I love this easy chicken dinner - it’s better than takeout!
This Healthy drunken noodle recipe is one that your entire family will love. It comes together fast and works great for a weeknight meal.
Don’t worry, these noodles don’t actually contain alcohol. Legend has it, a “drunken man” in a Thai kitchen was hungry and threw together a variety of ingredients tasted so delicious, the dish caught on.
Table of Contents
Where’s the Recipe for this Delicious and Easy Drunken Noodle Dish?
To better serve all of my readers here at My Crazy Good Life, I’ve made a commitment to put a ton of helpful information in all of my posts.
If you’d like to skip over the information about ingredients, multiple cooking methods, and diet information, simply scroll to the bottom of the page, where you will find the printable Drunken Noodles recipe!
Ingredients:
- Chicken: A great source of lean protein.
- Carrots: They are loaded with beta carotene, fiber, vitamin K1, potassium, and antioxidants.
- Red Bell Pepper: Did you know a red pepper is simply a matured green pepper? All colors come from the same plant at various levels of maturity. Bell peppers are a low-calorie vegetable packed with vitamins and antioxidants.
- Mushrooms: I love cooking with mushrooms. They have a meaty feel while still packing in the nutrients you can only get from vegetables.
- Bok Choy: This Chinese cabbage is loaded healthy benefits, including Choline. Choline is an anti-inflammatory that helps improve sleep, muscle movement, learning, and memory. This highly nutritious vegetable contains more vitamin A and C than spinach.
- Garlic: You know I can’t cook anything without garlic! Added flavor and loads of antioxidants.
- Thai Chili Pods: You can usually find these in the ethnic food section of your grocery store. They can easily be replaced in this recipe with dried red pepper flakes, or left out entirely to skip the spice.
- Whole Wheat Egg Noodles: Using whole wheat noodles is an easy way to clean up a recipe without changing the taste.
- Low-Sodium Soy Sauce: A staple for any Asian cuisine. You can also use coconut aminos, or low sodium tamari. Read here about soy sauce substitutes and why you’d choose one.
- Honey: I try to find honey locally, but any raw form will work.
- Scallions: If you don’t like the kick that scallions have, green onions make a great substitute. They have a milder flavor, so you’ll need to use more.
- Basil: It’s generally best to add fresh basil at the final step of cooking because heat can diminish the flavor and dull the bright green color. If you decide to use dried, only use a third of the amount, as dried is more concentrated.
Recipe Tips
- You can replace scallions with green onions. Just be sure to add extra, they don’t pack quite the same punch as scallions do.
- You can replace fresh basil with dried. Reduce the amount to two and a half tablespoons and add to the pot with your vegetables.
- You can easily replace the bok choy with regular green or purple cabbage. It holds up well under pressure and gives you the same texture.
- You can add coconut aminos or low sodium tamari in place of low-sodium soy sauce.
- This recipe is easy to customize. If you don’t like mushrooms leave them out and add more carrots and peppers. If you don’t like bell peppers up your mushrooms.
- You can easily swap dried Thai chili pods with crushed red pepper flakes.
- You can buy matchstick carrots or use a box grater to get your carrots small and evenly sized.
- This recipe is easy to make vegetarian, just swap the chicken for diced tofu, mushrooms, or your favorite vegetables.
- Add salt and black pepper to your taste.
How to make Thai drunken noodles
This recipe takes about 20 minutes to prepare and about 6 minutes of total cooking time.
Instant Pot Instructions:
Time needed: 26 minutes.
- Slice your chicken
Slice your chicken into thin strips, about 1/2 inches thick.
- Turn your Instant Pot on to Sauté
Lightly spray the inside of the pot with oil.
- Prepare your vegetables
Peel your carrots and cut into thin strips. Chop bell peppers, mushrooms, and bok choy. Try to cut all of your vegetables about the same size so they cook evenly.
- Sauté
When the oil is hot sauté the garlic, Thai chili pods, mushrooms, and chicken for 2-3 minutes. Stir well to keep the chicken from sticking together.
- Add your noodles, soy sauce, honey, and water
Mix well to make sure everything is combined.
