had tonight (rice noodles instead of ramen, add chicken and broccolini, cause why not?) but was otherwise faithful to the recipe. These super flavorful and easy noodles are a great weeknight option when you’re in the mood for takeout style noodles at home. Thanks, Tieghan!!
Hi Kyle,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xx
Delicious, I think also shrimps are perfect for these noodles!
Miki x
https://www.littletasteofbeauty.com/
Thanks! I hope you love the recipe!
This looks amazing…can I assume adding a bit of chicken would be a nice and maybe welcome addition?
Tieghan remarked in her description of this recipe that “include chicken for added protein”..AND…”sauteed mushrooms and greens make a good addition”.
Hey there,
Sure, ground chicken would work well for you here!! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it!! xTieghan
This looks great! Are you using toasted sesame oil or regular sesame oil?
Hi Ashley,
For this recipe, I used toasted sesame oil. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it!! xTieghan
Cant wait to make this soon i never had red curry basil garlic oil noodles before looks easy to make this will try after work next week and my family loves noodles and cant wait to make this for my family too perfect for my after office meals
I hope you love the recipe!!
Going to try this tonight with what i have in the pantry/fridge…..not quite enough sesame oil – can i use some coconut oil? and would linguine noodles work? i forgot the ramen 🙁
looks so yummy! i’ll make pork chop for meat lovin’ hubby to go with but i have roasted broccoli and fresh spinach for mine. thanks for such lovely looking (and tasting) recipes!
Hey Karen,
Do you have peanut oil? I would use that with the sesame oil if you can. Sure, linguine noodles will work:) I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan