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    Home > Recipes > Pasta and Noodles

    Sesame Noodle Salad

    Published: Jun 29, 2020 · Modified: Aug 29, 2022 · by Jess Smith · Jump to Recipe · 7 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links.

    28.0K shares
    Sesame Noodle Salad
    Spaghetti in a Colander on a white table
    Ingredients for Sesame Noodle Salad on a white table
    6 jars of sesame noodle salad on a white table
    Sesame Noodle Salad in a clear bowl with 2 large spoons
    Sesame Noodle Salad in a clear bowl
    Sesame Noodle Salad in a clear glass bowl
    Mason Jar Sesame Noodles on a white table
    Sesame Noodle Salad

    Sesame Noodle Salad

    Great warm or cold, Sesame Noodle Salad features springy noodles in a creamy, savory, peanut sauce. These flavorful noodles are better than take-out and can be made ahead as meal prep or to serve as a side dish at your next potluck. 

    Last week was absolute chaos at our house - starting with the discovery that our basement was filling with water from what, we discovered, was the pipe running from our kitchen sink and all the way under the basement floor. The cast iron pipe had completely collapsed. If you’ve ever had this happen (and I’m told that many people have), you know that it was a messy, loud, and expensive problem to fix. And we were without a working kitchen sink for almost a week and a half which, around here, is a rather significant problem. 

    As we all have to do when life throws us those proverbial lemons, we muddled through. There were more take-out orders than usual, more than one meal of Instant Pot Mac and Cheese, and quite a few big batches of chilled salads we could serve for lunch or dinner. This Sesame Noodle Salad was a clear winner for all five members of our family, as I hope it will be for yours. My kids loved the peanut flavor in the rich sauce, and I loved that it was easy to “sneak” some vegetables in alongside the noodles.

    cabbage, carrots and green onions on a white plate on a white table

    It’s worth noting too, that Sesame Noodle Salad is potluck perfection. If you’re looking for something different to set out and serve, this is unexpected but holds up great to making ahead and serving at any temperature. 

    Here’s how to make it. 

    Ingredients for Sesame Noodle Salad

    • Spaghetti - Spaghetti noodles hold up well to the rich sauce and vegetables here. Soba noodles, ramen noodles, or udon noodles would be great too.
    • Red Cabbage - Red cabbage adds a nice color and crunch to the noodles. Green cabbage would work just fine as well.
    • Carrots - Like the cabbage, these add great texture, color, and flavor. 
    • Sesame Peanut Sauce - This creamy, savory, slightly sweet sauce is made with Asian pantry staples. See below for more details on how it's made. 
    • Green Onions - These add some fresh herb flavor to the finished noodles. Fold them in right before serving. Cilantro would also be great. You can skip this if needed.
    • Roasted Peanuts - Buy roasted peanuts and roughly chop them to add great crunch over the finished noodle salad.
    • Chicken - Totally optional but if you want to add some protein, try this with shredded cooked chicken. Cubed and seared tofu is great on this too!

    Ingredients for Sesame Noodle Salad including noodles, peanuts, chicken, carrots, cabbage and green onions

    How to make Sesame Peanut Sauce 

    This savory, slightly sweet Sesame Peanut Sauce is everything. Make it by combining soy sauce, rice vinegar, creamy peanut butter, fresh ginger, white sugar, and garlic in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave it just until the peanut butter melts, about 1 minute. Whisk in sesame oil until the sauce is smooth and creamy. 

    If you like your sauce spicy, add some Sriracha or another hot sauce!

    This recipe was tested with commercial (JIF) peanut butter. It will work with natural peanut butter, but those often are less sweet and salty than the commercial varieties, so taste your sauce and add some additional sugar or salt, if needed.

    Sesame noodle salad in a mason jar on a white table

    How to Finely Shred Cabbage and Carrots

    One key feature of this noodle salad is that it gets crunch, flavor, color, and nutrition from shredded cabbage and carrots. To make the salad easy to eat, you have to make sure that the vegetables are shredded finely enough to be about the same width as the cooked spaghetti strands. That means you need to pay close attention to how you shred them.

    To easily shred cabbage and carrots, use the shredder attachment on a food processor, a box grater, or a mandolin.

    cabbage and carrots in a food processor

    Make-Ahead Sesame Noodle Salad 

    This is one of my potluck favorites because it can be easily made ahead. Combine the noodles, grated cabbage and carrots, and sauce. Store in the refrigerator for up to a day. Add the green onions and peanuts right before serving. 

    Sesame Noodle Salad in a clear bowl with 2 large spoons

    More Variations

    • Gluten-Free - Make this gluten-free by using gluten-free noodles (gluten-free spaghetti or soba noodles) and Tamari instead of soy sauce.
    • Add Protein - Fold in cooked chicken or seared tofu to make this a complete meal. 
    • Change the veggies - Try it with thinly sliced red bell peppers or chopped cucumbers.

    Mason Jar Sesame Noodle Salad

    This makes a great mason jar meal for meal prep, to pack for lunches, or just to easily serve in individual portions. Pack the jars with dressing on the bottom, then noodles, and vegetables on top. Store the peanuts on the side so they stay crunchy and just add them to the salad when you're ready to eat it.

