Spring Noodle Stir Fry with Lemon Sesame Sauce

Here's a saucy noodle stir-fry that's filled with crunchy veggies, chewy rice noodles, and tender chunks of chicken in a tangy-sweet lemon sesame sauce. Try our delicious mix of spring vegetables, or use what you have on hand, for a delicious lighter-tasting weeknight meal that's ready in under 30 minutes!

If you love noodles as much as we do, also try our creamy coconut peanut noodles, soy ginger noodles, or ramen noodle salad.

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This noodle stir-fry puts a tasty spin on traditional stir-fry with its tangy-sweet lemon sesame sauce. It makes a light-tasting but satisfying meal that's perfect for those nights when you don't have a lot of time but want something healthy and delicious.

We love stir-frying because it's a wonderful way to incorporate crisp, seasonal vegetables and experiment with some new ingredients, too. This spring recipe is loaded with our favorite springtime vegetables like asparagus, broccolini, carrot, and radishes, but you can easily make this noodle stir-fry year-round. Use what's in your fridge or try a new vegetable you may not have tried before. You can easily make this vegetarian – omit the chicken and sub for an equal amount of cubed tofu. Pack the leftovers for a nutritious make-ahead lunch.

Ingredients you'll need for the lemon sesame sauce

We love the sweet-tart combination of lemon and honey in this sauce. It's really easy to make with just a few pantry ingredients:

• Cornstarch – thickens up the sauce.
• Chicken stock – adds flavor.
• Lemon juice – this is the star ingredient, adding a fresh, bright, tart flavor.
• Honey – adds a warm sweetness.
• Sesame oil – adds a nutty, savory sesame flavor.
• Soy sauce – adds depth and saltiness.

What you'll need to make this noodle stir-fry recipe

Choose your vegetables and protein and the rest comes together using just a few simple ingredients:

• Rice noodles – any variety can work but we love the rice vermicelli (shown in the pictures).
• Cooking oil – a neutral-tasting cooking oil like olive or avocado will work well.
• Vegetables – we love a mixture of fresh, colorful, seasonal vegetables.
• Ginger + garlic – add lots of flavor and a bit of kick.
• Chicken – tender white chicken breasts cut into chunks.
• Cornstarch – to coat the chicken and make it crispy.
• Sesame seeds – add a little nutty crunch and visual pop!

How to make spring noodle stir-fry with lemon sesame sauce

Our best go-to recipes are quick and easy to make, healthy, and flavorful; just like this one! Most of the work is in the chopping and it comes together in just a few easy steps:

1. Cook the noodles. Boil a large pot of water, take it off the heat, let the rice noodles sit in the hot water for 1 minute, then rinse them under cold water.
2. While the water is heating, chop the vegetables and make the sauce.
3. Heat a little oil in a wok then quickly cook the vegetables for a couple of minutes. Put the garlic and ginger into the pan for a minute then take the vegetables out of the wok.
4. Toss chicken in some cornstarch then sear it in the wok until golden. Once it's deliciously crispy, add the noodles, vegetables, and sauce to the pan and gently toss the noodles until the sauce thickens.

The full recipe instructions are in the recipe card below.

Spring Noodle Stir-Fry: Frequently Asked Questions

Variations to try

This noodle stir-fry recipe is so versatile and easy to make vegetarian or gluten-free. Here are some interesting ways to customize it or mix things up:

Switch up the protein – try using thinly sliced pork instead of chicken. Pork makes great stir-fry meat because it cooks quickly. You can see it in our pork chop stir-fry!

Make it vegetarian – substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth and use cubes of firm tofu instead of chicken. You can cook the tofu in the same way by coating them in cornstarch before browning them in the pan.

Make it gluten-free – use a gluten-free soy sauce or tamari in place of regular soy sauce to make it completely gluten-free!

Try different noodles – the noodles in the pictures are rice vermicelli which are very thin, snow-white noodles with a delicate appearance and texture. They are excellent in this recipe but you could also use other varieties of rice noodles like rice sticks or even buckwheat soba noodles, but you will need to adjust the cooking time. Make sure they are slightly underdone because they'll finish cooking in the sauce at the end.

Mix up the vegetables – you can use a mix of any quick-cooking vegetables like bell peppers. edamame, bean sprouts, zucchini, mushrooms, red onion, pineapple, green beans, snow peas, bok choy, or eggplant. While we love the flavor of fresh vegetables in this dish, canned ones add a nice texture too, like bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, or baby corn.

How to serve this spring stir fry with lemon sesame sauce

This meal has all the components (fresh vegetables, noodles, protein) so it's great on its own, but would also pair well with hoisin meatballs and sautéed bok choy with ginger and garlic.

Serving a larger group? Omit the chicken to make it a vegetarian stir-fry and serve it alongside slow-baked Asian salmon with sweet and spicy Asian eggplant and a side of favorite coconut rice.

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