How to Cook Noodles: 6 Ways

Noodles are an essential part of many different Asian dishes. There are also various ways to cook them. Whether you are cooking them to make a Pad Thai dish or you just want to enjoy a bowl of noodle soup, it is important to do it right so you can get the best texture and taste.

5-Minute Crafts made this instruction guide so you can learn how to prepare your noodles in the right way.

1. Rice noodles

This type of noodle can be used for the Pad Thai dish. Before stir-frying, follow these steps:

1. Put the noodles in a tray and pour room-temperature water on them.
2. Leave them to soak for 30 minutes.
3. The noodles should now be soft — try wrapping them on your finger to check.
4. Put them in the boiling water and cook until they are al dente. This will reduce the cooking time and also make the noodles less sticky.

2. Glass noodles

It’s not recommended to boil these noodles as they are very delicate and will turn out mushy. Instead, do this:

1. Put them in a bowl.
2. Add warm water (not boiling) to the bowl.
3. Wait for 10 minutes.
4. When they get more transparent and soft, you can use them in a dish. They are also great for stir-frying or in a salad.

3. Thin rice noodles

This thinner version of rice noodles goes nicely in different Vietnamese and Thai salad dishes:

1. Place them in a bowl.
2. Pour boiling water over the top.
3. Leave them to soak for 3-4 minutes.
4. To avoid overcooking, put them in the ice water or just rinse them under the tap water until they are cold.

4. Pre-cooked noodles

Since these noodles are already half-prepared you can put them directly into boiling water. Use tongs to shake them gently and separate them. Depending on what dish you are making, you can do the following:

• Pull them out of the water and add some sesame oil — don’t rinse them. This step is recommended if you are using them immediately (to stir-fry them for example) and you don’t want to leave them to cool down because they will firm up.
• If you don’t want to stir-fry them right away or you want to use them for a noodle soup later — put them in ice water or run them under the tap water. This will stop the cooking process.

5. Egg Noodles

These noodles have a bright yellow color from the egg yolks and they can be cooked in a variety of dishes. If they are cooked in the right way, their structure is more bouncy and firm. Here are the steps for cooking the egg noodles properly:

1. Bring the water to the boiling point.
2. Put the noodles in the water and cook them for 4 minutes.
3. After 4 minutes, turn the heat off and let the noodles sit for 2 minutes.
4. Drain them and run them under tap water to stop them from overcooking.

6. Instant noodles

Instant noodles are easy to prepare. They don’t need to be soaked, instead, you can just boil them in hot water (to which you previously added the soup base) for 1 around a minute (check the package for instructions).

Bonus: Pro tip

You can prepare your noodles or pasta for one-minute cooking. This method is effective because not only it will reduce the cooking time, it will prevent the noodles from getting that mushy texture. You’ll just need a zip lock bag and cold water:

1. Put the noodles or pasta in the zip lock or regular plastic bag.
2. Add cold water to it.
3. Let it soak for 90 minutes. Noodles will absorb the water and become flexible without getting a gummy texture.
4. Then, you can put them in boiling water and after a minute they will come out al dente.