This Udon Noodle Soup is an easy, comforting, and nutritious noodle soup recipe made with thick udon noodles in a delicious umami broth. Enjoy this delicious soup with all of your favorite udon toppings and additions, including green onions, bok choy, snap peas, and poached egg.
Japanese Udon Noodle Soup
This delicious and impressive udon noodle soup is the easiest soup you may ever make. It is also one of the tastiest. Filled with tender bok choy, sugar snap peas, and pillowy poached eggs, the broth is simple, light, and so flavorful, with hints of star anise and cinnamon. The star of the soup, however, is the thick, chewy noodles (perfect for slurping).
What are Udon Noodles?
Udon, popular in Japanese cuisine, is a thick noodle made from wheat flour. Udon noodles may be served hot or cold, in soups, salads, or stir-frys. The simplest way to serve this Japanese noodle is as a hot soup, kake udon, with a mild broth called kakejiru made from soy sauce, mirin, and dashi.
Udon noodles are not gluten-free.
This recipe is not (at least to my knowledge) an accurate representation of “traditional” udon noodle soup. This is my own delicious made-up Asian-inspired soup anyone can make using simple ingredients.
How to Make Udon Noodle Soup
1. Simmer the star anise and cinnamon stick in the vegetable broth for about 10 minutes allowing the flavor from the spices to infuse with the broth. Uncover and remove the spices using a slotted spoon.
2. Meanwhile, bring a second pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, cook your udon noodles according to package instructions – do not overcook. Drain and rinse with cold water.
3. Stir the sugar, soy sauce, and fresh lime juice into the broth.
4. Add the green onions, sugar snap peas, and bok choy to the soup. Cook until the vegetables are tender, approximately 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and season with additional soy sauce or salt, to taste.
5. Divide the cooked noodles and soup between two bowls. Garnish with fresh cilantro, scallions, and red pepper flakes, if desired.
Alternatives to Udon Noodles
Easily make this recipe with ramen noodles, soba noodles, or even spaghetti noodles in place of udon. Remember to cook the noodles according to the package instructions.
Optional Additions and Toppings
This soup is wonderful with any of the following:
- Shiitake mushrooms
- Fish cakes
- Tempura
- Fried tofu
- Sesame oil
- Shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice)
Have you tried this 25-Minute Udon Noodle Soup Recipe?
Tell me about it in the comments below! I always love to hear your thoughts. And tag me #theforkedspoon on Instagram if you’ve made any of my recipes. I always love to see what you’re cooking in the kitchen.
RECIPE CARD
Udon Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 5 cups vegetable broth - or low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 whole star anise
- 1 whole cinnamon stick
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 2 servings udon noodles - 6.3 oz/180 g dry udon noodles; 1.1 lb/500 g frozen or parboiled udon noodles
- 3 green onions - chopped (plus more for serving)
- 10 oz. fresh sugar snap peas
- 6 oz. fresh bok choy - washed and chopped or left whole
- 2 large eggs - for poaching (optional)
- Fresh cilantro - chopped, for serving
- Crushed red chili flakes - for serving
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable (or chicken) broth to a low boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the star anise and cinnamon stick. Cover, and allow the broth and spices to simmer for approximately 10 minutes to infuse the flavors of the spices into the broth. Uncover and carefully remove the spices with a slotted spoon.
- Bring a separate pot of water to a boil. Cook the udon noodles according to the package directions. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cool water. This will help to remove some of the excess starch.
- Add the sugar, soy sauce, and fresh lime juice to the broth.
- Add the green onions, sugar snap peas, and bok choy to the soup. Mix well to combine. Return the soup to a simmer and continue to cook until the vegetables have softened (about 3-5 minutes).
- Remove from heat and season to taste. Add additional soy sauce or salt, if needed. Divide the udon noodles and soup between two bowls and garnish with fresh cilantro and red pepper flakes. Top with a poached egg or boiled egg, if desired.
Jessica’s Notes
- This soup is best enjoyed immediately as the noodles will dissolve within the broth over time. Freezing is not recommended.
Nutritional Information
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.)
This had some good flavors in it. Too limey for me though, I would start with 1 Tbsp (or even less) lime juice and add more to taste.
This is definitely not a traditional udon noodle soup. The broth is made with Dashi and a little soy sauce and mirin . Japanese cooking is very simple unlike Thai or Vietnamese dishes.
But this looks delicious !
I made this soup last night. It was very tasty. I added some raw bean sprouts and some sliced Rotisserie white chicken breast in the bowl before I added the broth. I enjoyed the flavor quite a bit. It’s a very easy and quick soup to make. The hardest part of the process was finding Udon Noodles in our area. I plan to make this again soon. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Iam new at this type of cooking most my cooking is from the south Asian cooking sounds more healthier so Iam going to give it a try thanks for all the respices
Honestly, this was so good for the amount of effort put in!
Is there really 4320 mg of sodium?
Hi Carrie,
Yes, mostly from the regular chicken stock and soy sauce. If you are looking for less salt, simply substitute with low sodium chicken/vegetable broth and low sodium soy sauce, and that will dramatically reduce the sodium content 🙂