This recipe for Mongolian Ground Beef Noodles came about as an effort to clean out the pantry after the holidays. Little did I know it would quickly become a family favorite!
Every January, I refuse to go to the grocery store until my fridge and pantry are depleted to the point I can no longer put together a meal.
In fact, I have not been to the grocery store but once since December 15th. We have been eating on everything we have — and because of that, I was able to create this delicious new dish for my family.
I did adapt the Mongolian Ground Beef part from I Wash You Dry. I took her recipe and tweaked it a bit for my family's preference and made it my own.
This meal reminds me of a lot of my One Pan Cheeseburger Pasta meal that takes about 20 minutes to make. It also has the flavor of my homemade Eel Sauce — which I think comes from the Hoisin flavor.
So — because of how easy this is to make, let me walk you through this!
How to Make Mongolian Ground Beef Noodles
To make this, you really only need a few simple ingredients — and if you are like me and keep a stocked and organized pantry, you can totally make this on the fly at your house too!
Of course, if you like having your ground beef delivered to the home, the ground beef from Butcher Box is amazing, and it gets delivered straight to your home.
While you are cooking your ground beef, you can let your noodles cook as well in a pasta pot making this a quick 15-minute dinner recipe.
For the ingredients list you need —
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 4 tsp minced ginger
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup of beef broth
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 6 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 4 green onions diced
- Toasted Sesame Seeds
The original recipe calls for cornstarch and water and smaller amounts in the ingredients, but because I am serving this with pasta — I did not need the cornstarch.
The reason for this is because the pasta itself is starch and will provide everything we need to thicken the sauce.
I doubled the sauce as well because I knew the noodles would soak it up and wanted to make sure there was plenty.
Cook the ground beef in the skillet with the ginger and garlic. Drain off the fat.
Add in the other ingredients (minus the green onions and toasted sesame seeds).
Remove the noodles from the pasta pot and add into the skillet with the ground beef.
Now, let it keep cooking for a bit until the sauce is thick and coats all the noodles and the meat.
Serve alongside with a delicious salad and a loaf of my Copycat Cheesecake Factory Honey Wheat Bread.
For more pasta recipes, check these out
- Slow Cooker Lasagna Pasta
- One Pan Cheeseburger Pasta
- Tuscan Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Baked Ziti
- Grilled Steak Alfredo
Easy Mongolian Ground Beef Noodles
This Easy Mongolian Ground Beef Noodles recipe comes together in 15 minutes and is one of the most delicious meals you will make this year.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 4 tsp minced ginger
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup of beef broth
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 6 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 box of Linguine Noodles
- 4 green onions, diced for garnish
- Toasted Sesame Seeds for garnish
Instructions
- In a medium skillet with high sides on the stovetop, brown the ground beef along with the ginger and garlic until beef is cooked through. Use the back of a wooden spoon to make sure meat is broken up well. Drain any fat and return the pan to the stovetop.
- While the ground beef is cooking, get a pot of water started for your pasta noodles. Be sure to salt the water well so that your noodles soak up that flavor.
- Combine the remaining ingredients -- the soy sauce, beef broth brown sugar, red pepper flakes, pepper, and hoisin sauce in a small dish and pour into ground beef mixture.
- Let them saute in the pan for about 3 minutes to allow the ground beef to absorb the flavors.
- Once your pasta is done cooking, transfer the noodles to the ground beef mixture. Mix thoroughly and allow to cook for a couple of more minutes to allow the sauce to thicken.
- Top with green onions and toasted sesame seeds for the perfect noodle dish!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 297Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 1396mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 2gSugar: 15gProtein: 22g
Carol
I made this tonight, we both found it too salty! I always use low sodium soya sauce, so I would cut it in half next time. I also think I might try it with with ground chicken or turkey. I also would not add past water. It was far too runny.
Jennifer Sikora
If you found yours too runny you could have added the cornstarch and water slurry. That would have thickened it up. Not sure why yours was so salty — I always use low sodium soy sauce as well — it’s even noted in the recipe. Sorry you had issues. Hope it turns out better for yo if you try it again.
