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Cold Udon with Sesame Sauce
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To make a rich and silky—yet simple—sauce for udon noodles, Milk Street Facebook Community member Suzanne Lewis Peins of Hamilton Township, New Jersey, combines tahini, lemon juice, soy sauce and a little water. After tossing the cooked noodles with the mixture, she sprinkles them with sliced scallions and sometimes a little chopped parsley for fresh notes and a spark of color. We added a touch of sesame oil and sugar to her winning formula to accentuate and complement the flavors of the tahini.
4-6
Servings
Don’t salt the water for cooking the udon because the noodles already contain sodium. Also, don’t forget to save ½ cup of the cooking water before draining them, as you will need some of it to make the sauce.
20 minutes
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12
ounces udon noodles
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¼
cup tahini
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2
tablespoons lemon juice
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2
tablespoons soy sauce
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1
teaspoon toasted sesame oil
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1½
teaspoons white sugar
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Kosher salt and ground black pepper
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3
scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
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1
tablespoon black or white sesame seeds, toasted
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01In a large pot, bring 4 quarts water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook, stirring once or twice, until tender. Reserve about ½ cup of the cooking water, then drain in a colander. Rinse under running cold water until fully cooled, then drain again; set aside
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02In a large bowl, whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper, and 3 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water; the mixture should have the consistency of thin yogurt (if too thick, whisk in additional water 1 teaspoon at a time to thin).
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03Add the udon to the tahini mixture and toss until evenly coated. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with the scallions and sesame seeds.
This was divine. I was reluctant to try it, because I have a favorite recipe for sesame noodles and this seemed too close to it, but I'm so glad I did. Very refreshing and easy to put together. Definitely on our rotation. Creamy and delicious.