Recipe: 10-Minute Chilli and Peanut (or Sesame) Noodles From a Masterchef Winner

Masterchef winner Justin Narayan’s debut cookbook is called Everything is Indian – but not every recipe in its pages is recognisably Indian. Instead, it’s a compendium of recipes filtered through the lens of his Fijian-Indian upbringing in Sydney. Think masala roast potatoes, a chicken dish riffing on the one from beloved Sydney Portuguese stalwart Frango, a slate of curries, tacos filled with flavours from around the globe and more.

Similarly, this speedy noodle dish is a little bit inspired by dishes from across the Asian continent and a little bit of a way to use whatever you have in your pantry. Use any noodles you have on hand, swap out the peanut butter for tahini if you prefer. And while its official title claims it’ll be ready in just 10 minutes, Narayan reckons he can actually make it even faster.

“This is super easy to make,” he writes. “I’ve made it a game to see how quickly I can do it. My record is seven minutes.”

Serves 2
Preparation time: 3 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes

1 tsp grapeseed oil
250g minced pork (see tip at bottom)
1 tsp soy sauce
Pinch of ground white pepper
400g whatever fresh noodles you like (I go for udon)
2 spring onions, thinly sliced (optional)
Chilli oil or sliced fresh red chilli, to serve

Sauce
2 tbsp smooth peanut butter or tahini
1 tbsp chilli oil
1 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp black vinegar (rice wine vinegar can work too)
3 garlic cloves, crushed, or 1½ teaspoons garlic paste (see note at bottom)
¼ tsp caster sugar
¼ tsp MSG or chicken stock powder (see tip at bottom)
¼ tsp ground white pepper

Get a saucepan of water boiling. Heat the grapeseed oil in a frying pan over high heat, then spread the pork over the base of the pan as evenly as you can. Let that one side cook until browned and crispy, about 3–5 minutes. Add the soy sauce and white pepper and give it a stir. Cook for another 3–5 minutes. You want to cook it further than you might think. (You’re not going for a juicy or tender pork, you want a dry, crispy texture.)

If you’re confident, while the pork is cooking, mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl, then place the noodles in the saucepan of boiling water. Cook according to packet instructions. When they’re done, reserve ¼ cup (60ml) of the noodle water, then drain the noodles and add them to the sauce bowl. Add 2–3 tablespoons of reserved noodle water to the bowl and mix, adding more noodle water if necessary.

Plate up by dividing the noodles between serving bowls and topping each with the pork, spring onion, if using, and chilli oil or fresh chilli.

You can use frozen pork mince for this. I get mince, put it in a ziplock bag, then flatten it out. If you get it really thin, you don’t need to thaw it. Just whack it straight in the pan. To go meat free, sub out the pork for sliced mushrooms, cabbage, broccoli or firm tofu. If you’re using Lao Gan Ma Hot Chilli Oil or another chilli oil with MSG in it, you don’t need to add much (if any) MSG to the sauce.

Because I’m making so many recipes that require garlic, I keep jars of garlic paste in my fridge. I make my own in bulk. Get a whole heap of garlic, peel, roughly chop and blend with a pinch of salt and a little oil (to help extend the shelf life), then place in a clean jar and store in the fridge. For 1 cup (about 150g) chopped garlic, go with a pinch of salt (2–4g) and 1–2 tbsp oil. If you can’t be bothered, buy some, but I find the flavour of store-bought garlic paste to be more subdued, so you may need to add more to the recipe to get the same impact as fresh garlic or a homemade paste.

This is a lightly edited extract from Everything is Indian by Justin Narayan with Nicholas Jordan ($39.99). Released March 4, 2025 by Murdoch Books.