Lucy
I suspect Carol may not have drained her pasta. Perhaps you might want to add that to the recipe instructions as some might interpret transferring the noodles may include the water they are cooked in as well. Personally, I tend to reserve about a cup of my pasta water in case the mixture looks too dry and add a little at a time to moisten.
Leo
Agree. Mine was too salty as well using low sodium asian soy sauce that we use for all our traditional asian dishes. May just have to reduce soy amount and add some water.
Jennifer Sikora
I think the salt content is a preference between people — some say it is perfect than others who have tried it have said it is a tad too salty. Just lessen it the next time and you should be fine.
Janis
I agree Carol. We tried this tonight and both my husband and I found it too salty also.
tina
just made this recipe. i only used 4 oz. dry pasta, and also low sodium soy sauce. did not find it too salty and i usually don’t cook w/salt. cook it longer if you feel too runny. the sauce did thicken up. so so good.
Jennifer Sikora
There are so many ways to make updates and changes to make this recipe your own. That is why this one is one of our favorites.
Samantha
Carol …. I read your comment & it looks like you added your pasta water. I think that may be why your dish was too runny. You don’t add the pasta water, just the drained noodles. I hope this helps you for your next time making this dish. Best Wishes !
Laura
SO delicious…..I made a small portion for my daughter without the hoisin, as she is allergic to sesame and sesame products. She loved it!! The rest of the dish made with the hoisin is AMAZING!! I would totally suggest doubling the sauce recipe, as we love our sauces around my household. It’s quick. easy. and SO MUCH more reasonable than carry-out! We will DEFINATLEY make this again! Thank you for such a gorgeous recipe!
Jennifer Sikora
I am so glad you liked it! We love it too and I agree — that sauce is such a keeper.
Karen
What size box of lingiune?
Jennifer Sikora
Any size is fine. Just use the amount of noodles that is best for your family. I have bought the smaller box before and I have used the larger box as well.
dorothy
No, the amount of sauce needed depends greatly on the amount of pasta used. With one pound of ground beef, I would use 8 ounces of pasta and 1/2 of the sauce ingredients called for in the recipe. For 16 ounces of pasta I would use the full amount of sauce ingredients.
Jean
We’re allergic to ginger. Can we substitute something else or just leave it out?
Jennifer Sikora
If you are allergic to ginger, you can substitute ground allspice, cinnamon, mace, or nutmeg. It is teaspoon for teaspoon. I hope that helps. Not sure what it would taste like if you left it out.
Q
Noodles is not is not in the ingredient list.
Jennifer Sikora
Yes it is — it says 1 box of linguine noodles
Melissa
out of brown sugar! any way to sub that? Thanks!
Jennifer Sikora
You can just use regular sugar. If you want brown sugar and you have molasses on hand you can mix 1 cup of white sugar with 1 tablespoon of molasses to make brown sugar
Molly
What kind of noodles did you use?
Jennifer Sikora
I used linguine but you can use spaghetti, fettucini or whatever you have on hand.
Deanna
Can I use ground ginger instead of minced ginger so I don’t have to go to the store?
Jennifer Sikora
I am sure you could. I don’t know how much you should use — you will have to google it.
Zef
Great recipe. Though substituted the spaghetti with Chinese egg noodles.. to go with the asian theme 🙂
Jennifer Sikora
That sounds awesome. I will have to try with egg noodles next time.
Vicki
I would love this! I’m making freezer meals and wonder if this would be good to freeze?
Jennifer Sikora
I am sure you can make everything up and leave the noodles out and add to the freezer. When ready to serve just reheat and make a batch of noodles to go with it.
Sammi
It was good, but we found it pretty salty. I used low sodium soy sauce, but I will try using less next time (maybe 3/4 cup), as well as a bit less minced ginger. Good way to use up more of my spaghetti though!