- Add the carrots, bell peppers, and bok choy on top of the chicken
Do not stir.
- Pressure cook
Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- Quick release
When the time is up quick release the pressure.
- Stir in scallions and fresh basil
Some optional toppings are fresh ginger, chili paste, and additional scallions for garnish.
Serve warm.
Crockpot Instructions:
- Add chicken, chili pods, garlic, soy sauce, water, and honey to the slow cooker. Mix it together so that the chicken is covered.
- Layer the carrots, bell peppers, mushrooms, and bok choy on top of the chicken.
- Cover the slow cooker with the lid.
- Cook on low heat for 2-3 hours until the chicken is cooked through. Add the dry noodles during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
- Mix in the basil and scallions.
- Serve warm.
Stovetop Instructions:
- Lightly spray a large skillet.
- Sauté the garlic, red chili pods, mushrooms, and chicken for about 2 minutes over high heat.
- Add the carrots, bell pepper, and bok choy to the skillet. Sauté until the bok choy is wilted.
- Mix in the dry noodles, soy sauce, honey, and water. Bring the liquid to a boil then, cover and reduce heat to medium/low.
- Let the pasta simmer for 12-15 minutes stirring occasionally until the pasta is cooked.
- Remove the lid and mix in the basil and scallions.
- Serve warm.
Healthy Eating Plans:
Weight Watchers Blue Plan Points: ¼ of this recipe (about 2 cups) is 4 Blue plan points
Weight Watchers Green Plan Points: ¼ of this recipe (about 2 cups) is 6 Green plan points
Weight Watchers Purple Plan Points: ¼ of this recipe (about 2 cups) is 1 purple plan points
21 Day Fix Containers: (entire recipe) 8 Green Containers, 4 Yellow Containers, 4 Red Containers, and 3 Sweetener Teaspoons for the entire recipe. (per serving, which is about 2 cups): 2 Green Containers, 1 Red Container, 1 Yellow Container, and ¾ sweetener teaspoons
2B Mindset: This is a good lunch recipe with a side of veggies.
Check out these other delicious takeout recipes that you can make at home:
- Instant Pot Orange Chicken
- Chicken Lo Mein
- Instant Pot Pad Thai Recipe
- Healthy Bang Bang Shrimp Pasta
Healthy Drunken Noodles | Instant Pot, Stovetop, Crockpot
I love this easy chicken dinner – it’s better than takeout!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast cut into thin 1/2-inch strips
- 2 carrots peeled and cut into strips, about 2C
- 1 bell pepper red, chopped
- 2 cups mushrooms
- 3 cups bok choy chopped
- 4 tsp garlic minced
- 2 dried chili pods Thai chilies are best! or you can substitute with 1 tsp crushed red peppers
- 2 cups whole wheat pasta dry, egg noodles
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce I prefer coconut aminos, but you can also use low sodium tamari.
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup scallions diced
- 1/2 cup basil fresh, chopped
Instructions
Instant Pot:
- Slice your chicken into thin strips (about ½ an inch).
- Lightly spray the inside of the pot with oil.
- Peel your carrots and cut into thin strips. Chop bell peppers, mushrooms and bok choy. Try to cut all of your vegetables about the same size so they cook evenly.
- When the oil is hot sauté the garlic, Thai chili pods, mushrooms, and chicken for 2-3 minutes. Stir well to keep the chicken isn’t sticking together.
- Mix in the noodles, soy sauce, honey, and water.
- Add the carrots, bell peppers, and bok choy on top of the chicken, but do not stir.
- Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- When time is up quick release the pressure.
- Garnish with optional toppings: fresh ginger, chili paste, and additional scallions.
- Serve warm.
Stove top:
- Lightly spray a large skillet.
- Sauté the garlic, red chili pods, mushrooms, and chicken for about 2 minutes over high heat.
- Add the carrots, bell pepper, and bok choy to the skillet. Sauté until the bok choy is wilted.
- Mix in the noodles, soy sauce, honey, and water. Bring the liquid to a boil then, cover and reduce heat to medium/low.
- Let the pasta simmer for 12-15 minutes stirring occasionally until the pasta is cooked.
