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Weeknight style Thai Black Pepper Chicken and Garlic Noodles. The super fast Thai chicken noodle bowl that looks like takeout, but tastes so much better…and it’s healthier too! Quick-cooking chicken tossed in a sweet, tangy, and spicy Thai style black pepper sauce with plenty of broccoli, cashews, and basil. Serve this chicken over saucy garlic butter rice noodles and top with extra lime juice. Every bite is saucy, sweet, spicy, and hinted with basil. It’s delicious and healthy. Major bonus? This comes together in no time at all (under 30 minutes). Perfect for busy weeknights when you’re looking for something a little more special, but still quick, healthy-ish, and DELICIOUS.
Making Monday night Thai inspired food a thing and so happy about it. I’ve been saying this for weeks, but all I’m craving right now is colorful food, anything fun, and anything different. Any kind of recipe that I haven’t made before. With life in quarantine being much the same every day, I’m thankful to have food as an outlet for spontaneity. Just something different to break up the days, you know?
So yeah, long story short, I’m switching up recipes these days. I’ve made things like a whipped coffee white Russian, Mexican taquitos, and Italian style ravioli. I even ventured towards Cuban with my skillet cheesy Cuban chicken and rice bake and creamy coconut lime mojitos.
Cooking has been the only thing keeping me sane. What’s helping you guys?
Anyway, today we’re stepping into some quick-cooking Thai cuisine, and it’s truly my favorite kind of food.
The inspiration.
I’ve had this dish in mind for a while now. My oldest brother Creighton is here and this week he pushed me to finally create the recipe. He’s been asking for some new quick-cooking Thai inspired chicken dishes, so I obviously had to deliver up something good.
Enter this under 30-minute Thai black pepper chicken. It’s not super traditional, but it was inspired by black pepper chicken. Which customarily, is a mix of chili peppers, garlic, ginger, rice vinegar, fish sauce, and plenty of black pepper. My take has all these flavors too…but also some additional ones as well.
It’s saucy, spicy, sweet, a touch salty, and just about as delicious as a quick-cooking Thai chicken dinner can get. I really can’t say enough good things about this recipe. It’s one of those dishes that will become a monthly staple.
Why? Well, it’s simple, it’s quick, it’s pretty healthy, and it’s a dinner that most everyone can really enjoy.
The process.
First up, toss the chicken with a little cornstarch, turmeric, and ginger. Tossing the chicken with cornstarch allows it to get extra crispy and caramelize while cooking.
Now make the sauce. It’s simply, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and plenty of chili flakes, plus black pepper.
Pan-fry the chicken in a little oil until it is crisp. Add plenty of broccoli, a handful of cashews. Then pour over the sauce and let it simmer down and thicken over the chicken and broccoli.
As the chicken is cooking, boil some rice noodles and toss them in a hot pan full of butter and garlic. Yes, noodles, butter, and garlic…but then add a touch of coconut milk for a little more sauce and additional creaminess. SO GOOD.
By the time the noodles have cooked, the chicken should be done as well. Now, put it all together…
Spoon the noodles plus the sauce into bowls, then add the chicken and broccoli. Finish each bowl off with a squeeze of fresh lime juice and fresh basil or cilantro.
Enjoy. Immediately.
Yes, this is that simple and that quick-cooking. Honestly, this will take you no more than thirty minutes to make and uses a good amount of pantry staples too!
Notes and substitutions…
For the broccoli, while I love it with this dish, you can really use whatever vegetable you have on hand. Bell peppers would be my top pick, then asparagus, but you could also use mushrooms, bok choy, carrots. Really, use whatever you’ve got.
Now, let’s talk about the noodles. I like to use vermicelli rice noodles, but you could use any variety of rice noodles or even angel hair pasta. The noodles are meant to be saucy, so once you toss them with the garlic butter sauce, make sure to serve right away.
And you guys…that’s it. Takes less than 30 minutes to make and it’s not only delicious but fun too. We might not be able to travel around the world right now, but at least we can create fun ethnic-inspired recipes at home any night of the week.
I’m all about that. So, Monday night Thai food?
