These deceptively simple, yet devastatingly delicious garlic
noodles were invented in San
Francisco, at a restaurant called, Thanh Long, back in the 70’s. Usually served with roasted
Dungeness crab, the actual recipe is a very closely guarded family secret, but
after lots of investigation, and even more experimentation, I think this is
very close, at least for a non-MSG laced version.
Apparently,
one of their “secret” ingredients is something called, Maggi Seasoning Sauce,
which I decided not to use, since I’m not sure how easy it is for the average
person to find. Besides, I think my assortment of savory, umami-rich
substitutes did the job quite nicely, and everything in the ingredient list can
be found at any large grocery store.
The
most exotic thing here would be the oyster sauce, which is sort of a very
savory, slightly sweet, thick, soy sauce-like condiment. And yes, it does have oyster
extracts in it, in case that matters. If you can’t find it, just add a touch
more fish sauce, soy, and Worcestershire, as well as little brown sugar.
Most
garlic noodles actually call for sugar in the recipe, but I think that makes it
too sweet for my taste, since the oyster sauce is fairly sweet, as is all that sautéed
garlic. Regardless, whether you enjoy this with some roasted garlic crab, or as
is, I really do hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 2 small portions Garlic Noodles:
For the secret sauce:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoon fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
pinch of cayenne pepper
For the rest:
6 ounces dry egg noodles
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 cloves finely minced garlic
1/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
thinly sliced green onion to garnish
red chili flakes to taste
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