Asian noodle salad - spaghetti or linguine pasta tossed with snap peas, sliced red bell peppers and smothered with peanut dressing made with sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, garlic, fresh ginger and toasted sesame seeds!
Light, refreshing, crunchy and easy-to-make salad (or dinner), anyone? When I first found this cold Asian noodle salad recipe (with homemade peanut sauce salad dressing, of all things!), it was love at first sight. After I've finally made it and have been eating it for 3 days in a row now, I am head over heels!
You'll go crazy over this peanut sauce salad dressing - it's what makes this Asian noodle salad so flavorful and delicious! I found that the proportions of the salad dressing ingredients are pretty accurate and hardly need any adjustment, but feel free to add just a touch more of peanut butter (if you like it more peanut buttery), more honey (if you want the dressing sweeter), or just a touch more soy sauce (to make it saltier). You can even use crunchy peanut butter if you want to add the tiny nuts to make the salad even crunchier!
This recipe is both vegetarian and vegan: crunchy veggies, soft noodles, very flavorful Asian-inspired dressing - so yummy, you wouldn't be able to stop eating it! This Asian noodle salad is perfect for lunch, dinner, or snack!
Asian Noodle Salad with Peanut Dressing
Ingredients
Peanut Salad Dressing:
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ cup dark sesame oil
- ¼ cup rice wine vinegar
- â…“ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 teaspoon ginger , grated or ¼ teaspoon dried ginger
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds , toasted, divided
- ½ cup creamy peanut butter such as JiF
Asian Noodle Salad:
- 1 pound spaghetti or linguine
- 1 pound sugar snap peas
- 2 red bell peppers , cored and seeded, and thinly sliced
- 4 green onions , sliced
Instructions
How to make peanut salad dressing:
- In a medium bowl, combine and whisk together the vegetable oil, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, honey, garlic, ginger, 2 tablespoons sesame seeds and peanut butter. Optional: if your sauce is to thick, add a little bit of water at a time to reach the desired consistency (maximum ¼ cup of water).
How to make Asian noodle salad:
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti (or linguine) and cook according to package directions. Drain, rinse under very cold water (to stop cooking), drain again and set aside.
- Bring another pot of salted water to a boil, add the sugar snap peas, and cook for about 5 minutes, until peas are crisp tender. Drain, rinse under very cold water (to stop cooking), drain again and set aside.
- Combine the noodles, sugar snap peas, rec bell peppers and green onions (scallions) in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the noodle-veggie mixture. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds and toss together.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Scrump-dilly-icious! I am SO looking forward to trying this recipe. Ever on a quest for the perfect peanut dressing for an Asian salad. Thank you!
You do know that honey is not a vegan ingredient as it is unrightfully collected from bees that are forced into tight spaces where they are used for their honey. According to vegansociety.com, "Honey is made by bees for bees, and their health is sacrificed when it is harvested by humans. Importantly, harvesting honey does not correlate with The Vegan Society's definition of veganism, which seeks to exclude not just cruelty, but exploitation." Hope that clears things up.
This is soooo yum! I used wholemeal vegan pasta (no eggs) and substituted the honey with agave so it's a vegan dish.
Thanks for this amazing recipe!
Don't use Jif peanut butter. Use 100% peanut brand like Adams.
Can you make this dressing a week or so in advance? I'd love to make this on vacation (we won't be near a grocery store), but this is a lot of ingredients to pack.
This dressing can definitely be made in advance! Best used at room temperature!
Is it possible to substitute the spaghetti or linguine with rice noodles...friends are vegan and won't eat pasta because it is made with eggs? Thank you. Looking forward to trying this salad
Of course, you can! I use rice noodles regularly and they work great with Asian flavors!
Jif = fail
Do you have a calorie count on this recipe? Looks great but counting calories!
Don't have calorie count yet - but here is the site where you can easily paste the ingredient list and get the calorie count: http://caloriecount.about.com/
Is this recipe freezer friendly?
Sarah, I haven't tried freezing it. It refrigerates well that's for sure - I've been eating the leftovers for 3 days now by reheating this salad in a microwave for about a minute.
What a tasty looking Asian noodle salad! I love toasted sesame seeds!
I noticed... you always make GREAT noodle recipes! This sounds delicious. I love snap peas and I must try this noodle with peanut butter base sauce!