Japanese udon noodles stir fried with vegetables and your choice of protein, Yaki Udon is definitely a keeper when comes to easy weeknight dinner! It’s a great meal to use up your leftover too.
One of the most popular recipe category on Just One Cookbook is quick and easy meals. Within this category, Yaki Udon (焼きうどん) has been one of readers’ favorite dishes.
Since this dish was originally published in the first month of my blog (in 2011), now looking back the picture doesn’t do the recipe justice! I also didn’t include step-by-step pictures or video tutorial back then. Now I’m happy to share this recipe again with helpful tips, updated pictures and new video!
Watch How To Make Yaki Udon (Stir Fried Udon Noodles) 焼きうどんの作り方
Delicious Japanese stir fried udon noodles with cabbage, onion, pork, shiitake mushrooms, flavored with mentsuyu and soy sauce.
What’s Yaki Udon?
Yaki Udon (焼きうどん) is stir fried udon noodles with meat and vegetables, very similar to another Japanese stir fried noodle dish called Yakisoba (焼きそば) as they uses almost same ingredients besides noodles. Here are the difference between Yaki udon and Yakisoba:
Yaki Udon: Yaki udon always uses udon noodles. Udon are thick and chewy white noodles made with wheat flour and water. Udon is very versatile and you can use it in a number of ways. In hot soup like Kitsune Udon and Nabeyaki Udon, or in cold dishes like Tanuki Udon, and lastly they taste great in stir fried dishes as well.
Yakisoba: Yakisoba uses chukamen, yellowish Chinese style noodles made with wheat flour and kansui (alkaline solution). These same noodles are used for Ramen, Yakisoba, Tsukemen (dipping noodles), etc.
Ingredients for Yaki Udon
The best part about this dish is that you can pretty much use any protein and vegetables from your refrigerator to make this dish. Of course you can totally make this a vegan/vegetarian dish as well.
For Yakisoba and Yaki Udon, pork is most often used in Japan. I usually like to use thinly sliced pork belly for more flavors. You can also use chicken or beef if that’s your preference. Don’t forget the seafood options as well; shrimp and squid are some of my favorite choices for yaki udon as well.
I LOVE using this particular frozen udon noodles because they are chewy and delicious. The texture is great for stir fried noodles. Most refrigerated udon noodles found in the Asian or American supermarkets break very easily, and taste a bit strange to me (there are plenty of good brands in Japan). I highly recommend to grab one (or two) of this particular package if you can find these frozen udon noodle packages. If you can’t find refrigerated noodles, the other option is dried udon noodles. These noodles are usually flat and the texture is less chewy, but the good news is that they won’t break into pieces like some of udon brands you find in refrigerated section.
Perfect Weeknight Meal
Yaki Udon is a quick and easy home cooking dish to make for your family or for yourself, with typical ingredients you probably already have in the fridge.
So here is my last tip before you go. Always have frozen or dried udon packages in your kitchen, then you can make this dish instead of getting takeout or eating out! My daughter absolutely loves udon so I always keep some in my freezer.
Don’t want to miss a recipe? Sign up for the FREE Just One Cookbook newsletter delivered to your inbox! And stay in touch on Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, and Instagram for all the latest updates. Thank you so much for reading, and till next time!
- 2 Udon noodles (I like frozen sanuki udon) (See Notes 1)
- ½ onion
- 2-3 cabbage leaves
- 1 carrot
- 2 shiitake mushrooms
- 2 green onions/scallions
- ½ lb sliced pork belly (½ lb = 227 g) (or your choice of meat, seafood and vegetables)
- 1 Tbsp neutral flavor oil (vegetable, canola, etc)
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 Tbsp mentsuyu (noodle soup base) (See Notes 2) (for homemade recipe, see Notes 3)
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 pkg katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) (1 pkg = about 3 Tbsp)
- 1 Tbsp pickled red ginger (beni shoga or kizami beni shoga) (optional)
Gather all the ingredients.
- If the udon noodles are frozen, boil them until loosen. Drain and rinse off the starch. Drain well and set aside.
- Slice onion and cut cabbage into 1” (2.5 cm) square pieces. Julienne the carrot (cut into 2” (5 cm matchsticks).
- Discard the tough shitake stems and slice the mushroom tops. Thinly slice the top 2” (5 cm) green part of scallions and set aside (for garnisih). Cut the rest of scallion into 2” (5 cm) pieces.
