Your Guide To 12 Different

Types Of Noodle

Used In Asian Cuisine

The Main Types of Noodles Used in Asian Cooking

Wheat-growing areas of northern China and Japan produced udon, ramen, and hand-cut wheat noodles, while the rice-abundant Southeast Asia and southern China used rice flour for noodles like those used in Pad Thai and Vietnamese pho. Korea's noodle culture split further, built around wheat, buckwheat, and sweet potato starch, depending on whether a dish was served hot, cold, or at room temperature.

1. Soba Noodles

These are thin, Japanese noodles made from buckwheat flour, sometimes mixed with wheat flour to give the noodles more structure. Pure buckwheat soba noodle recipes are called ju-wari soba, while 80% buckwheat blends are hachi-wari soba, and quality soba should contain at least 70-80% buckwheat. There’s also a soba noodle recipe called cha soba, which is flavoured with green tea. Soba noodles are meant to be slurped, and hence they are served chilled with a dipping sauce in summer or hot in broth in winter. You will find them appearing on Japanese New Year's Eve as toshikoshi soba, eaten for good fortune.

2. Udon Noodles

If you like your noodles thick and chewy, then these Japanese wheat noodles are something you might like. With barely any flavour, udon noodles soak up the broth and sauce equally well. Despite being associated with Japan, udon's roots trace back to 8th-century China. Different udon noodle recipes feature whatever variety is available, like Sanuki udon, Inaniwa udon, and Kishimen. Udon noodles are served hot in dashi broth, cold with dipping sauce, stir-fried as yaki udon, or used in Japanese curries.

3. Ramen Noodles

One of the most common noodle recipes is the ramen noodle recipe that features thin, springy Japanese wheat noodles made with alkaline ingredients that give them their signature yellow tint and bounce. Ramen noodles trace back to Chinese-style wheat noodles called lamian, though they are not the same. Ramen noodles are meant for hot broths, served as shio (salt), shoyu (soy sauce), miso (fermented soybean paste), or tonkotsu (pork bone broth), though ‘dry ramen’ tossed in a spicy sauce is also common.

4. Shirataki Noodles

Marketed as ‘diet noodles’ by many food influencers because of their low calorie count, shirataki noodles recipes feature a gelatinous noodle made from the corm of the konjac plant. The noodles are roughly 97% water and 3% glucomannan fibre, a soluble fibre that swells in the stomach. Because of this, it is also called ‘miracle’ noodles, and, given its origin, it is often referred to as konjac noodles. The noodles are first rinsed to remove their natural odour, then boiled for a bit, and dry-roasted, then tossed into low-carb stir-fries or broths. 

5. Rice Noodles (Rice Sticks)

Made simply from rice flour and water, these noodles are gluten-free and form the backbone of Southeast Asian noodle cooking. They go by sen lek in Thailand, banh pho in Vietnam and are loosely grouped under the Cantonese term ‘fun’ or ‘fen’. The rice sticks are flat, not round like tteobboki ones, and 2- 3 mm wide. They go into the classic Pad Thai noodles recipe, soaking up the dish's tamarind-fish sauce mix. There’s also a thicker cousin of the rice stick, which is cut into broad ribbons rather than thin strands. These are called banh pho (pho noodles), sen yai, and chow fun. The thicker kind is central to Vietnamese pho and Thai pad see ew.

6. Tteokbokki Rice Cakes

This one deserves another category of its own because, technically, it is a rice cake rather than a noodle; garae-tteok (the rice cake itself) is cooked and eaten noodle-style in broth-based dishes and is frequently searched alongside noodles. It's a cylindrical, chewy rice cake made from non-glutinous rice (or rice flour blends) and associated with Korea, and also goes by the name of topokki. The rice cakes are simmered in a gochujang-based sauce to produce the popular street food, or in a lighter soy-based sauce for the older, non-spicy gungjung-tteokbokki. The latter was served at the Joseon royal court. A tteokbokki recipe today can also swap or add ramen noodles or glass noodles alongside the rice cakes.

