This might become your new favorite! Sichuan hot and sour noodles are quick to make and packed with irresistible flavors—a perfect dish for anyone who loves a spicy, tangy kick.
Pin this now to find it later!
Pin ItTable of Contents
About the dish
Today, I’m adding another recipe to my Sichuan food repertoire: Suān Là Miàn (酸辣面), or hot and sour noodles. This simple dish is commonly found in humble breakfast and lunch eateries. As the name suggests, the spicy and tangy flavors shine through the strands of noodles, delivering an exciting and satisfying kick to the palate.
It’s a close cousin of another Sichuan classic: Suān Là Fěn (酸辣粉), or hot and sour glass noodles. The main difference lies in the noodles themselves—today’s recipe uses regular wheat flour noodles, while the other features slippery, translucent noodles made from sweet potato starch. What they both share is a bold, complex flavor profile that’s hard to resist.
If you’re a fan of Dan Dan Noodles or Chongqing Noodles, this recipe should be next on your list—especially when you’re short on time but craving bold flavors.
Why this recipe
- A short and basic ingredient list
- Just a few minutes of prep and cooking
- Easily customizable with various toppings
Suan La Fen
Try this variation using glass noodles
Ingredients and substitutes
Here is what you need to make hot and sour noodles:
- Dried or fresh noodles, preferably the thin ones
- Leafy greens, such as bok choy, spinach
- Garlic and scallions
- Chili flakes, or ground dried chili
- Ground Sichuan pepper, or ground white pepper
- Black rice vinegar, e.g., Chinkiang (Zhenjiang) vinegar/镇江香醋
- Light soy sauce
- Sesame seeds and toasted peanuts
- Eggs
🌟 NOTE: The sour element of this dish comes from black rice vinegar, which has a uniquely complex aroma in addition to its strong tangy taste. Since it’s the key seasoning in this dish, I don’t recommend replacing it with other types of vinegar. You can find it in all Chinese supermarkets and on major online shopping platforms. To learn more about it, check out my post on 10 Must-Have Chinese Condiments.
Cooking procedure
The following steps are for preparing a single bowl of hot and sour noodles. To make multiple servings, simply multiply the ingredients and follow the same instructions.
Step 1: Prepare the seasoning
In a serving bowl, add chili flakes, ground Sichuan pepper, sesame seeds, and minced garlic. Heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil until it’s smoking hot, then pour most of it over the spices (reserving a little for the next step). This process helps fully release the aroma of the ingredients.
Once the sizzling subsides, stir in black rice vinegar, light soy sauce, and a pinch of sugar.
Step 2: Fry the egg
Use the reserved oil to fry an egg. Cook just one side, as shown in the image above, or both sides if you prefer the yolk fully cooked.
Step 3: Cook the noodles
In a large saucepan or a wok, bring water to a rolling boil. Add the noodles and cook over medium heat. Just before they’re fully done, add the leafy greens of your choice for a quick blanch.
Step 4: Assemble the dish
Spoon some of the noodle cooking water into the bowl to dilute the seasonings and create a broth.
Then, transfer the noodles and greens to the serving bowl. Top with the fried egg, finely chopped scallions, and crushed toasted peanuts.
Variations
If you’re a longtime fan of my blog, you’ve probably already made my Chili Oil recipe—it’s the No. 1 kitchen staple I recommend everyone try. If so, you can use it directly for this recipe.
Here’s how to adapt it: Use half the amount of hot oil to sizzle minced garlic and Sichuan pepper, then add a tablespoon of homemade chili oil (or a good store-bought equivalent).
To make this dish more substantial, you can add other protein toppings such as poached chicken, pan-fried shrimp, or slices of Char Siu pork.
For a vegan option, replace the fried egg with sliced smoked tofu, a few spoonfuls of silken tofu, or a handful of blanched edamame beans.
More noodle dishes
Looking for more mouthwatering noodle recipes? Try these ones:
📋 Recipe card
Love this recipe? Please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating and a comment. Thank you!
Hot and Sour Noodle Soup (酸辣面)
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon chili flakes, or ground dried chili
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
- ⅛ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper, or ground white pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1½ tablespoon neutral cooking oil
- 2 tablespoon black rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 pinch sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 portion noodles, fresh or dried, see note
- 1 handful leafy greens, e.g. bok choy, spinach
- ½ stalk scallions, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts, crushed
Instructions
- To start, place chili flakes, ground Sichuan pepper, sesame seeds, and minced garlic in a serving bowl. Heat the cooking oil until it’s very hot, then pour most of it over the mixture, leaving the rest in the wok. Once the sizzling subsides, stir in black rice vinegar, light soy sauce, and sugar.
- Using the leftover oil, fry an egg. You can leave the yolk runny by cooking just one side, or flip it if you prefer it well done.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles over medium heat. Just before they’re fully cooked, add a handful of leafy greens to blanch briefly.
- Ladle about 1¼ cup (300ml) of the noodle boiling water to the prepared bowl. Then add the drained noodles and greens. Top everything with the fried egg, a sprinkle of chopped scallions, and roasted peanuts.
Notes
Your Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe 🙂
My pleasure to share. Glad you enjoyed it, Kath!
simply delicious and very easy to prepare! i started by setting the pasta water to boil and roasting the peanuts, then prepared the bowl and fried the egg while the noodles were cooking.
That sounds like a super efficient workflow. Glad you enjoyed the dish!