- Cut the pork belly slices into 1” (2.5 cm) pieces.
- In a frying pan, heat oil over medium high heat. Add the pork and cook until almost cooked through. Then add onion and cook until translucent and soft.
- Add cabbage and carrots and stir fry until coated with oil. Then add shiitake mushrooms and scallion. Stir fry until vegetables are lightly wilted.
- Add udon noodles and using tongs, combine well with all the ingredients.
- Add seasonings (Freshly ground black pepper, 3 Tbsp. Mentsuyu, and 1 tsp. soy sauce) and mix all together. Please adjust the amount of Mentsuyu based on the amount of the ingredients you have added.
- Serve on a plate and sprinkle bonito flakes and green onions on top. Garnish with red pickled ginger on the side if you like.
1: If you use refrigerated udon noodles, loosen them under running water. If you use dried udon noodles, boil them according to the package instructions.
2: Mentsuyu I use is 3-times concentrated. If you use “straight” Mentsuyu (= not concentrated), you might need to add more to achieve the same flavor.
3: Homemade Mentsuyu recipe: click here.
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in January, 2011.
This udon looks so wonderful – love pork belly…love it with udon!
Thanks Belinda! Me too, I love pork belly…making the food extra delicious!
Usually I fried udon with light soya sauce & mirin. My elder girl love it so much! I shall try your recipe the next time if she request to have it again! 😀
She’s the only one who eats udon besides me that’s why I seldom cook udon at home… 🙂
Hi Lyn! My 3-year old daughter is into Udon lately. She seems to enjoy the texture. My 5-year old son prefers Pho over any types of noodles. Mentsuyu is quite addicting. We usually use Mentsuyu for Somen and Soba. I hope you enjoy this recipe!
Hi Nami, actually it’s a bit difficult to get some of the sauces that you mentioned. They are either all in Japanese wordings or can’t find them at all 🙁
Hopefully I’m able to find this Mentsuyu that you use for your udon. 🙂
I know I get lost in Chinese condiments section since there are tons of bottles! 🙂 I hope my image of Mentsuyu in Pantry helps. That’s a major brand, so I’m hoping you can find. 🙂
I passed along your site to an American friend who’s living in Japan for the next year, and she just told me that she made this recipe with great results!
Thank you Dawn! I’m glad your friend enjoyed this Yaki Udon recipe. 🙂
HI Nami, I made this for dinner yesterday. I love this quick and easy recipe. It was delicious, I will definitely make this again!
Thank you Megan! I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
Hi! Ma’am Nami,
aside from yaki udon for lunch what is other accompaniment side dish for yaki udon to complete lunch meal? thanks and more power!
Enrique..
Hi Enrique!
How about miso soup and salad with Japanese dressing?
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/basic-tofu-miso-soup/
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/wafu-dressing-japanese-salad-dressing/
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/seaweed-salad-recipe/
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/sesame-dressing/
Hope that helps!
Can i use yakisoba sauce to make yakiudon?
Hi Melss! We’ve talked about this already, but for those who have same question, yes, we can use Yakisoba sauce for this recipe, just like yakisoba but using udon. 🙂
finally i did a good job for this recipe… unfortunately no pictures lol next time i will send u some pics thx for excellent recipe
Hi BB! I’m glad you made this dish and liked it. Thank you! I look forward to your picture next time. 🙂
I always wanted to know how to prepare Yaki Udo, because it’s one of my favorite dishes… and just like magic I found your webpage. I have to tell you that you recipe it’s just amaizing!!!! I love my Yaki Udo. Thanks you very much !!!
Hi Hadena! I’m glad to hear you enjoy eatieng Yaki Udon! It’s my daughter’s favorite dish as well. 🙂 I hope you enjoy cooking and eating at home! 🙂
Hi there Nami!
It’s my first time cooking Udon, I only have chicken meat and Oyster sauce. Do you think this will work? I’m scared to mess this up for my husband. =_= Thanks!
Hi Kathens! I appologize for my late response due to my travel. Yes, you can make yaki udon with chicken and oyster sauce (but I’d also add soy sauce and a little bit of sugar). It will probably taste more like Chinese noodles (it’s oyster sauce after all) but it’ll be delicious! Or you can use just soy sauce. You won’t mess it up. 🙂 When you season, make sure you add slowly, because when you put a lot of sauce, you can’t undo. 🙂 Good luck!
