A noodle is food made from unleavened dough that is cooked in a boiling liquid. Depending upon the type, noodles may be dried or refrigerated before cooking.. Noodles exist in an abundance of shapes. The first written account of noodles is from the East Han Dynasty between AD 25 and 220.
Basic noodles: These are cooked in water or broth, and then drained. Other foods can be added (example a pasta sauce ) or the noodles are added to other foods (fried noodles or lasagna) or the noodles can be served plain with a dipping sauce or oil to be added at the table.
Chilled noodles: are sometimes served in a salad. An example is the Thai glass noodle salad yam woon sen. Traditional Japanese noodles such as soba and somen are often served chilled with a dipping sauce. Some western dishes like pasta salads also call for cold noodles.
Fried noodles: dishes made of noodles stir fried with various meats, seafood or vegetables. Typical examples include chow mein, lo mein, mee goreng, hokkien mee, some varieties of pancit, yakisoba and pad thai.
Noodle soup: noodles served in broth. Examples are phở, beef noodle soup, ramen, laksa, saimin and batchoy, and chicken noodle soup.