Rice noodles tossed in a ginger-forward “Asian pesto” that’s based on Hainanese Chicken’s ginger shallot sauce. Crazy good, super fast no-cook meal. Weirdly obsessed with how the noodles go green! Serve warm or cold – great for hot days, lunch boxes, or any Asian-ish spread.
Green Ginger Rice Noodles – with chicken, or not
I looked at my recent recipe line up and realised it was all yellow and brown (roasts, chocolate, cheese, cake!). So I headed to the shops with noble leafy-green intentions but got completely derailed by green onions on sale ($2 for a giant bunch!). 💡Lightbulb moment: Asian pesto, aka Hainanese Chicken Ginger Shallot Sauce, but in noodle form!
Not exactly the crisp leafy dish I planned, but hey, I got some green back into the feed. Well done me! 😂
What this tastes like – “Asian pesto” really is the best description! Lots of green onions blitzed with lots of ginger, a bit of garlic, soy sauce for salt, neutral oil and a bit of vinegar so it’s not too oil-heavy. The raw-onioniness (is that a word??!) of green onion and sharpness of ginger mellows with the oil, turning into a fresh, crazy-good sauce that makes everything it touches instantly more exciting. Today, it’s noodles!
Ingredients in Green Ginger Rice Noodles
Here’s what you need this bowl of green noodles.
1. green ginger sauce
As mentioned above, this is adapted from the tasty Ginger Shallot Sauce that accompanies Hainanese Chicken (yes, yes, one day soon, I need to share mine!). Considerably larger volume, and also I switch some oil with vinegar, else I think the noodles will be too oily. I also use a stick blender instead of mincing everything using a knife. So much faster – and actually more effective to extract flavour out of everything. 🙂
Green onion – Sometimes called shallots here in Australia, scallions in the US and Canada, spring onions in the UK and Europe. It can be so confusing! They are the long thin green stems that does not have a bulbous lump at the bottom (we call those spring onions here in Australia). To avoid any confusion, see photo above!
You need a lot – 4 to 5 big stems (ie with 3 or so stems on each stem). 4 cups once chopped into pieces that we then blitz. This is what makes this Asian pesto green!
Ginger – A good amount of fresh ginger, for bold ginger flavour the Hainanese Chicken Ginger Shallot Sauce is known and loved for.
Light soy sauce – To add salt into the sauce to turn it into a dressing. Any regular or all-purpose soy sauce can be used, or tamari (for gluten-free). Don’t use dark soy sauce (much too intense, it will ruin the sauce) or kecap manis (too sweet!). More on different soy sauces here.
Rice vinegar – This adds a touch of tang to cut through the oil, and similar to the soy sauce, it turns an oil-based sauce into a dressing. You can’t just use oil for the liquid, it makes it too oily!
Grapeseed oil – This oil is made from grape seeds and has a clean flavour that doesn’t tasty as “oily” like other neutral flavoured oils do. It’s a common oil choice for uncooked dressings where other flavours are intended to shine, one that I use pretty regularly in Asian dressings. Substitute with any neutral flavoured oil, like canola, vegetable, or avocado oil.
Salt and white pepper – White rather than black pepper is generally more common in Asian cooking, though honestly, it’s not a big deal here to switch it with black pepper.
2. NOODLES, CHICKEN, Toppings
I added chicken for protein to have as a meal, but as a side dish I’d switch it out for a vegetable. Cucumber would top my list, cut in baton form. It will look great! As for toppings – a little crunch from crispy store bought shallots and a little vinegary-spice from sriracha are the perfect finishes for this bowl of gingery goodness.
Cooked chicken (optional) – Use a store bought roast chicken, or poach your own using my foolproof poached chicken method (just leave the chicken in boiled water with the stove turned off, it’s impossible to overcook. Works 100%, every single time).
Other protein options – A reader suggested prawns/shrimp which would be fabulous! I’d probably cut lengthways into thinner pieces, so they get tangled up in the noodles.
Dried rice noodles – I used thin rice stick noodles, the kind that’s flat that makes a surface for the Green Ginger Sauce to cling to. Specifically, I use these ones – Changs Pad Thai Rice Noodles, yes I use them for Pad Thai too! I think rice noodles work better than yellow noodles as they have a more neutral flavour so it really lets the flavour of the sauce shine, and the green colour stands out more against white.
Having said that, I would not hesitate to make this with any type of noodles – dried, fresh, thin, thick, yellow, white, glass, vermicelli, ramen. I’d probably even use pasta, if that’s all I had. 🙂 See recipe card for guidance on quantity for different types of noodles.