One of the many Japanese dishes that I have yet to try. I love how simple it looks to prepare.
One word…..yum!
Thank you Donna! 🙂
I’ll never turn down pork belly! Love the stuff. Bonus that it comes with udon noodles. 😉
I like noodles, and are quick to make, then I love it!!!
Udon with pork belly? Yes! That is a great combination and really flavorful. I love pork belly.
Is the print function working?
Same here–definite problem with the print function. Prints: Prep time, Cook time, Total Time, the subheadings-Ingredients, Instructions, and a wonderful picture—that’s it. No ingredients, no instructions.
Hi Asia! Yes, I’m aware of this print issue. I’m having with this print issue on some of my recipes and the developer is working to fix this problem. Meanwhile, please cop and paste the recipe to Word doc to print out. I’m sorry for the inconvenience. I’ll send update on this issue via my email newsletter as soon as it’s fixed. Thank you!
Hi Carol! I’m having a print problem on some of my recipes, and the developer for this recipe plugin is working on this issue. Please copy and paste the recipe to word to print out. I’m terribly sorry for the inconvenience.
I tried this today (just finished to be honest :P) and it was delicious!!! very, very good 🙂 Thank you for that recipe 🙂
Hi Besia! Thank you so much for trying this recipe already! I’m so happy to hear you liked it! Thank you for your kind feedback! 😀 xo
Scrumptious! My kind of dish.
Cheers,
Rosa
Udon or soba – we like ’em both! Thanks for showing us how to make an authentic yakiudon! And as always, for the facts and trivia 😉
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Gosh I got so hungry just reading the definitions of the noodles. The recipe looks so easy and I may just try it this week. You post great step by step photographs and it makes the dish so doable. Thanks and happy weekend, Nami!
You’re right – this is a great weeknight meal idea! I have to remember this because my son loves udon, ramen, and all kinds of noodles like we do! Need to get my hands on some bonito flakes!
Hi Nami, I’ve made this for my family so many times and we all love it! I use bacon that isn’t too fatty and it’s awesome! I’ve stopped making this because the Mentsuyu sauce I use has MSG and I find that it makes me jittery. If I were to use your recipe for homemade Mentsuyu would I need to add more to the dish? I wish our local Japan Foods store would carry Mentsuyu without MSG.
Hi Vanessa! Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m so glad to hear you and your family enjoy this dish! It’s hard to find mentsuyu without MSG, so you will need to make your own. You will most likely use the same amount of mentsuyu. Don’t forget to taste the flavor when you cook – when you have more ingredients you will need more seasonings (or vice versa). 🙂
I just adore Udon, I have said it a few times, love the combo for this recipe.
Yaki Udon is my daughter’s favorite way of eating her Udon. I like your seasoning sauce recipe. I am going to try soon. Thanks!
I wish you could send me a bowl of this for lunch today. Udon noodles are always a favorite in my house. 🙂
I totally look back at my old recipes and want to reshoot them all. Seriously they were terrible so I totally get that. This looks really delicious and comforting. I would love to try this.
Definitely a comfort meal to me, look at that delicious bowl of noodle
These look SOOOO good. I think my kids would love these noodles. (Probably not the pickled ginger on the side though!!)
I guess the Udon noodles I bought a couple of weeks ago were waiting for this recipe!
Thanks for the udon brand recommendation! I haven’t been happy with the texture of refrigerated noodles when I try to pan cook them. I’ll keep a lookout for this brand!
Great tips on how to choose the right type of udon! I often use the refrigerated ones, but they only stat a few days in the fridge. Didn’t know the frozen one has better texture, and definitely want to check out next time. Yaki udon is the super comforting dish I cook all the time. Love this recipe 🙂
I looove udon for its chewiness and thickness, but I’ve never tried frying it. What a fabulous idea! The bonito flakes make this dish look utterly irresistible! Thank you once more for inspiration! (Now I only need to make udon noodles. I have decided to stop buying them and try homemade ones).
Costco just brought back those fresh udon noodles so I grabbed a couple of bags. Can’t wait to make this awesome dish Nami!
