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    Home » Budget Recipes

    Peanut Butter Chicken Noodles

    Published: May 15, 2016 · Modified: Mar 17, 2023 by Jessica Fisher

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    Peanut Butter Chicken is one of my favorite take-out fake-outs. It’s got all the flavor of a pad thai without the expense or hard to find ingredients. You can also make it with sunflower seed butter to accommodate for nut allergies.

    bowl of peanut butter chicken and noodles this …

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    One of the meals I made when we were getting out of debt was this one. My picky eaters adored it, so it made meal times so much easier.

    The sauce, a melange of peanut, soy, ginger, and red pepper flakes, is packed with flavor. Noodles easily make up for the scant amount of chicken. The original recipe called for twice the meat that I ever put in it as well as bottled dressing which is gross and expensive. I adapted it all to be healthier and cheaper.

    What ingredients do you need to make peanut butter chicken?

    • rice vinegar
    • vegetable oil
    • peanut butter
    • soy sauce
    • honey
    • sesame oil
    • ginger
    • red pepper
    • linguini or thin spaghetti
    • 1 medium carrot
    • 2 chicken breasts
    • green onions
    • fresh cilantro
    chopsticks resting on a bowl of noodles

    We didn’t eat Peanut Butter Chicken for awhile, thanks to my daughter’s peanut allergy. Even though she could have sunflower seed butter, I have tried not to rely on it too much. Recently, I made our old favorite and it brought the same smile to my face as it always did.

    And, yes, it’s just as good with sunflower seed butter as it is with peanut butter. And it’s still a great way of stretching meats in budget meals.

    I’ve made this as a freezer meal kit many times. Simply store the sauce and the cooked chicken mixture in separate containers. Thaw completely and then reheat the chicken while you boil fresh pasta. Mix it all together and you’re good to go, faster than you can call your favorite Thai takeout place.

    Promise me you’ll make this! It’s so very yummy.

    chopsticks resting on a bowl of noodles

    Peanut Butter Chicken

    Peanut Butter Chicken is one of my favorite take-out fake-outs. It’s got all the flavor of a pad thai without the expense or hard to find ingredients. You can also make it with sunflower seed butter to accommodate for nut allergies.
    4.50 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Chinese
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 35 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 407kcal
    Author: Jessica Fisher

    Ingredients

    • ⅓ cup rice vinegar
    • 7 tablespoon neutral oil
    • 2 tablespoon peanut butter almond butter, or sunflower seed butter can also be used
    • 2 tablespoon soy sauce
    • 1 tablespoon honey
    • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
    • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated)
    • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
    • 16 oz linguine pasta or thin spaghetti pasta
    • 1 carrots shredded
    • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast chopped
    • 1 bunch green onion (chopped) you can get by with less
    • 2 tablespoon fresh cilantro (chopped)

    Instructions

    • Whisk together the vinegar, the 5 tbsp. oil, the peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, ginger, and red pepper. Set aside.
    • In a large pot of boiling, salted water, prepare the pasta according to package instructions. While the pasta is cooking, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons vegetable oil until very hot. Cook the carrot for 1 min. Add the chicken and green onions to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until chicken is cooked.
    • Drain the pasta and toss with sauce and cilantro. You may toss chicken in as well, but we like to serve it atop the noodles. Otherwise, the chicken drops to the bottom and is not evenly distributed.
    • Serve this dish hot or at room temperature.
    • To freeze: store the sauce and the cooked chicken mixture in separate containers. Thaw completely in the refrigerator. Reheat before tossing with fresh cooked pasta.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 407kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 357mg | Potassium: 438mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1459IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Tell us what you think! Your reviews help us develop better recipes and give newcomers the confidence to try your favorites. Scroll down to leave a starred comment.
    red chopsticks crossing bowl of noodles
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jessika

      August 14, 2024 at 10:40 pm

      5 stars
      This is delicious! Always a crowd pleaser! Sometimes we sub tofu for the chicken or just leave the meat out altogether.

