This Asian Noodle Salad with thinly sliced red cabbage, julienned carrots and radishes in spicy peanut dressing is ideal for picnics, barbecues or a delicious work lunch. The best part is it could be made ahead as it keeps well in the fridge and becomes even more flavourful!
If you like this Asian noodle recipe, serve it with my Salmon and Bok Choy for a delicious dinner.
I will admit I love a good and satisfying salad in the summer. The time of the year when all I want to do is relax and read a book. Preferably on a beach. Long cooking sessions are never a part of that plan.
Fortunately, this salad doesn’t need one. Prep the noodles and veg, coat in the tasty dressing, and you’ll have a salad that fits perfectly with those chill summer vibes!
Cold Asian Noodle Salad
This noodle salad contains delicious Asian flavours and won’t make you slave away in the kitchen. It’s quick to make and is served cold, so fuss free all around.
Bonus feature. Unlike most Asian takeout options, it is relatively light on calories.
This salad is also chock full of vegetables and herbs, that up that satisfying crunch and flavour we expect in a salad.
What goes into it
This salad recipe is pretty simple and utilises the most basic ingredients which most people stock up on.
- Asian egg noodles or spaghetti
- red cabbage
- carrots
- radishes
- cilantro
- green onions
- sesame seeds
- spicy peanut dressing
Since most vegetables in this Asian noodle salad are quite hardy, they need to be sliced as thinly as humanly possible. Use mandolin or a food processor for slicing if you can, or a very sharp knife and a steady hand.
The rest is self explanatory. Slice all the vegetables, cook the noodles and combine with the dressing while still warm. Then toss everything together once then noodles are cooled.
Spicy peanut dressing
The key to the most delicious noodle salad is in the spicy peanut dressing, which is quite straightforward to make. Here is what ingredients you will need to mix up.
- chunky peanut butter (You can use smooth peanut butter but I prefer the texture that comes with the crunchy kind)
- soy sauce
- rice vinegar
- sesame oil
- honey
- ginger
- garlic
- sriracha sauce or dried chilli flakes
The dressing is what takes this salad to the next level. The rich nuttiness of the peanut butter is cut with salty spice that I know you are going to love!
Recipe tips and notes
- If you want the salad dressing flavour to stick to your noodles, combine the two when the noodles are still hot. Then add the rest of the ingredients after the noodles have been chilled. This way the flavour gets absorbed into the noodles rather than just sitting on the surface.
- This salad uses vegetables like radish and cabbage which need to be cut as thinly as you can. Using a mandolin or food processor would be ideal, both because it is much faster and it’ll help to achieve a very thin slice. If you don’t have either of these, use a sharp knife and slice the vegetables as thinly as you can.
- Egg noodles should be available in any major supermarket but if you struggle to find them, you can substitute with Ramen noodles, vermicelli or spaghetti.
- Almond or cashew butter can be used in place of peanut butter.
Serving suggestions
I’m quite happy to eat this salad as a meal all on its own, but that’s far from the only way to enjoy it. It’s great with fish such as this Asian salmon recipe for a delicious dinner.
But I do think this salad is at it’s best when served as part of a barbecue. It goes perfectly with pretty much any grilled meat. I personally recommend these lovely marinaded chicken breasts or chicken satay.
Or serve it with burgers of any sort. This includes salmon, chicken or beef!
Storage and leftovers
One of the best things about this salad is that it can be made in advance. This makes it a great option for a barbecue or when company is coming over because time spent in the kitchen can happen in advance.
If you do make the salad in advance, keep it stored in your refrigerator in an airtight container. It’ll keep for 4-5 days.
More delicious Asian noodle recipes
- Filipino Noodles with Pork and Shrimp Pancit Canton
- Thai Noodles with Chicken
- Chilli Salmon Mee Goreng (Malaysian Fried Noodles)
- Simple Yakisoba Noodles
- Spicy Peanut Noodles with Cabbage and Carrots
Asian Noodle Salad in Peanut Dressing
Ingredients
For the Asian Noodle Salad
- 150g/6oz medium egg noodles
- 1 large carrot, julienned thinly
- 5 radishes, sliced thinly
- ⅓ of cabbage head/3 cups red cabbage
- 10g/1/4 cup cilantro
- 2-3 green onions, sliced
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
For the Peanut Dressing
- 2 tbsp chunky peanut butter
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar or any other plain vinegar
- 4 tbsp soy sauce I use Kikkoman
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 clove garlic, pressed
- 2 tsp Sriracha sauce or 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
Instructions
- Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions. (Asian noodles cook faster than Italian pasta, so take care not to overcook.)
- Meanwhile in a small bowl combine the chunky peanut butter, honey, rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce, Sriracha sauce, grated fresh ginger and pressed garlic. Drain the noodles and put them in a large salad bowl. Then pour the peanut dressing over the hot noodles, so they can absorb the flavour properly. Cool until room temperature.
- While the noodles are cooling, prepare the vegetables but slicing the red cabbage very thinly, using a mandolin slicer if available. Then cut the carrot into thin julienne, slice the radishes thinly. Slice the green onion and chop the cilantro.
- When the noodles are at room temperature add the sliced red cabbage and radishes, julienned carrots, green onion, cilantro and sesame seeds. Toss to combine.
Video
Notes
- If you can’t find egg noodles, you can substitute with Ramen noodles, vermicelli or spaghetti.
- Almond or Cashew Butter can be used in place of Peanut Butter.