I love knowing that frozen udon works so well in stir-fry. I buy them often (including one of the brands you showed) but always make soup noodles out of it. And we used to go to Mitsuwa in NJ for lunch and they had a great little Japanese coffee shop/restaurant that we’d eat at that had a great yaki udon. For ages, I never knew that was dried bonito flakes floating on top. I just knew it was delicious. I must make this for my family…they’ll love it.
Wegman’s sells their own Wegman’s Brand frozen Udon Noodles as well they have the perfect chewy texture and don’t break when cooking. 🙂
Hi Lily! So sorry, I didn’t realize your comment till now…. 🙁
Thank you so much for sharing your info!! So happy to hear it’s the chewy kind of udon! 🙂
Hi Namiko!
I tried this recipe over the weekend and it was amazing! At first I didn’t know what mentsuyu was but it actually made everything in this dish have so much flavour. Thank u for sharing this recipe with me. Have a great day! 🙂
Hi Matthew! So happy to hear you liked this recipe! Did you find the mentsuyu in a store, or you made it? It’s a very convenient condiment to keep in the fridge, and you can make noodles (hot/cold udon or soba) so easily! And yeas, with dashi in the mentsuyu, it tastes wonderful! 🙂
Just made this recipe for a quick lunch while my boyfriend and I are working from home. So delicious and easy!
EI used chicken thigh meat (super tasty) and substituted memmi sauce for the mentsuyu since I already had it in my pantry. We ate it with a touch of sesame oil and kimchi. Perfect!!
Thank you so much for the recipe. 🙂
Hi Esther! Yay! So happy to hear you two enjoyed this dish! Memmi is Mentsuyu, just a different name for that brand, so you’re good! 🙂 I love the sesame oil + kimchi addition! 😉 Thank you for your kind feedback, Esther!
I have tried this recipe, and cooked with salmon~^^
It’s nom nom nom nom~ >U<
Thank you for your sharing~ 🙂
Hi Olivia! That sounds delicious!!!! I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Absolutely fantastic! Thank you for the wonderful recipe
Hi Jennifer! I’m glad you liked the recipe! 🙂
Yes, fair, but can it truly be called yakiudon without the kewpie mayo on top…?
Hi Niconikoru! Did you try your Yaki Udon in Osaka? Mayo and sauce sounds like very Osaka thing. 😉
Most Yaki Udon doesn’t have mayo on top. I’ve never encounter one actually. Here’s how typical Yaki Udon looks.
https://www.google.com/search?q=%E7%84%BC%E3%81%86%E3%81%A9%E3%82%93&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiT8oOSlsDPAhVP0GMKHRA-DHwQ_AUICCgB&biw=1440&bih=715
I have come back years later, shook. It’s true, most places don’t use mayo! And I was in Kyoto… why did people keep giving me it with mayo! Is it because we were camping? Maybe it’s because our friend worked at a takoyaki stand and really loaded them up?
That aside, I remember this being a pretty good recipe. Sure enough, it is!
Hi Niconikoru! Haha thanks for coming back with your feedback. Honestly, if your friend is from Osaka, probably he’s used to mayo and so-su combination and he put mayo on everything… we have a word for people who love mayonnaise – マヨラー (mayo-ler). 🙂
Hi, just about to cook this but I have dry udon and wondering how much to use? I can’t find how many grams are in a package of the sanuki udon you have used. Thanks!
Hi Amanda! I apologize for my late response. This recipe is for 2-3 serving. I am not sure how your dry udon noodles are packaged but 100 grams (3.5 oz) are good amount. 🙂
I made this tonight super yummy!
So happy to hear that! Thank you for your kind feedkback! 🙂
That’s my favorite brand of udon too! Totally agree! The other frozen udons I found in Asian or American markets break easily and doesn’t taste as good. I love how this one is soft outside and chewy inside. I used it for soup udon before, but never tried stir fried. I will try to make yakiudon tonight, thanks for this recipe!!????
Hi Kam! Oh cool we agree on the same brand! In Japan, we have way more choices, but I’m just glad that we have at least one brand that we can rely on! Even stir fry, these udon noodles don’t break. Hope you enjoy this recipe!
