Spicy Noodle Salad, A Pasta for All Seasons – Summer
Summertime! This is the PERFECT summer potluck dish, Spicy Noodle Salad. It can be made the night before, it keeps well, and it’s vegetarian, (yes, you can add a protein like chicken if you want). Peanut allergy? As much as peanuts are perfect in this salad, pine nuts make an excellent stand-in. I have made this so many times I’ve lost count, it’s my go-to-crowd pleaser recipe. Try it.
For those of you who HATE cilantro, I know it’s not your fault-it’s a genetic thing, I can’t think of a substitute BUT, lucky you, for a tasty noodle salad that doesn’t need cilantro, try Super Summer Somen Salad. Need a Gluten-free option, try this Pho-tastic Chicken Noodle Salad that calls for rice noodles!
Make this our own, needs to be more savory? Add an additional tablespoon of soy sauce. If you want a brinier taste try soy Dashi which starts with a fish base stock.
Enjoy!
Spicy Cold Noodle Salad
Ingredients
Dressing
- 4 T. corn oil
- 6 T sesame seed oil
- 2 t. crushed red pepper
- 6 T honey decrease by 1T if desired
- 4 T soy sauce
- 3 T rice wine vinegar
Ingredients
- 16 oz. angel hair pasta or any thin pasta, ie. capellini, somen noodles
- 4 T chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup chopped lightly salted roasted peanuts or honey roasted peanuts
- 1/2 cup sliced green onions 2 T for garnish
- 2 T toasted white sesame seeds you could throw in black sesame seeds too!
Instructions
- Heat pepper in oils over med/high heat for 1-2 minutes (the longer, the hotter! I usually half the amount of red pepper flakes called for). Cool oils, add honey and soy sauce and stir to combine. Cook pasta according to instructions. Do not overcook noodles! Pour sauce over noodles, add cilantro and onions and chill for 24 hours.
- Garnish with peanuts, sesame seeds and additional green onions before serving
- Perfect for summer! Toasted pine nuts or cashews can be substituted for the peanuts.
2 Replies to “Spicy Noodle Salad, A Pasta for All Seasons – Summer”
This is my new go-to summer pot luck recipe! Delicious, easy, uses accessible ingredients. Made it for a small BBQ gathering and it was a huge hit, even for the 1 year old! Omitted peanuts for allergy reasons and added a splash of extra soy sauce for more salt. Also took the cue to decrease honey by 1 tbsp.
I’m glad you liked it! It’s been a longstanding fav for us too!