    6 jars of sesame noodle salad on a white table

    More Potluck Favorites

    • Caprese Skewers
    • Slow-Cooker Brown Sugar Baked Beans
    • Instant Pot Italian Pasta Salad
    • Pasta Salad Skewers
    • Greek Pasta Salad with Feta, Tomato, and Kalamata Olives
    • Bacon, Corn, and Avocado Salad

    Favorite Tools

    • Anchor 3-Piece Glass Mixing Bowls 
    • Cutting Board
    • Box Grater, Cuisinart Food Processor, or a Mandolin
    • 16-oz Mason Jars
    Sesame Noodle Salad in a clear bowl
    Print Recipe
    4.03 from 46 votes

    Sesame Noodle Salad

    Great warm or cold, Sesame Noodle Salad features springy noodles in a creamy, savory, peanut sauce. These flavorful noodles are better than take-out and can be made ahead as meal prep or to serve as a side dish at your next potluck.
    Want to adjust the size of this recipe? Click on the number next to “servings” and use the slider to scale up or down.
    Prep Time15 mins
    Total Time15 mins
    Course: Pasta / Noodles
    Cuisine: Asian
    Keyword: make-ahead meal, pasta salad, potluck recipe
    Servings: 6
    Calories: 315kcal
    Author: Jess Smith via Inquiring Chef
    Cost: $4.00

    Equipment

    • Microwave Safe Bowl
    • Mixing Bowl
    • Cutting Board
    • Knife
    • Food Processor, Box Grater or Mandolin

    Ingredients

    Sesame Peanut Sauce

    • 5 tablespoon Soy Sauce
    • 3 tablespoon Creamy Peanut Butter (I used regular JIF peanut butter, but natural peanut butter should work)
    • 2 tablespoon Rice Vinegar
    • 2 teaspoon grated Fresh Ginger
    • 1 teaspoon White Sugar
    • 2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
    • 2 tablespoon Sesame Oil

    Noodle Salad

    • 8 oz Spaghetti, uncooked (see note)
    • 4 oz Red Cabbage, finely shredded (see note)
    • 4 oz Carrots, finely shredded (see note)
    • 2 stalks Green Onions, finely sliced
    • ¼ cup Roasted Peanuts, chopped

    Instructions

    • Cook pasta: Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain (do not rinse). Allow pasta to cool for about 10 minutes.
    • Make sauce: Combine soy sauce, peanut butter, rice vinegar, ginger, sugar, and garlic in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute, just to soften the peanut butter and heat the mixture. Remove from microwave and whisk until smooth. Stir in sesame oil.
    • Combine: Combine cooked spaghetti, shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, and sauce until evenly combined. (At this point, the noodles can be refrigerated up to a day before serving.)
    • Top and serve: Just before serving, stir in green onions. Top noodles with roasted peanuts. Serve noodles warm or chilled / room temperature.

    Notes

    Spaghetti - Measure the dry pasta by weight (8 oz is usually half a package of spaghetti). Many other types of noodles are great here - soba noodles, ramen noodles, or udon noodles.
    Cabbage / Carrots - I think it’s worth pulling out the food processor and using the shredder attachment to shred the cabbage and carrots together. It makes quick work of shredding. You can also use a mandolin or box grater, but just make sure the vegetables are very finely shredded since they will be served raw in the salad.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 923mg | Potassium: 333mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 3408IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 1mg

    *This post contains affiliate links*

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    28.0K shares

    About Jess

    Hi! I'm Jess. I am the recipe creator and photographer behind the 900+ recipes you’ll find on Inquiring Chef. As a mom to three young kids and professional cook, my mission is to make every moment in the kitchen and around the table count. If you’re looking for easy, flavorful, family-approved recipes, you’ve come to the right place! Learn more about me here.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Hilary

      July 02, 2020 at 3:46 pm

      5 stars
      Delicious! I might swap honey for the sugar next time.

      Reply
      • Jess

        July 02, 2020 at 7:23 pm

        Great idea - I think that would be a great swap!!

        Reply
    2. Sybille Stahl

      January 03, 2022 at 7:11 pm

      2 stars
      I found this rather harsh. I have baby mouth, I guess.

      Reply
      • Jess Smith

        January 27, 2022 at 8:52 am

        Interesting - thanks so much for the feedback. Was it the spiciness from the ginger you think? This does call for a large amount of ginger.

        Reply
    3. Jackie Criss

      April 17, 2022 at 9:48 pm

      5 stars
      I love this recipe! I added chicken and all the chopped up veggies I had in the fridge. It’s the perfect way to use up any leftovers you have. I’ll double the recipe for the dressing next time just because I added so many extra veggies and chicken. Thanks for sharing

      Reply
      • Jess Smith

        April 18, 2022 at 12:44 pm

        So glad you enjoyed it!

        Reply
    4. Lindsey

      August 29, 2022 at 11:54 am

      4 stars
      Like the recipe but next time I am going to dial back on the rice vinegar it was way too much for my taste.

      Reply

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