Quick to make and without using any hard-to-get ingredients, this Asian Rice Noodle Salad simply oozes Asia. It is equally great cold (mainly raw) or warm (mainly cooked), making this a very versatile salad which doubles as a side dish.
To make otherwise bland rice noodles and simple vegetables taste distinctly Asian, I make use of what I call The Instant Asian Quintet: ginger, garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and toasted sesame oil. Put those five ingredients together and you have an instant Asian.
The Ingredients.
Noodles:
For this salad I prefer to use rice vermicelli, those very thin rice noodles. This is because these thin noodles soak up more of the sauce, allowing the flavors to fully penetrate the noodles instead of mainly coating them, which is what generally happens with the wider/thicker rice noodles. If all you can find is the wider variety you can of course use those instead, but you may feel a need to use a bit more sauce.
The noodles need to be briefly boiled before adding to the salad.
Veggies:
As for the vegetables, it really isn’t that important which kind you use. The important part is to julienne them or slice everything very thinly. I like to use a small tool which will easily julienne things like carrots and cucumbers or a spiralizer. I have pictured the tools I use below.
Julienne tool
Compact spiralizer
Heavy duty spiralizer
I always use a variety of different vegetables and always include carrots and onions, either thinly sliced red onion or chopped green onion. For this easy Asian rice noodle salad to truly stand out it is important to play around with textures. The noodles are themselves soft so try to incorporate more crunchy vegetables to balance it all out. And if you choose to cook the vegetables make sure you don’t overdo them. This salad is best when it has a bit of crunch.
Vegetables I like to use (apart from carrots and onions) include cabbage (and in particular heart cabbage), cucumber, green beans, bell peppers, and celery. Broccolini and asparagus also taste great in this salad as do various sprouts. Use what you already have at hand. Most vegetables can be eaten raw but green beans and asparagus, for example, need to be briefly steamed before adding to the salad. Broccoli, although it can be eaten raw, is one I also prefer to give a quick steam.
Flavors:
Asian flavors vary greatly, of course, but this particular combination – soy sauce, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar, and a bit of toasted sesame oil – always takes me back to Asia in a subtle yet defining way. It simply is a winning combination that never fails. Rice vinegar is pretty easy to find these days but if you don’t have access to that then I suggest using fresh lime juice instead. Toasted sesame oil is also quite common in most supermarkets these days. Unfortunately there really doesn’t exist a good substitute for toasted sesame oil so if you can’t find it just leave it out. And take note! Be sure to choose the brown toasted kind as this is the one which adds the flavor. The clear kind is virtually tasteless and is used for cooking, not for flavoring. As for the soy sauce, I always use the low-sodium kind to lessen the overall sodium load.
Fresh herbs are also important in many Asian dishes and this salad is no different. I absolutely adore fresh coriander (cilantro) but also know that a lot of people positively hate it! If you don’t like it just leave it out. Another herb I like to use in this salad is fresh mint. It adds a lovely freshness to the dish. Other herbs to use would be rucola (arugula), garlic chives, Thai basil or lemon thyme (go gently with this one). Even though I love fusion flavors, in this particular dish I prefer to not use herbs more common to Western cuisines. These include rosemary, thyme (except lemon thyme), sage, oregano, parsley, and Italian basil.
Temperature:
Like I mentioned at the top, this salad is equally excellent cold or warm. If you go for the cold version and include vegetables like green beans, asparagus, or broccoli then those need to be briefly steamed and cooled before adding to the salad. If you choose to serve this as a warm side dish, you simply stir-fry the vegetables until done (but still somewhat crunchy) before adding the cooked noodles, the sauce, and the fresh herbs.
Try pairing this salad with Sesame Crusted Tofu for a quick Asian inspired meal.
Enjoy!
Asian Rice Noodle Salad
Ingredients
FOR A COLD SALAD:
- About 100 grams Rice vermicelli noodles
- A large handful green beans, very thinly sliced (bimi/broccolini also work great)
- 1 red onion, halved and very thinly sliced
- 2-4 carrots, julienned or very thinly sliced length-ways, or spiralized
- 1/2-3/4 regular cucumber, julienned or very thinly sliced length-ways, or spiralized
- A 1/4 head of heart cabbage, very thinly sliced (regular white cabbage also works good)
- Other vegetables of your choice. See text for suggestions.
- A large handful fresh coriander (cilantro), roughly chopped
- A large handful fresh mint, finely chopped
- Other herbs of your choice. Rucola (arugula), Thai basil, green onions, or chives all work great. Chopped. Optional
Ingredients for the sauce:
- 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- A 1" (2.5 cm) long, piece of ginger, finely grated
- 1 large or 2 smaller garlic clove(s), minced
FOR A WARM SIDE DISH:
- About 100 grams Rice vermicelli noodles
- A large handful green beans, very thinly sliced (bimi/broccolini also work great)
- 1 red onion, halved and very thinly sliced
- 2 – 4 carrots, julienned or very thinly sliced length-ways, or spiralized
- 1 zucchini, julienned or very thinly sliced length-ways, or spiralized
- A 1/4 head of heart cabbage, very thinly sliced (regular white cabbage also works good)
- Other vegetables of your choice. See text for suggestions.
- 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or 1 tablespoon vegetable stock
- A large handful fresh coriander (cilantro), roughly chopped
- A large handful fresh mint, finely chopped
- Other herbs of your choice. Rucola (arugula), Thai basil, green onions, or chives all work great. Chopped. Optional
Ingredients for the sauce (same as for the cold salad):
- 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- A 1" (2.5 cm) long, piece of ginger, finely grated
- 1 large or 2 smaller garlic clove(s), minced
Instructions
TO MAKE A COLD SALAD:
- Briefly boil the noodles according to instruction on the package. Be sure to not overcook them. Drain well and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Make sure all the water has drained before transferring them to a serving bowl.
- Briefly steam the green beans until cooked but still crunchy. How long this takes depends on the type and age of the beans so you'll have to check them as they cook.* If you are adding other vegetables that require cooking, cook these at the same time. (See suggestions in the text). *
- Mix all the ingredients for the sauce together in a small bowl and set aside.
- Now add all the sliced/julienned/spiralized vegetables to the noodles and toss to mix well before adding the sauce and the fresh herbs. Make sure everything is well mixed before serving.
TO MAKE A WARM SIDE DISH:
- Briefly boil the noodles according to instruction on the package. Be sure to not overcook them. Drain well and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
- Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
- In a wok or large saucepan set over medium-high heat, heat a little extra virgin olive oil or stock and add all the julienned/thinly sliced/spiralized vegetables. Stir-fry for five to ten minutes until the vegetables have softened but still retain some crunch.
- Add the cooked noodles and stir-fry for a couple more minutes; then add the sauce and the herbs and stir to combine well. Stir-fry for another minute until everything is well mixed. Serve!