Watch the How To Video:
Lastly, if you make this Thai black pepper chicken and garlic noodles, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Thai Black Pepper Chicken and Garlic Noodles
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 823 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons corn starch or flour
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1-2 teaspoons black pepper, using more or less to your taste
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 8 ounces rice noodles
- 2 medium shallots, sliced or chopped
- 2 small heads broccoli, chopped
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- zest and juice of 1 lime
- 1/2 cup fresh basil or cilantro, roughly chopped
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 3-4 cloves garlic finely chopped or grated
- 1/3 cup canned coconut milk
Instructions
- 1. In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken, cornstarch, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, and 1 tablespoon oil.2. In a glass jar, combine the honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, red pepper flakes, and 1/4 cup water. 3. Cook rice noodles according to packaged directions. 4. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and brown all over, until it becomes crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the shallots, broccoli, and cashews, cook another 2-3 minutes, until the broccoli is charring. Pour in the honey/soy sauce mix. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the sauce coats the chicken, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime zest, lime juice, and the basil.5. Meanwhile, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the butter, garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes, if desired. Cook until the garlic begins to caramelize and turn light golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, cooking 3-5 minutes, until warmed through. Remove from the heat and toss the noodles with the sauce. 6. To serve, divide the noodles among bowls and top with chicken. Serve with additional basil and limes. Enjoy!
I make this often for me and my family and it’s such a hit! I do less like for the kids and slightly lower on pepper. I have had this with peanuts or cashews, broccoli, carrots or no added veggies and it’s always just so good!! Thank you for a brilliant quick meal for us foodie moms!
Hey Chloe,
Fantastic! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for making it! Happy Friday:) xTieghan
Really good! We will make this again. Thank you for another great recipe! Husband added a bit of chili crunch and got his heat factor in!
Hey Robin,
I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! Happy Sunday! xTieghan
I like this but it’s a bit heavy on the lime. I would start with less lime and work your way up instead of adding it all at once. It also depends on the size of the lime. Overall great flavors. Just adjust as needed!
Hey Stacie,
Happy Friday! I am delighted that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xxTieghan
This was delicious!! Highly recommended. Will absolutely cook again.
Hey Liane,
I am so glad this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xxTieghan
This recipe is not something I would normally try to make but WOW am I glad I made it! It was unbelievable. So creamy with out feeling heavy. Spicy. Savory. Sweet. And bonus my husband LOVED it as well. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Hey Samantha,
Thanks a lot for giving this recipe a go, I am thrilled that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
Made this last night (with the 1 1/2 tsp pepper) and it was fantastic. To make it healthier I added the garlic to the chicken with the broccoli, then served it over plain rice noodles. I am sure that adding coconut milk to the noodles would make it even more delicious but it isn’t necessary; the sauce is already SO good.
Thank you from Toronto, Canada!
Hey Diana,
I am delighted that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
what’s a good substitute for turmeric? it seems to upset my stomach. thanks!
Hey Lisa,
You could use curry powder in place of the turmeric. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi
Love your recipes. Is there any way you could provide nurrition information. We have some health issues that require careful monitoring of sodium, protein, and carbs. It would be so helpful, but I imagine a lot of work for you. Just thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask. Cheers.
Hey Lora,
So sorry, at this time I am only able to provide an estimated calorie count:) xTieghan
This recipe is delicious. But! It’s not a “quick and easy” meal. I’m a really good cook and prep meals well. That said, even after the meal prep I found myself behind as it was all coming together.
Delicious recipe, but please fix your timenes.
Thanks for trying the recipe Ami! We all cook differently in the kitchen, this is the timing that I found to be most consistent:) xTieghan
I’ve made this one a million times and it is one of my absolute favorites! Even my picky toddler devours it. And the garlic noodles are so delicious that I crave them all the time.
Hey Megan,
I am so excited that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! ?Tieghan
This was so good! I especially liked the noodles but everything was yummy and so easy to make!
Hey Dave,
I am thrilled this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! ?xTieghan
Absolutely delicious. Incredible flavors. Making this again. And again and again and again…..
Hey Meg,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad that it was enjoyed! Have a great week:) xTieghan
This was SO good!! I love that this recipe had me trying and using ingredients I’ve never used before. It helps our family try new things! Even though I was completely inexperienced in the Thai food department, I just followed the recipe to a t, and this recipe came out perfectly! The flavors were amazing. This is the kind of thing that makes cooking exciting! I would definitely make this again!
Hey Kaitlin,
I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you so much for giving it a try! xTieghan
I’ve made this four times now—turns out soooo good every time! It’s also very flexible—sometimes I add more chicken, leave out the shallots if I don’t have them, swap in bell peppers for broccoli, etc. The garlic butter coconut noodles are delicious no matter which shape of rice noodle I’ve used. This is one of my top 3 HBH recipes for sure!
Hey Emily,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am delighted that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
Delicious every time!
Thanks so much Ali!! xTieghan