Hoisin beef noodles are a quick and easy dinner recipe, ready in just 15 minutes. Beef mince is stir fried before being mixed with thick, sticky Hoisin sauce and soft noodles to create this easy Asian beef mince recipe.

My family love minced beef, and this easy savoury mince recipe is one I make often together with this Mexican beef mince recipe. However if I want a quick and easy beef mince recipe that is on the table in under half an hour, I turn to these flavour packed noodles, sweet and sticky with hoisin sauce.
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Why we love this recipe
- Beef mince noodle stir fry is a quick and easy family dinner. Whilst the noodles are cooking, fry beef mince, vegetables and aromatics. Mix the sauce ingredients together then pour over the mince and cooked noodles. Dinner is ready!
- Hoisin beef mince noodles are a beef mince recipe without tomatoes. Whilst I often use tomatoes with beef mince, it is nice to mix things up and means this minced beef noodles recipe is suitable for those who don’t like or can’t eat tomatoes.
- This easy beef mince recipe is great for those midweek nights when time is short.
Ingredients notes and substitutions
- Beef mince – ground beef. I like to use lean beef mince but you can use one with a higher fat content. If you do use a higher fat content it may take a little longer to cook, but will be delicious and tender. If you find buying 500g / 18oz beef mince more economical you can freeze the rest or use it to make this lasagna soup. You can use chicken mince or pork mince if you prefer.
- Spring onion – green onions / scallions. Using these help prepare a quick beef noodle dinner, however if you want to use an onion instead, use ½ small onion, finely chopped and cook for 3-4 minutes before adding the beef mince.
- Garlic – two gloves fresh garlic, or use 2 teaspoons of jarred minced garlic instead.
- Fresh ginger – or 1 teaspoon jarred minced ginger.
- Green pepper / capsicum – use a red pepper / capsicum instead
- Carrot – grated carrot adds sweetness and is a budget friendly vegetable to add to this minced beef noodle recipe. For alternative vegetables please see the ’variations’ section further down the post.
- Noodles – in the images in this post I have used udon noodles, however I have made this recipe using egg noodles, ramen noodles, you could even use 2 minute noodles.
- Soy sauce – use light soy sauce, dark soy sauce is too salty for this recipe as hoisin sauce is also salty.
- Sesame oil – toasted sesame oil.
- Rice vinegar – a splash helps balance out the sweet and salty flavours of the hoisin sauce and soy sauce. If you don’t have rice vinegar use white wine vinegar or lemon juice instead.
- Hoisin sauce – this thick and fragrant sauce is a common ingredient in Southern Chinese cooking. Available in the supermarkets the brands do vary in taste, sweetness and thickness. Here in Australia I like to use the Kee Kum Kee brand. If the hoisin sauce you are using is thin, then add an extra tablespoon.
How to make this recipe
Note: please see the recipe card at the end of the post for detailed instructions.
- Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, less a minute.
- Fry the beef mince with the chopped onion in a neutral flavoured oil over a medium high heat for 5 minutes, until the minced beef is brown and cooked.
- Add the crushed garlic and finely grated ginger, grated carrot and chopped capsicum / pepper and cook for another 3 minutes.
- In a small bowl whisk the soy sauce with the sesame oil, rice vinegar, hoisin sauce and water.
- Drain the noodles and add to the pan with the beef mince, then pour over the sauce.
- Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring, until the sauce has thickened and is coating the noodles, minced beef and vegetables.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds if using.
- Serve straight away.
FAQ
Fermented soy bean paste is the main ingredient in hoisin sauce, together with garlic, vinegar, sugar, sesame oil and spices.
Hoisin tastes salty and a little bit sweet, with a slight tang to it.
Oyster sauce is salty like hoisin sauce, however it doesn’t have the same sweetness to it, so in a dish where hoisin sauce is the main flavour I wouldn’t use oyster sauce as a substitute.
My recipe tips
- Hoisin sauce can vary from make to make, some are saltier than others. So taste just before serving and if you feel it needs a little more stronger hoisin flavour, stir in another tablespoon.
- Cook the noodles one minute less than the packet instructions say as they will be cooked for another 1-2 minutes once added to the beef mince, so avoid overcooked noodles. If using 2 minute noodles add them to the beef and sauce at the last minute to avoid them becoming mushy.
- This recipe serves 2 generously, or 2 adults and a child. The recipe can easily be doubled.
Vegetables
In Australia at the moment the green capsicum / bell pepper pushes the cost of the dish up alot. Use another, cheaper vegetable such as corn, broccoli or mushrooms.
Add extra veggies and / or noodles
An extra grated carrot, handful of tinned or frozen sweetcorn or frozen peas will help to bulk out the hoisin beef.
Leftovers
If you are wondering how to use up the ingredients used in this hoisin beef recipe, here are some ideas:
- Hoisin sauce – is delicious on crispy lamb wraps or Chinese duck wraps.
- Spring onions / green onions / scallions – also used in the crispy lamb wraps, make these sweetcorn fritters, or Lebanese cabbage salad.
- Noodles – use them to make these quick and easy sesame noodles, which are delicious hot or cold.
Storage
These Asian beef noodles are best eaten as soon as possible after they are cooked, as the noodles do suck up some of the sauce as they sit so they can become a little dry. However if you do need to reheat them, you can mix a little hoisin sauce with some water and stir it through when reheating the beef noodles.
Variations
- Spicy beef noodles – add a pinch of dried chillies, or if you are serving these noodles to kids too, these pickled chillies are a great way to add some heat to dishes once served.
- Vegetables – add some lightly steamed Asian vegetables such as bok choy, choy sum, a handful of green beans or baby sweetcorn.
More easy family dinner recipes
Hoisin Beef Noodles
Author: Robyn
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, or other neutral oil ($0.08 / £0.03p)
- 250g (8oz) beef mince ($3.25 / £1.30)
- 2 spring onions / green onions ($0.80 / £0.14p)
- 2 garlic cloves ($0.26 / £0.05p)
- 1 teaspoon ginger ($0.06 / £0.02p)
- 1 large carrot ($0.31 / £0.04p)
- 1 green pepper / capsicum ($2.48 / £0.48p)
- ½ tablespoon soy sauce ($0.10 / £0.08p)
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil ($0.24 / £0.08p)
- ½ tablespoon rice wine vinegar ($0.04 / £0.04p)
- 4 tablespoons hoisin sauce ($0.43 / £0.45p)
- 3 tablespoons water
- 200g (7oz) noodles ($1.20 / £0.67p)
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds, optional ($0.10 / £0.21p)
Instructions
- Finely slice the spring onions, coarsely grate the carrot and finely chop the pepper / capsicum. Finely grate the ginger and crush the garlic.
- Cook the noodles according to the instructions on their packet.
- In a large frying pan, heat the vegetable oil then add the beef mince and sliced spring onions.
- Turn the heat up high and cook stirring for a couple of minutes, breaking the beef mince up with the back of a spoon, then turn down to a medium high heat and cook for 5 minutes, stirring.
- Add the crushed garlic and grated ginger, grated carrot and chopped pepper / capsicum and cook on a medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring every so often, until the vegetables are tender and the beef mince is cooked – it should be brown all the way through.
- In a small bowl mix the soy sauce with the sesame oil, rice vinegar, hoisin sauce and water.
- Drain the noodles and add to the pan with the sauce, stir to coat everything in the sauce then cook for 2 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and coats the noodles, minced beef and vegetables.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using, and serve straight away.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Susan says
Will make again! Quick and delicious 💕
Robyn says
Thankyou Susan, so happy to hear you enjoyed the beef noodles 🙂