Hi Nami san,
Just tried out this recipe tonight with homemade mentsuyu sauce. It was absolutely wonderful. We love the texture of stir-fried udon. I wonder why we have not tried this earlier. This is definitely a new family’s favourite. Will try it with yakisoba sauce as well. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Natcha! So happy to hear that. I think Yaki Udon is not as popular outside of Japan. I think some “refrigerated” udon noodles that you can get in grocery stores outside of Japan is horrible and they break into bits and pieces. This recipe works really well with those frozen Sanuki udon type but not other kinds… Hope you enjoy Yakisoba recipe too! 🙂
If I wanted to make curry yaki udon, can I just add curry powder, or would I need to adjust any of the seasonings?
Thanks for all your recipes. I love the site!
Hi Rachel! Yeah, sprinkle curry powder to your liking, you can add a bit of soy sauce if you like. 🙂 Thank you for reading my blog and trying out my recipes!
I cook Yaki Udon but I used shrimp. It’s delicious and healthy. Thank u❤️❤️❤️
That sounds wonderful! Thank you for your kind feedback, Genalene!
Thank you for a wonderful recipe! For dried udon, would you rinse after boiling?
Hi Robin! No, you don’t have to rinse/wash it, but make sure to drain well so your Yaki Udon doesn’t become soggy. 🙂
Hello Nami,
I saw in your picture that you used 2 pieces of Udon noodles. May I know what is the weight of 1 piece? The ones I managed to find at my local supermarkets are individually packed at 200 g each.
Just want to clarify so that I don’t end up with cooking too much yaki udon… I don’t think it can be kept overnight in the fridge, can it?
Thanks!
Hi Bernice! Each udon is 8.8 oz (250g). Hope you enjoy the recipe! Leftover can be kept in the fridge – you have to reheat it in the pan or microwave and gently toss before enjoying again. 🙂
This recipe is a lifesaver. I have everything to make this recipe. Thank you
Hi Karrie! I hope you enjoy(ed) the recipe! 🙂
We enjoyed it! We love all of your recipes that we try. They are very dependable.
Hi Karrie! So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe (and others!). Thank you very much for your kind feedback! 🙂
Hi Nami,
This will sound kind of random but how big was that plate you used in the photo for the recipe? I’m just curious.
Hi there! I just measured it. It’s 9 inches (22.5 cm) in diameter. 🙂
Thank you Nami! It gives me an idea of how much to expect the recipe will make. 😀
Oh, I see! Please note that for my food photography purpose, I have to consider how the dish will look on a plate and it’s sometimes not a realistic plating. This plate, for example, is bigger than how I would serve for one person, but I make more than one person in this recipe. I have to pick the right color, pattern, material, and size of the plate for how I want to present this dish. So unlike a restaurant menu picture, this is not a real-life portion. Hope that helps!
Love all your japanese recipes,
Tried most of them, they are good.
Thanks.
Hi Mel! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! So happy to hear you enjoy my recipes!
Absolutely delicious! I doubled the recipe, and half the recipe of the Homemade Mentsuyu was plenty to add a little more in cooking, then adding a few teaspoons more on the leftovers to refresh the flavor (since most of it gets sucked into the noodles as it sits). Will be making this time and time again, I’m sure!
Hello Kate! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe, and you made homemade Mentsuyu too! Thank you for trying this recipe and your kind feedback. 🙂
Hi Nami, how would you adjust this recipe to go with shrimp? Thanks very much, I love your recipes. Your blog is my go-to for Japanese food at home and it never disappoints!
Hi May! Thank you so much for your kind words! Shrimp – you don’t want to overcook it (texture will change). So at step 6, you cook shrimp until it changes its color (pink/red). Then remove from the pan and put the cooked shrimp on a plate. You can continue to cook the veggies, then at the end of step 7, add the shrimp back in. Then continue to cook as the recipe said. Hope this helps!
I did not have any mentsuyu so I mixed one part fish sauce and one part rice vinegar to two parts soy sauce – umami goodness! It really tasted like I’ve had it in Japanese restaurants here in the US. I doubled the recipe and quadrupled the vegetables. AMAZING!
Hi Maki! Wonderful! Thank you so much for trying this recipe! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed it. 🙂
If using homemade udon do I need to boil udon for shorter period of time before using it for this recipe?
Hi Diana! It should be cooked al-dente – almost done stage. We need to stir fry udon a little bit as we have to season and mix with other ingredients. We won’t be “cooking” the udon in the yaki udon process. The remaining cooking process will keep it warm but not enough heat to cook the raw udon. So make sure to almost cook, but don’t overcook the udon before adding to the stir fry process. 🙂