7. Glass Noodles

These noodles are translucent, made from a starch slurry, with mung bean starch in China (fensi) and the Philippines (sotanghon), and sweet potato starch in Korea and Japan (harusame). This is why the noodles are also called bean thread noodles and turn glassy and chewy once cooked. They also have a fascinating history and trace their roots back to China, believed to have been first made over 1000 years ago. They are popular for their versatility and long shelf life. These noodles are also natural in flavour, so they take on the flavour of the noodle dish they are added to. The glass noodles are soaked in hot water to soften them and then added to soups like China's hot and sour glass noodle soup or into the Korean stir-fried japchae.

8. Chowmein Noodles

Stir-fried wheat-based egg noodles were popularised in Beijing, and are made from a dough of wheat flour, eggs and water. They are slightly chewy and sport a pale yellow hue from the egg. They are thicker and denser than ramen noodles, and springier and sturdier as well. There are many virtues to these noodles, with some coming in flat, broad varieties. They are central to stir-fried noodles that are fried in the wok with protein, vegetables and seasonings until tender or crispy (hence the name). The noodles are parboiled, then stir-fried for the crunchy version, or steamed softer for a lo mein-style texture. Often confused with lo mein noodles, which are also egg noodles, but these are tossed rather than fried. 

9. Hakka Noodles

The only Indian noodles on this list, hakka noodles, are an Indo-Chinese fusion noodle style developed by the Hakka Chinese community that settled in Kolkata's Tangra neighbourhood from the late 1800s onward. Such is its popularity that in the 2013 Bollywood film Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013), Ranbir Kapoor’s character (Bunny) mentions it to share his vagabond ways, alluding to hakka noodles and the thrills he sought in life. Hakka noodles are also called chowmein in India, though the preparations are different. Like chowmein, hakka noodles are fried and tossed with vegetables, soy sauce, and vinegar.

10. Kalguksu

K-dramas might have popularised ttebboki and jjangmeaon, with the latter using udon-like but thinner noodles in a black bean sauce, but there are more specialised noodles, like kalguksu. The term refers to knife-cut noodles, which are wheat noodles, hand-cut into flat strands, typically served in a hot anchovy (or other seafood) or chicken broth. The noodle dish served with chicken broth is called dak-kalguksu. The noodles are added directly to the broth, so they release starch that thickens the soup.

11. Japchae Noodles (Dangmyeon) 

A kind of Korean glass noodles, but unlike the Chinese version made with mung bean starch, this one is made with sweet potato starch. These noodles turn translucent and chewy once boiled and are specifically associated with Korea's signature stir-fry. The noodles glisten because of the sesame and soy sauce glaze, along with the protein, mushrooms, and vegetables like spinach and carrots. You will find japchae among the banchan dishes. The dish was originally a vegetable-only royal court preparation before dangmyeon was added in the early 20th century.

12. Naengmyeon

East Asia is known for its cold noodles, and naengmyeon (the exact translation of the name) is one of them, perfect for hot and humid days. These are cold Korean buckwheat noodles that are handmade and often use starches of sweet potato, arrowroot, and potato. They have a springy and very chewy texture. It also goes by the name of mul-naengmyeon (served in cold broth), bibim-naengmyeon (served with spicy gochujang sauce instead of broth). You will find this dish being served chilled, in a metal bowl with sliced cucumber, pear, boiled egg, and beef.

How To Choose The Right Noodle for a Dish

• For soups and broths, pick udon, ramen, soba, or kalguks, which hold up well and absorb liquid without disintegrating.

• For stir-fries, try egg noodles, wide rice noodles, and chow mein noodles, which carry sauce better than thin varieties.

• For cold salads, soba, thin rice noodles, and naengmyeon work best chilled.

• For low-carb diets, shirataki noodles are the standout choice, given their near-zero calorie count.

• For gluten-free cooking, rice noodles and glass noodles are naturally gluten-free, while pure buckwheat soba can work depending on the blend.

Types Of Noodles At A Glance

Noodle Recipes Featuring Asian Specialities 

Noodles are inherently Asian if archaeological evidence is to be considered, and they have had thousands of years to evolve. From a simple millet noodle, it has come a long way, using wheat, rice and starches that cook into soft, springy, chewy textures of a mix of all. Some are meant to be stir-fried, some simmered in comforting soups, and some tossed in a wok. Try them all when your local noodle dish starts to bore you.