Crispy fried shallots – Store bought, pantry essential. Crispy, salty, oily little bits of goodness that I sprinkle on “everything” – salads, scrambled eggs, soups, stir fries, fried rice! Find them in the Asian aisle of regular grocery stores though cheaper at Asian stores.
Sriracha – A little vinegary spicy sauce goes so well with the fresh flavours going on here! Also reminiscent of the chilli sauce that accompanies the Ginger Shallot Sauce for Hainanese Chicken (except, today we just squirt from a bottle rather than making it from scratch).
How to make Green Ginger Noodles
The Green Ginger Sauce is made like pesto – blitzed with a stick blender. Food processor doesn’t work – the texture of green onion just isn’t suited to whirling blades, they get stuck on the base and sides too much.
1. Green Ginger Sauce first
Blitz part 1 – Blitz 1/4 of the green onion with the ginger, garlic, vinegar and water until the ginger and garlic are pureed, about 10 to 15 seconds. The green onion will be mostly pureed too, that is what makes the noodles green. It’s easiest to use a jug so the head of the stick blender is immersed though a tall bowl will work ok too.
Blitz part 2 – Then add the rest of the green onions and soy sauce, then blitz until all the green onion is pesto-like, about another 15 seconds. A stick blender isn’t strong enough to blitz into a smoothie so you shouldn’t have to worry about taking it too far.
No stick blender? That’s ok! Finely mince the green onion with a knife (you’ll need 2 cups tightly packed once finely minced) and grate the ginger and garlic using a microplane. This is the traditional way Ginger Shallot Sauce is made for Hainanese Chicken.
Stir the oil and salt in. DO NOT BLITZ! The sheer power of the stick blender will emulsify the oil with the liquids and turn the sauce into a pale green smoothie. How do you think I know this??!! 🫣
Set aside for 10 minutes. This is a key step! The sharpness of raw green onion and ginger mellows out, the flavours meld together and the green onion softens and sweats which makes the sauce looser.
Making ahead – The sauce gets a little darker with time, though nothing like basil pesto does (which goes a green-black if exposed). It’s best to toss through noodles within, say, an hour of making the sauce. Once tossed, the green colour is preserved pretty well.
2. toss, toss, toss!
Prepare noodles per the packet directions. Mine says to soak in boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain in a colander then give it a rinse under tap water to rinse off excess starch. This helps keep the noodles slippery when tossed with the sauce rather than clumping up into a tangle.
Toss the noodles with the Green Ginger Sauce first. Toss well until the noodles turn green! Then add the chicken and toss again. If needed, add a tablespoon of water at a time to loosen the noodles (or oil).
TIP: It’s important to toss the noodles and sauce without the chicken first. If you put the sauce and chicken in at the same time, most of the sauce gets caught up in the chicken and you don’t get enough on the noodles.
Warm or cold – If you want to serve these noodles warm, serve straight away. If you want to have these cold, just leave the noodles for 15 minutes until they cool to room temperature (even an hour!). It is great either way, and I have a little chatter on this below the photo – it is one of the great things about these noodles!
Serve – Divide between bowls. Top with a squirt or dousing of sriracha (as you please!) and a generous pile of crispy fried shallots. Then dig in!
Rare dish that’s great warm OR cold
There are very few dishes in this world that I really, truly, hand-on-heart believe are just as good cold or warm. In fact, I can’t think of any off the top of my head – if you can, please comment below! (No, pizza doesn’t make the cut!! Sandwiches don’t count! 😆)
These noodles, however, are genuinely great whether warm or at room temperature. When warm, the aroma and flavour of the ginger and green onion blooms. When it’s cold, it is fresh and bright.
Enjoy as a meal on a hot summer day, take it to picnics, pack into lunchboxes. Make some for today and keep leftovers for tomorrow, knowing you can enjoy them cold or reheat them. Hope you love them! – N x ❤️
PS Also! Because of the reasons outlined above, I see this as a terrific side dish for Asian spreads, especially gatherings because one batch of this recipe is enough to be a side for 8 to 10 people and it can be made ahead. Switch the chicken for cucumber to make it a veg-starch side. I’ve popped directions in the recipe card notes.