Jennifer Sikora
You can always add a little extra brown sugar or honey if you find it too salty.
Lynn
Yummy, I didn’t have Hoisin sauce. I did have Spicy and Sweet Chili Heat marinade and dip. I used 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup spicy and sweet chili sauce. Left out the red pepper flakes…. Devine. I used Riced noodles instead of pasta.
Jennifer Sikora
That sounds awesome. I will have to try this version the next time I make this.
Melanie
So is this recipe already measured for double sauce? Or does it need to be doubled still?
Sorry. 🤓
Jennifer Sikora
Yes I have the doubled amount in the post.
Peggy
Made this today, delicious. Definitely will make again possibly with chicken thighs. Thank you for posting this recipe.
Jennifer Sikora
You are so welcome. Glad you liked it!
Yolanda Dugan
I loved it! The ginger and garluc combination was a fabulously tasty marriage of tastes. Not too salty. The sugar balanced it. I used spaghetti but next time I will use linguini. Yum!
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you liked it. I agree. That ginger and garlic really make this dish sing.
Ruth
OMG 😱 tried this dish today. My husband loves anything with noodles 🍝 and we both loved it.
I didn’t find it salty at all since I didn’t add any salt 🧂 to the water for the noodles and only used 3/4 of a cup of soy sauce. It came out perfect and we had enough left over for 2 more meals.
Thanks 🙏 for the recipe I will make it again.
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you loved it. Thanks for letting me know!! It’s one of our favorites too.
Justin
This was a very good dish. I used 1/2cup soy sauce 1/2 cup chicken broth and added some mushrooms. Wonderful flavor. Thank you
Jennifer Sikora
That sounds like a geat addition. Glad you liked it.
Michael
Not bad. If I make it again I would use the low sodium soy to cut down the saltiness and a thickening agent as the sauce was very runny.
Jennifer Sikora
You are supposed to use the low sodium — that is what I noted in the recipe.
Karen Wingate
This sounded good until I reached the amount of brown sugar in the recipe. My husband is diabetic and that much would mess with his glucose for sure. And I think there is sugar in hoisen sauce as well? Too bad. It sounds like a wonderful dish, but not for us.
Jennifer Sikora
Sorry about that. You can adjust it and give it a try to see if you still like it. Some have switched out the hoisin for sweet chile sauce. Just play around with it and you might find a balance that works for your husband. Thanks for stopping by!
Michaela
Made this for my family yesterday, absolutely delicious! A new favorite for sure. Thank you for sharing this recipe! 😊
Jennifer Sikora
You are so welcome. Glad you liked it!
Joelle
Oh my goodness this is good!! I made it tonight and it’s going directly into my rotation. I did add an onion because I needed to use it up. I also realized I was out of red pepper flakes so I substituted with a couple squeezes of go-chi-jang sauce. My boys love spicy!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Jennifer Sikora
OoOh. I am going to have to try that sauce as well. thanks for sharing. YOu are so welcome.
April sawyer
Made this last nite and it was amazing. I under salted my usual pasta water and cut back the soy just bit and I used shaved beef since I needed to use it up anf added sliced mushrooms another commenter suggested! So yummy! Did not have sesame seeds but had some sesame oil I drizzled lightly on at the end.
Jennifer Sikora
Sounds delicious. Glad you liked it!
Kathy
I had read that someone thought it was too sweet. However most of the comments are about it being too salty. I tonight I would cut back on the brown an d add more if necessary. Does that sound about right?
Jennifer Sikora
Maybe? I am not sure. You have to play around with it if you are changing things up and just see how it turns out.
Dawn Heffner
I was feeding 7 people so I made a double batch. So glad I did because everyone loved it!! I love how simple it was to make. Quick easy dishes are my favorite and this is one that I definitely will be making again!! Thank you!
Jennifer Sikora
Glad to hear everyone liked it. Thanks for sharing!!
Helida
I like the concept, was definitely too salty for us, and I decreased the soy sauce and horsin , I sauce to half of the amount and still salty, also added brócoli and mushroom. The garlic and ginger taste fabulous together every time.
