Vegan Garlic Chili Oil Pasta with Smoky Pecans

This quick vegan chili garlic pasta is my take on viral chili oil noodles. This recipe features perfectly cooked spaghetti tossed in an incredibly flavorful sun-dried tomato chili garlic oil and topped with candied smoky pecans. An easy weeknight dinner that can be prepared in just minutes! Gluten-free & nut-free option included! 

Chili oil pasta or noodles have been popular on social. In this quick & easy vegan chili garlic oil noodles recipe , I use perfectly cooked spaghetti which is tossed in an incredibly flavorful chili garlic sundried tomato oil mix, and then is topped with smoky pecans for the crunch and protein! I also use less oil( 1 tbsp instead of cups) and use pasta water to increase the volume of the dressing.

Topped with fresh chopped herbs and sprinkled with a smoky-bacony candied pecan topping, these spicy and garlicky noodles are simple but are loaded with so much flavor .

This easy vegan pasta is my modified take on the viral chili garlic oil noodles! This simple weeknight meal is so delicious and super quick to make.

Chopped sundried tomatoes added to the chili garlic oil adds amazing deep umami flavor and a punch of umami. Some smoky pecans add a pleasant crunch and up the protein of this easy weeknight dinner!

Why you’ll love this easy weeknight chili oil pasta

• it is packed with flavor
• it is simple and quick
• It can be made glutenfree with gf pasta and nutfree by using tofu or pumpkin seeds for the topping
• there’s no blending or much chopping needed

More easy vegan pasta weeknight dinner recipes:

• Cajun Pasta with crispy tofu
•  Garlic noodles
• One Pan Veggie Pasta
• Vegan Lemon Asparagus Pasta ; 30 mins
• Spaghetti with toasted garlic breadcrumbs and blistered cauliflower

Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Garlic Chili Oil Pasta with Smoky Pecans

This quick & easy vegan garlic chili oil pasta is my take on the viral chili oil noodles. This recipe features perfectly cooked spaghetti tossed in an incredibly flavorful sun-dried tomato chili garlic oil and topped with candied smoky pecans. An easy weeknight dinner that can be prepared in just minutes! Gluten-free & nut-free option included! 

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time25 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chili garlic pasta

Servings: 2

Calories: 671kcal

Author: Vegan Richa

Ingredients

For the pasta

• 8 ounce (226.8 g) spaghetti or linguini cooked to preference cooked according to instruction on the package

For the chili garlic topping

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried onion flakes
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes less or more to preference
• 2 tablespoons chopped sundried tomatoes, you can use dried or oil packed. If using oil packed, dab the excess oil off the sundried tomatoes so that they are easier to chop
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• ¼ cup or more of the pasta water

For the smoky bacon-y pecans:

• ½ cup (55 g) chopped pecans
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari for Glutenfree
• 2 teaspoons maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast

Instructions

• Make your spaghetti or linguini according to the instructions on the package in well salted water. Then drain and rinse with cold water and set aside
• Make the chili garlic oil topping:. Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add in the garlic and stir for a few seconds then add the rest of the ingredients and stir in and take off heat.
• Once the garlic is starting to turn golden, add in the pasta water carefully and mix in.
• Add this mixture to your pasta and toss well. I usually put the pasta in the serving bowls and then pour some of this chili garlic toping all over and then let people either toss it themselves or leave it as is so that there’s more concentrated flavor over the noodles.
• Make the bacony pecans: To a small skillet over medium heat add the pecans then cook until the pecans are starting to smell slightly roasted. 2-4 mins
• Add the rest of the ingredients and toss really well. (Add a few drops of liquid smoke for extra smoky ness, optional). Keep stirring until the mixture starts to thicken a little then take off heat. 1-3 minutes
• This mixture will continue to thicken and kind of candy the pecans a little bit. Once the mixture is warm to touch, sprinkle these pecans into pasta and serve. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley and flakes sea salt.
• Storage: store cooked pasta, chili garlic oil and pecans separately. Heat the pasta and chili oil separately and toss and serve garnished with the pecans and fresh herbs

Notes

For garnish some fresh herbs like parsley or basil, chopped and some flaked sea salt.

To make this into a hearty meal, add in some thinly sliced veggies or cooked beans or edamame.

To make this nut free, you can use some tofu instead of the pecans . Toss all ingredients into crumbled tofu.  instead of pan frying it, bake the tofu crumbles until they are crispy and use that as a topping.

To make this gluten free, use gluten free pasta.

Soyfree: use coconut aminos 

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Garlic Chili Oil Pasta with Smoky Pecans

Amount Per Serving

Calories 671 Calories from Fat 252

% Daily Value*

Fat 28g43%

Saturated Fat 3g19%

Sodium 198mg9%

Potassium 535mg15%

Carbohydrates 89g30%

Fiber 8g33%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 17g34%

Vitamin A 555IU11%

Vitamin C 6mg7%

Calcium 96mg10%

Iron 3mg17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Ingredients:

• I use spaghetti or linguini cooked to preference, cooked according to instruction on the package
• For the chili garlic topping we fry minced fresh garlic in oil
• to the fried garlic, we add dried onion flakes, red pepper flakes, sundried tomatoes, dried oregano and basil
• we reserve some pasta water to add to the sauce
• For the smoky sweet bacon-y pecans:, we caramelize chopped pecans with garlic powder, soy sauce or tamari for Glutenfree, maple syrup, smoked paprika and nutritional yeast

Tips & Substitutions:

• To make this nut free, you can use some tofu instead of the pecans. Toss all ingredients into the crumbled tofu.  Instead of pan frying it, bake the tofu crumbles until they are crispy and use that as a topping.
• To make this gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta.
• You can use dried or oil-packed sun dried tomato. If using oil packed, dab the excess oil off the sundried tomatoes so that they are easier to chop

Make your spaghetti or linguini according to the instructions on the package. Then drain and rinse with cold water and set aside

Make the chili garlic oil topping. Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add in the garlic and stir for a few seconds then add the rest of the ingredients and stir in and take off heat. Once the garlic is starting to turn golden add in the pasta water carefully and mix in.

Add this mixture to your pasta and toss well. I usually put the pasta in the serving bowls and then pour some of this chili garlic toping all over and then let people either toss it themselves or leave it as is so that there’s more concentrated flavor over the noodles.

Make the bacony pecans: To a small skillet over medium heat add the pecans then cook until the pecans are starting to smell slightly roasted. 2-4 mins

Add the rest of the ingredients and toss really well. Keep stirring until the mixture starts to thicken a little then take off heat. 1-3 mins

This mixture will continue to thicken and kind of candy the pecans a little bit.

Once the mixture is cooled to touch, sprinkle these pecans into pasta and serve.

For garnish I like to sprinkle on some fresh herbs like parsley or basil  and some flaked sea salt! Simple and so  delish!