Watch how to make it
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Green Ginger Rice Noodles
Ingredients
- 350g / 3 cups shredded cooked chicken (I use my foolproof poached chicken)
- 250g / 8oz rice noodles , thin flat ones, prepared per packet, rinsed under cold tap water – I use Changs Pad Thai style (Note 1)
Ginger shallot sauce (Note 3)
- 4 cups (lightly packed) green onion , cut into ~1.25cm / 1/2" pieces (5 – 6 BIG stems!)
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped ginger , ~ 4mm / 1/6" pieces
- 2 garlic cloves , roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce , or all-purpose soy sauce (not dark soy sauce – Note 2)
- 1 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt, +50% for flakes)
- 1/4 tsp white pepper , or black
- 1/3 cup grapeseed oil , or other neutral flavoured oil (vegetable, canola etc)
For serving:
- Sriracha – use as much as you dare!
- 1/4 cup crispy shallots (store bought)
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE:
- Blitz (pulsing) 1/4 of the green onion with ginger, garlic, vinegar and water until ginger is pureed. Then blitz in remaining green onion and soy until pesto-like. Stir in oil and salt, set aside 10 minutes. Toss with noodles and chicken, serve with crispy shallots and sriracha!
FULL RECIPE:
Ginger shallot sauce first:
- Blitz – Put 1/4 of the green onions in a tall jug (or deep bowl), top with the ginger, garlic, vinegar and water. Blitz with a stick blender until the ginger and garlic is pureed (~ 15 seconds). Add the remaining green onions and soy sauce. Blitz until all the green onion is finely chopped but don't let it become green smoothie, it should be a pesto-like consistency. Asian pesto! 🙂 (Note 4 if you don't have a stick blender)
- Stir and set aside – Stir in the oil, salt and pepper. Then set aside for 10 minutes to let the flavours meld while you rehydrate the noodles.
Toss and eat!
- Toss the noodles with the Green Ginger Sauce first. Toss well so it coats the noodles nicely. Then add the chicken, toss well again. (If you add chicken first, too much sauce clings to it). Loosen with a touch of water if needed.
- Warm or cold serving – If serving the noodles cold, set aside for 15 minutes+ to let the noodles cool. The flavours will continue to develop. If serving warm, serve straight away.
- Serve – Divide between bowls, drizzled with sriracha, sprinkle with crispy shallots, eat!
Recipe Notes:
- Shallots – another name in Australia (in the US, shallots = the mini onions which we call eschalots in Australia!)
- Scallions – US name
- Spring onions – Common name in the UK
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
I made this 3 times in 24 hours leading up to this post. There were leftovers a plenty! Here’s Mr Dozer accompanying me, taking leftovers to a neighbour. Household full of hungry teenagers. Excellent human compost! 🤣
I bet the neighbors always welcome a visit from Dozer. Well, you too, Nagi. LOL Thank you for sharing.
This is also good with tofu!
I actually made this almost 100% to your recipe last week! Except I always make the sauce with hot oil. Going to try your cold oil (and stick blender tip) very soon as I have chicken that needs cooking. I’ll never say my Hainanese chicken is publishable, but really, who cares! The sauce is the star!
I agree that any noodle will work. I personally use rice, potato starch, and even mung bean noodles. A little splash of toasted sesame oil is divine. One of my most favorite (and easy) recipes!
Hi Dozer 🥰
Hi Annette, I love the way how you adapt recipes to your own taste! 🙂
Dozer, you sure are a handsome guy! Love you!!!
In Canada we call them green onions.
Yes in the US they are scallions.
We call them green onions in the USA. At least we do along the east coast.
Grew up in US and I’ve always known them as green onions, but seen them in stores as scallions or spring onions if the bulb is larger.
Gonna make these tonight! As for cold and hot foods …. Cold fried chicken is great, specifically drumsticks. Uhhh, what else? Cold sliced rare steak, dragged with your hand through some mayo and eaten like French fries. Looking back, I guess my family growing up had turned fridge diving into an art form!
Hello again from Pensacola , Florida. I walked my Aunt’s Dalmations on the Sand Spit., Newport. Just letting you know I follow you and Dozer in the US. I’m an Aussie Girl.
Would you use prawns instead of chicken?
I would! 😋
Hi Spike, cooked prawns would definitely work here too. Great idea 🙂
ABSOLUTELY! I’m going to add that to the suggestions list! – N x
This was splendid. Will be making many times. Seriously most delicious. Love the photos of you and Sir Dozer. He is gorgeous. Glad he is ok. Hugs for him. Awsome lucky teenagers too 🙂
Thanks Deb for giving this a go already! Happy it becomes one of your regular 🙂
WOW! You made it already?? You’re the first in the world!! I feel like we need a badge of honour for the first people to try new recipes!! Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed this Deb! – N x
Oh thank you! Celiac here and wile winters are fine for work lunches.. I struggle in summer.. only so many salads or things on crispbread I can deal with. This will absolutely perk things up. On the menu for next week!!