- Remove the lid and mix in the basil and scallions.
- Serve warm.
Crockpot:
- Add chicken, chili pods, garlic, soy sauce, water, and honey to the slow cooker. Mix it together so that the chicken is covered.
- Layer the carrots, bell peppers, mushrooms, and bok choy on top of the chicken.
- Cover the slow cooker with the lid.
- Cook on low heat for 2-3 hours until the chicken is cooked through. Add the noodles during the last 15 minutes of cooking.
- Mix in the basil and scallions.
- Serve warm.
Video
Notes
- The nutrition information is calculated using coconut aminos
- 21 Day Fix: Per serving, 2G, 1R, 1Y, 3/4 tsp
- Weight Watchers: 4 Blue Plan Points, 1 Purple Plan Points, 6 Green Plan Points
- 2B Mindset: This is a good lunch recipe with a side of veggies.
Hi Becca!!!! All these new recipes are awesome!! I’ve got to get things in order for Christmas and the IP and all your recipes is going to make it so much easier for me this year! Thank you for All you do ❤️
Yay!! I hope you love them, Margie!!
You’re the Best!!! Love All your recipes ❤️
<3
This is such an easy and delicious meal! My family will love it!
I hope they do!!
I just adore “drunken” recipes, there is something about it that just sounds so savory and fulfilling that I am always stocking my recipe lists with these recipes. Can’t wait to dive in!
We love the recipe!! Thank you !
I’m new to doing egg free. I noticed that you have this as egg free… what noodles do you use that are egg free “egg noddles”? Thanks for any info
Hi April! This is classified wrong as egg free, but I’d definitely try this recipe with rice noodles instead–it would be delicious!
Is the cooking time for the Instant Pot the same for rice noodles?
No, I’d cook the rice noodles for 1/2 the amount of time on the box, minus two minutes :)
Loved this recipe! I am trying to go plant based, so left out the chicken. Was hungry shortly after, so any ideas on how to add some protein? Also, it was very liquidy even after I added cornstarch to thicken. Will definitely make again!!
How about tofu? The liquid would need to be adjusted a little when leaving out the chicken :)
Too bad the recipe doesn’t say when to add the scallions.
Thank you so much for telling me about this error! I’ve fixed it :) You add the scallions at the end with the basil. Enjoy!
I made this tonight in the crockpot and the noodles turned to total mush :-/ did you actually try making this recipe all 3 ways? I would recommend adding the noodles within the last 10 minutes cooking. Will try again….
Hi Kim,
Yes, I did actually make this recipe all three ways.
There are two sets of crockpot directions in this post – they both say to add the noodles at the last 15 minutes of cook time. I’m sorry you missed that.
My husband and I love this one and the kids like the noodles! Comes together really quick after the chopping!
Hi
Thanks for the recipe. I’m planning to make it today. Not sure how the points are calculated. For the WW purple plan almost all the ingredients listed are 0, including the whole wheat noodles. Only the honey has points so it should maybe be 1 point a serving. Just wanted to make sure I’m not missing anything. Thanks again.
Hi there! You are totally correct. We are actually having some discrepancies with the counts right now and are trying to determine where the error is–1 purple point is correct for this!
Can this recipe be doubled in the instant pot?
I made it once and everyone devoured it! I want leftovers! LOL
Hey Kris! I’m so glad everyone loved it! Yes, it can be doubled. I’d double the liquid (because the noodles need it to cook), but don’t worry about doubling the time :)
How can you make this recipe gluten free? What kind of rice noodles would you use and how would that change the recipe?
I’d look for rice based noodles instead of wheat, and I’d cook them for 1/2 the amount of time as listed on the package, minus two minutes :)
I made this tonight and I may have messed it up. The grocery store didn’t have bok choy so I substituted it with Swiss chard. I also had a ton of liquid leftover. This was my first time using my Ninja Foodi pressure cooker and when I went to quick release it, it’s like I had to hold it for it to properly vent. Any ideas what could have happened?
Swiss Chard should have been fine! Did you use wheat pasta? That could have been it. And for your Foodi it sounds like maybe you didn’t turn it all the way to release?