Thanks for the receipt, I’ll try again and just adjust to our taste 😊
Jennifer Sikora
It is a dish that either you like the salt content or you it is too much . . . I bet if you play around with it you will find a consistency that is right for your family! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Kris
Made this tonight, and it was a hit! Cut the soy sauce and brown sugar in half and added 1/2 c. low sodium beef broth. Also added a package of broccoli slaw after the beef was browned. Definitely a keeper!
Jennifer Sikora
Thanks Kris. I tried it this way too and like it much better so I added your suggestions to the recipe!
Pooneh
Hi, have you ever made this as a vegetarian dish with substitute ground beef. I’m going to make it using beef this week but as i have vegetarians at home it’s always easier to make a dish we can all share.
Jennifer Sikora
I have not. I am sure you could??? I don’t cook that way so I am not sure how it would turn out. We are meat eaters here.
Karin
Hi,
Thank you for this recipe. All flavors were well paired, except the salt. Please amend the soy sauce amount so it shows a range instead of 1 cup flat. It is too salty and I only discovered reviews indicating this after my family wouldn’t eat dinner. Please save others from this as well by notating in ingredients section. Will make again with 1/2 cup soy or less
Jennifer Sikora
I have updated the recipe to include 1/2 soy sauce and 1/2 beef broth. A lot of people say it tastes fine and I think it comes down to your salt preference. If you use regular soy sauce instead of the low sodium soy sauce I suggest to use then it will turn out way too salty as well.
Amira Rghei
Way way way too much salt for me, even tried it with half a cup of salt and was still far too much. I would recommend 1/4 cup soy sauce and 1/4 cup no sodium added beef broth opposed to the full cup of sodium-reduced soy sauce.
Jennifer Sikora
I have updated the recipe to include 1/2 soy sauce and 1/2 beef broth. A lot of people say it tastes fine and I think it comes down to your salt preference. If you use regular soy sauce instead of the low sodium soy sauce I suggest to use then it will turn out way too salty as well.
Melanie Nixon
We made this today. Oh my goodness. So delicious! We tweaked a bit to lower sodium and had no hoisin sauce on hand so we made our own and used chili paste since we didn’t have red pepper flakes. It was a hit and will be put into our dinner rotation!
Rona Harris
Made this tonight and it was GREAT! I made a few changes to lighten up the calories:: used Splenda Brown Sugar, 1/4 tsp of the crushed red pepper and whole wheat linguine. Also did add tsp corn starch to liquids. Perfection!
Sandy H.
I’m thinking of using my leftover Rotisserie Chicken instead of the beef?? Do I use all the other ingredients as listed or would you use Chicken Broth instead of beef?
Jennifer Sikora
I would probably use Chicken broth instead of beef broth if I were going to use chicken.
Cindy Fine
Totally delicious!! I made this last night for dinner, doubled the sauce as you suggested and it turned out great. Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe Jennifer. I will add this into my dinner rotation for sure.
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you loved it. We do too. It is one that is requested over and over again at our home.
Inna
This was amazing!! My husband and I loved it. Definitely a Keeper
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you liked it!
Robin
I only have regular soy sauce on hand. I really want to cook this tonight! I am gonna dilute it with water. We like salty food anyways. Im gonna also throw in a bag of frozen mixed veggies that i have! Yum
Jennifer Sikora
Hope it turns out for you. Sometimes regular soy is just too salty.
Wendy
Modifications
Did 1/4 consommé plus 1/4 c water (didn’t have beef broth)
1/4 c low sod soya plus 1/4 c water
5tbsp soy sauce
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 tsp black pepper
Cooked beef in sauce until sauce thickened and beef absorbed the sauce.
When noodles ready, drained noodles, put them back in noodle pot and added sufficient beef. Didn’t have green onions but that would have been great. Also, a dash of cooking sherry might have been nice. I don’t like things too saucy and I was just cooking for me so saved the seasoned beef for future meals. On the whole, quite good.