Hope you get a chance to try it Amanda!! – N x
Wow! Just the look of this makes me say ‘Yes, please’ bolded and underlined! I could eat a big bowl of this without any meat whatsoever – look at the wonderful healthy greenery bathing the noodles. It has been around 30C here at lunchtime, so cold would be fine. Now I love Hainanese chicken (actually not that easy to get perfect!) and that would be a lovely match – but, as far as I am concerned, not really needed! Glad to see Dozer up and about on his feet and in the sun . . . clap, clap for all . . .
I love that you know Hainanese Chicken is one of those “seems easy but not so easy to make a great one” recipe!! It’s so true, and that’s why I haven’t shared the recipe yet 🙂 Not yet happy!
Mr Dozer is having a good day today. Though, very hot here so his breathing is a bit laboured! Was it hot down there too Eha?? – N x
No, about 30C tops, which is fine by me . . . I am not laying bricks or digging roads 🙂 ! Loved your guy facing the health-giving sun and looking reasonably comfortable – good for him. Keep him being interested and trying. Like the look of your street – the width and the old trees – relaxing . . . blessings . . .
This looks just the thing for tonight, as I have two chicken thighs left over from JB’s lovely chicken chasseur.
My question is – how does it become a warm dish? If I cook the noodles, rinse them under cold water, then add cold green ginger sauce and cold chicken, will the noodles retain any heat?
Hi Rainbeaux! If you just rinse briefly they are still warm when you start tossing and the noodles should still be warm once you finish. But if it needs a little help, just pop it in the microwave! That’s how I reheat leftovers 🙂 – N xx
Mmmmm…….. I’ve been making (not quite the same but …..) this ginger shallot sauce for the longest time. It’s delicious.
However I feel like this is not a recipe to those who know. Yeah sure – it’s yummy & a perhaps a great cheats eat.
Instead of plopping things together – how about the actual Hainanese chicken recipe itself. I used to eat as child but despite many attempts, it’s not easy to get that gelatinous chicken skin. Please!!
I will share it soon!! I’ll be honest, I’ve never been fully happy with previous attempts, not even my MOTHER’s recipe (gasp shock horror!). It’s one of those recipes I just need to buckle down and focus on to get right 🙂 – N x
Ohhhh Nagi!
This noodle dish looks and sounds delicious! It is almost midnight here and I am.fighting the urge to make this right now!😋
It is definitely on the menu tomorrow. I’m heading right now to the freezer to leave some chicken out in the fridge to thaw, and I have everything else!
Thank you for creating and sharing another wonderful experience to try!
Wee Dozer looks very happy and your neighbours are very fortunate to have you so close!
Please continue to look after yourself, and of course, belly rubs for “The Boy” and Hugs to you both!
“Cheers” from The Canadian Prairies!
I love that you’re looking at food at midnight. I do that too 😂 Hope you get a chance to try this Alex! – N x
I have been following you since 2012 – love your work and wish I lived in your street – Dozer makes me smile.
Thank you Kaye! He makes me smile too 🙂 – N x
How are you today Mr. Dozer?😊👍
Thanks Nagi, I think I will serve warm because cold heree😅🌨 Oh by the way I always remember and make me laugh to read what’s on your old recipe video ” Created, cooked, photographed, filmed, edited and (mostly) eaten by Nagi Maehashi”!!
He he!! yes, I remember when I used to add that to my videos!! Mr Dozer is good today, ferocious appetite, slept well, moving pretty well!! Thanks for asking Nind! – N xx
💖🤗
Nagi,
I have tried some of your recipes and they are absolutely delish. I’m moving to Thailand next week, and I’ll be cooking more of your recipes. And if the wife there doesn’t like it, I’ll eat it myself 🙂
Good luck with the move! Hope it goes smoothly John! – N x
Thank you for your amazing recipes. Your eye for detail and ability to express just how to do stuff is really brilliant. Nagi your enthusiasm is fantastic. Thank you xx
Thanks for the lovely message Robyn! – N x
This looks divine! What if we don’t have a stick blender tho? 🥲
Sharpen your knife! 🙂 Just finely mince the green onion with a knife, then grate the ginger and garlic with a microplane! – N x