      Reply
    2. Cindy Walker

      November 17, 2023 at 5:23 pm

      4 stars
      That was very tasty, and so fast! Spent the day cleaning the garage, came a hair’s breadth away from take out – and saw this. Bonus – cleaned out my crisper ;-). Thanks again!

      Reply
    3. Sarah Zeola

      January 22, 2017 at 5:38 am

      This looks awesome and is perfect for my freezer meal plan! I just found some boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the freezer and we have a giant package of soba that I have been trying to figure out when to use. I am going to sub the soba for the other noodles and we have everything on hand to make this. Thanks for sharing, Jessica!

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        January 31, 2017 at 7:10 am

        Hope you love it like we do.

        Reply
    4. pat

      June 13, 2016 at 11:11 am

      Thanks for this recipe. I don’t have ginger to grate. I do have ground ginger. Could I use some of that or just leave it out?
      Thanks

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        June 16, 2016 at 8:20 am

        Probably would just leave it out. You can get fresh ginger in a paste in the produce section. It’s a nice way to have it last a little longer than fresh knobs.

        Reply
        • pat

          June 16, 2016 at 9:34 am

          Thanks! I will check out the paste next time I go shopping!

    5. Carolyn

      June 13, 2016 at 4:10 am

      Can I ask, why store the sauce and chicken separately in the freezer? My thought was to cook the chicken, cool, combine the sauce and chicken, freeze, then, when warming, add the veggies (maybe some snap peas, the shredded carrots and green onion).

      Is there any harm in combining the sauce and chicken for freezing?

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        June 13, 2016 at 8:12 am

        I don’t think it will do any harm. I’ve always done it that way to ensure that the sauce really coats the noodles, but there shouldn’t be any issue doing it a different way.

        Reply
    6. Mimi

      May 29, 2016 at 6:02 pm

      We made the Peanut butter chicken last night, and we loved it so much, we are making it again tonight! Amazing flavors. Just the right amount of heat, and sweet. So delicious. Thank you!

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        May 30, 2016 at 9:04 am

        Yay! So glad you liked it!

        Reply
    7. Erica

      May 18, 2016 at 4:00 pm

      Thank you for posting this recipe when you did! We had a bunch of leftover chicken tenderloins that I was planning on using tonight in something but had no idea what (made bacon chicken subs two nights ago; do you see a theme? :)). Left some out for the 15 yr old who doesn’t like peanut butter and went to town. I used zucchini and carrots, white onion and red wine vinegar because that’s what I had. My husband and I liked it a lot. The 13 yr old (who ironically, loves peanut butter) was not a fan, but as he’s 13, he has something to say about everything I do/make/say these days. Lol!

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        June 16, 2016 at 8:19 am

        I love to hear how others are adapting it. Sounds great.

        Reply
    8. Tiffany R

      May 17, 2016 at 3:49 pm

      Thanks for the dinner idea! I had this tonight with leftover grilled chicken and threw in some sautéed carrots, zucchini, mushrooms and water chestnuts. Topped with sesame seeds and cilantro from my garden. Yum! And it makes a tons so I have enough leftover for lunch all week. Yeah!

      Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        June 16, 2016 at 8:19 am

        So glad you enjoyed it!

        Reply
    9. Joyce Perdue

      May 16, 2016 at 3:44 am

      Have tired and tired to not gag on cilantro but finally the other day….tried again and….not good. What can I substitute for it? I despair….

      Reply
      • Janet

        May 17, 2016 at 2:04 pm

        I do NOT like cilantro either. Substitute parsley or simply omit it. In most recipes, no one will notice the difference.

        Reply
      • Jessica Fisher

        June 16, 2016 at 8:21 am

        Yes, what Janet said. You can leave it out. If it’s not something you care for, it certainly is better to omit.

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Jessica! I'm a 4x cookbook author and 6x mom. I know what it is to be in a hurry and on a budget. I believe anyone can prepare delicious meals -- no matter what's on their plate. I've been featured on Good Morning America, PBS News Hour, and NBC.

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