Home > Dinner > Dragon Noodles Dragon Noodles August 15, 2022 | 22 Comments SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Jump to Recipe This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Dragon Noodles combine saucy lo mein noodles, succulent ground pork, crunchy cashews, and crisp broccoli. This easy, 20-minute stir-fry is sure to become a family favorite — it’s perfectly spicy with a subtle sweetness. Love saucy noodle dishes that are simple to make? Give our Pork Ramen Stir Fry, Udon Stir Fry, or Cup of Noodles a try next! These Dragon Noodles are part of our Back-To-School Lifesavers — a series of recipes that are intended to have little (or no) veggie chopping, minimal prep time, around 10 ingredients or less (not including pantry staples), and use kid-friendly ingredients. Click here to see all the recipes in the series! Dragon Noodles Recipe Don’t worry — no dragons were harmed in the making of this saucy noodle stir-fry! Instead, dragon noodles get their name from being extra spicy — so hot that you feel like you’re breathing fire after each bite. These noodles are intended for those who love spicy foods! And as a self-proclaimed spice lover, this meal’s spicy sweetness and saucy noodles with the deeply savory pork have reached near addiction levels at my home. But, hold up. How is this a kid-friendly meal?! The spice is very easily customized and adjustable to fit picky palates. So don’t worry, if there aren’t spice lovers in your home, they can still join in on this Dragon Noodle fan club! SHORTCUTS Shortcut Ideas Here are the main shortcuts we use in these Dragon Noodles: Pre-chopped broccoli. Most grocery stores sell chopped broccoli in the produce section. Alternatively, frozen chopped broccoli can be used. Quick garlic and ginger. We use refrigerated garlic paste and refrigerated minced garlic in the sauce. See “quick tip” below. Noodles that cook quickly! Lo mein noodles boil fast. The particular brand I use is done in 6 minutes — score! We also save time by boiling the broccoli with the noodles — no need for a separate pot here. Dry roasted and lightly salted cashews. These nuts deliver more flavor without any extra effort on your part. Using salted cashews also adds a nice finishing “seasoning” to the dish. QUICK TIP Another quick option for garlic and ginger in this Dragon Noodles recipe is to use Dorot® cubes. This brand sells frozen cubes of crushed garlic and crushed ginger that you can keep handy in the freezer and pop into these (and other) recipes when needed. (Check if your local store carries them; they’re typically found with frozen veggies in the grocery store.) Dragon Noodles Sauce Ingredients Beyond the garlic and ginger mentioned above, there are three other ingredients in the sauce. We’ll break down each below: Soy sauce: We like using regular soy sauce (not lite/low-sodium) in this recipe. Lite soy sauce doesn’t offer enough seasoning (saltiness). Brown sugar: We add quite a bit of sugar to help offset the spice of the noodles. If you’re worried about this dish being too sweet, I’d recommend starting with less. You can always add more if you’re craving the sweetness. Chili garlic sauce: Here’s where we get all the spice and a lot of flavor! We’ll share how to scale this ingredient to control spiciness below. QUICK TIP What’s the difference between sambal oelek, Sriracha, hot sauce, and chili sauce/paste? Chili garlic sauce is like sambal oelek with a few additions (like vinegar, garlic, sugar, and other seasonings). It’s similar to Sriracha, but a bit chunkier, spicier, and less sweet. Read up more on the differences here. How To Make Dragon Noodles This recipe comes together so quickly! Here are our top tips for ensuring a quick preparation: Assemble all the ingredients — prep goes quickly! Let the pork really brown before stirring and crumbling. This chance to sear will imbue a much better flavor. (Color = flavor!) For a great authentic flavor, sesame oil really delivers. If you can find toasted sesame oil, that’s even better! This oil is typically found with Asian ingredients, not near the other oils in the grocery store. Scaling the Spice As this Dragon Noodles recipe is written, we add 2 tablespoons of chili-garlic paste with 1/4 cup brown sugar. This is the perfect amount for my kiddos, who, admittedly, can handle a bit of spice. This ratio gives a kick without being overpowering. For spice lovers: Scale up the amount by 1-2 tablespoons or slightly reduce the sugar. For spice haters: Reduce the amount by 1 tablespoon. Note that if you do reduce the amount of chili sauce added, you might also want to reduce the sugar. The sugar balances the spice so if you don’t add a lot of the chili garlic sauce, you might not want as much sugar. Also be aware that by reducing one or both of these ingredients, you will be missing out on some flavor. Variations Dragon Noodles Ramen: Replace the lo mein with two packets (6 ounces) of ramen noodles (discard or save seasoning packets for a different recipe). Vegan Dragon Noodles: Replace the ground pork with tofu (crumble and cook it). Shrimp Dragon Noodles: Replace the ground pork with shrimp instead! Cook the shrimp according to directions in this Lemon Garlic Shrimp recipe. Once shrimp is cooked, remove from skillet and toss back in at the end with the noodles and broccoli. More Tasty Noodle Recipes General Tso Ramen with bok choy Egg Roll Noodles with ground pork Beef Chow Mein with loads of veggies Ground Beef Ramen with the best stir-fry sauce Chicken Ramen with broccoli and red bell peppers FOLLOW ALONG! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates, recipes and content. Dragon Noodles 5 from 11 votes - Review this recipe Dragon Noodles combine saucy lo mein noodles, succulent ground pork, crunchy cashews, and crisp broccoli! This easy, 20-minute stir-fry is sure to become a family favorite -- it's perfectly spicy with a subtle sweetness. SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe Dragon Noodles 5 from 11 votes - Review this recipe SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe Dragon Noodles combine saucy lo mein noodles, succulent ground pork, crunchy cashews, and crisp broccoli! This easy, 20-minute stir-fry is sure to become a family favorite -- it's perfectly spicy with a subtle sweetness. Course Dinner, Main Course Cuisine American Keyword dragon noodles Prep Time 15 minutes minutes Cook Time 10 minutes minutes Total Time 25 minutes minutes Servings 2 -3 servings Chelsea Lords Calories 643kcal Author Chelsea Lords Cost $8.54 IngredientsSauce▢ 1/4 cup each: lightly packed light brown sugar, regular (not lite) soy sauce▢ 1 tablespoon each: ginger paste, minced garlic (Note 1)▢ 2 tablespoons chili garlic sauce (Note 2)Pork & Noodles▢ 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil or vegetable oil, divided▢ 1/2 pound (8 oz.) (85/15) ground pork▢ 1/4 cup cashews, measure then coarsely chop▢ 1 bunch green onions▢ 7 ounces lo mein noodles▢ 1 bag (12 oz.) chopped broccoli florets (Note 3)US - Metric USMetric InstructionsSAUCE: In a small bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients and set aside. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Thinly slice the green onions and separate the white bottom half of the onions from the green top half. PORK: Drizzle 1 tbsp sesame oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. Once oil is hot, add in pork. Let the pork sear (brown) a few minutes before crumbling with a wooden spoon to brown all the way through. Once browned, reduce heat to low. (If there is more than 1 tbsp grease, drain off excess.) Use a spatula to scrape every bit of sauce on top of the pork. Add in coarsely chopped cashews. Stir constantly, allowing pork and cashews to simmer until sauce is reduced in half, about 3-5 minutes. Add the bottom half of the onions to pork and sauté for 1 minute. NOODLES AND BROCCOLI: Meanwhile, water should be boiling at this point. Do not salt the water. Add lo mein noodles and stir. Boil according to package directions, adding in the coarsely chopped broccoli 2 minutes before draining. Drain in a colander and promptly toss in the remaining 1 tablespoon of sesame or vegetable oil to keep noodles from sticking. COMBINE: Once the sauce has reduced and noodles and broccoli are drained, add the noodles and broccoli to the skillet. Use tongs to gently toss until everything is coated in the sauce and well combined. Top dish with the top half of the thinly sliced green onions and another small drizzle of sesame oil if desired. Enjoy promptly! Video Recipe NotesNote 1: Quick ginger and garlic: Keep things quick and use refrigerated minced garlic and refrigerated ginger paste. Note 2: Chili-garlic sauce: Imperative for flavor and spice! This sauce is typically found near soy sauce and Sriracha in the grocery store. This sauce is responsible for the spice in this dish. Start with less if you're not a fan of too much spice and scale up or add extra to individual plates if you love spice. Note 3: Broccoli: To keep things quick, get chopped broccoli in the produce section of the grocery store. We sometimes find these florets to be too big so you may need to chop them down a little so the pieces aren't too big in the dish. 12 ounces is about 5 cups coarsely chopped broccoli! Nutrition FactsServing: 1serving | Calories: 643kcal | Carbohydrates: 76.2g | Protein: 25.2g | Fat: 27.3g | Cholesterol: 54.5mg | Sodium: 1695.4mg | Fiber: 5.1g | Sugar: 23g We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed. DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? I love hearing from you when you've made one of my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @ChelseasMessyApron or leave me a comment below.
This had an excellent flavor profile. I halved the chili sauce and it was still a bit too spicy for my youngest. I think next time I’ll double the remaining sauce ingredients and add more chili sauce on an Individual basis. Thanks for such an easy but delish recipe! Reply
I used the sauce recipe but I kicked it up with Sriracha instead of symbol. All in all one of my favorite recipes. Thank you Reply
These were fantastic and a great way to season up my regular ground pork. I underestimated the sauce as I mixed it, but once it cooked in with the pork it had amazing spice. The imagine the sauce would work well with ground beef, like a bulgogi style. I’ll definitely be adding this to the mix. Reply
I made this for my family tonight. Very good! My guys loved it. I doubled it because they’re big eaters but really didn’t need to. It is so filling. I couldn’t find the ginger paste so used minced ginger. We aren’t huge fans of it so I cut it by half and it was perfect. Reply
Absolutely fantastic. Made it exactly as written and it was great. I was worried there wouldn’t be enough sauce but it worked. Easy to make, didn’t take long – this goes into my recipe book. Reply
Okay first of all, just looking at the recipe I doubled everything because it just looked incredible. I wished I quadrupled it. My husband and I have been together for 5 years and he said this is in the top 3 recipes I’ve ever made, and I have to agree with him. The sauce alone is amazing and simple. The recipe is so quick and easy. Highly reccomend. Reply
Hello! I am so interested in making this myself, but question-what could I use instead of Cashews? I am allergic to them. Reply