Jennifer Sikora
Thanks for sharing what you made.
Becky
Good. Next time I will add a few broccoli florets to get my veggies in.
Jennifer Sikora
That’s a great idea Becky.
Mica
I haven’t made this dish yet, but one thing that I don’t think is being considered by a lot of commenters is that the soy sauce is not the only source of salt in the dish. Broth, in general, has a ton of salt, but the saltiness of broth isn’t consistent across products, particularly between different types (for example, canned/in a box vs. made with bouillon.) I highly suggest to anyone when using a recipe like this that includes things like broth and hoisin that can vary in taste and saltiness between products to TASTE the sauce in step three before dumping it in, Nobody posting recipes online can 100% account for the variance in taste between two different broths, so ultimately for the best results (especially when using a new recipe!) taste along the way so that you can pivot if you dislike it. My go-to if you noticed that it was too salty in step three would be to add a splash of something like canned pineapple juice to dilute and add some acidity.
Jennifer Sikora
Thanks for sharing this tip. This is a great idea.
Jenn
Question about the nutritional information… what exactly is the serving size? I see it says one, but one what? One cup? One ounce? One plateful? Not sure how to figure that out. Help would be appreciated. Thanks!
Jennifer Sikora
It would be one cup.
Tashina
This was delicious!! We didn’t have hoisen sauce and used spaghetti noodles and cauliflower rice for me. Everyone is asking for seconds and I doubled the sauce. Great recipe!!
Jennifer Sikora
Glad to hear that your family loved it. We do too!
sherri
Maybe use low sodium beef broth for those that found it too salty
Patty
Prepaired this the other day. Followed the recipe with exception of black pepper. Amazing balance of heat with sweetness. I used 10 ozs. rice noodles instead of pasta. So quick and easy! Thanks for sharing
Jennifer Sikora
Sounds like this turned out amazing for you! Thanks for sharing.
Sheila
Made tonight and I used Low Sodium Beef Broth die to some comments that the dish was too salty. It came out perfect. Family loved it. It’s a keeper. Thanks
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you liked it! We do too.
Shawna
This recipe turned out great. I did end up having to add just a little bit of corn startch to thicken things up but that may be because I double the recipe. I used spagetti noodles becasue that is what I had on hand but it was still delicious.
Jennifer Sikora
So glad you liked it. Thanks for sharing!
Natalie
I wanted to share my comment because I read all of them before making. Everyone has their own idea of “salty”and I feel bad for people who have pages like these. I’ve made some horrible recipes it I was making someone elses recipe to them it was amazing and they had people who felt it was amazing as well. I’m in Ohio…we eat “takeout” asian food maybe 2x a year.
I made this recipe with what I had the only variation is I use cubes for my “broth” so I made 8oz using 1 cube and put 1/2 cup in the recipe I used 16oz pasta and no seeds and onions for garnish. It had flavor a little sweet, barely spicy and it is less salty than the takeout places, It is not soooo salty that it can’t be consumed. I assume people either consume NO SALT or varied the recipe with pasta and certain ingredients. Ive had food so salty that I notice…this was not my first though. Seemed typical for the style of food. We would make it again..we might use less sugar for my preference, we might use chicken and chicken broth next time, or steak instead. When reviewing recipes…factor in your family, how you typical eat, have you eaten food like this before, did you make changes, and so on. Always be kind.
Jennifer Sikora
Thanks for sharing Natalie 🙂
Tracy
Excellent dish! The whole family loves it. This is a keeper!
Jennifer Sikora
So glad to hear that. Thanks for sharing!
Jen
Mmm I just made this, and it’s so good! I left out the ginger, green onions, and sesame seeds. I used half the amount of pasta, and I didn’t salt the water. The hoisin sauce I bought wasn’t a spicy kind.
Jennifer Sikora
I am so glad you liked it. It is such a versatile noodle that you can switch and change it up all the time.