Buttered Shirataki Noodles

Shirataki noodles are a delicious low-carb alternative to pasta. In this simple yet flavorful recipe, they are buttered and topped with Parmesan.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 5

Total Time 20

Servings serving

Calories 151kcal

Open the shirataki package and pour its contents into a colander. Rinse the noodles under cold running water, then drain them in a colander.
Heat a clean, dry, medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer the noodles to the hot skillet and dry-roast them (adding no oil to the skillet), stirring, for 1-2 minutes, until they are visibly dry and make a squeaking sound when moved in the skillet. This step will eliminate some of their rubbery texture and help them better absorb the sauce.
Add the butter to the skillet. Thoroughly mix it into the shirataki, coating the noodles evenly. The noodles look much better now. They started out translucent-white and slimy, turned into a more opaque white after dry-roasting, and now, covered in butter, they are golden and smell great!
Add the salt, pepper, and garlic powder, mixing them evenly into the noodles. Turn the heat off and mix in the parmesan. Serve immediately.

These noodles are not for everyone. I suggest you start with a small amount and see how you react, digestively speaking.
A rich, European-style butter is best in this simple recipe.
You really do need to rinse and drain the noodles and toast them in a dry skillet. These steps remove the noodles' fishy smell and rubbery texture and help them better absorb sauces.
I started making this recipe in 2014. As I write this update in 2025, I am happy to report that a recent package of these noodles did not smell fishy. The package still recommends rinsing the noodles, but the step of boiling them was removed, so I removed it from my recipe, too. You can still see me doing it in the video.
To make this a complete meal, add a cup of cooked and flaked salmon (use this baked salmon recipe) or cooked and shredded chicken (use this baked chicken breast recipe).
You can add a cup of veggies such as mushrooms or spinach. I recommend cooking them separately and then mixing them into the noodles. These sauteed mushrooms are delicious, and so is this recipe for sauteed spinach.
You can keep leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them in the microwave, covered, at 50% power. I don't recommend freezing the leftovers.