Asian Noodle Salad
Asian noodle salad with spicy peanut dressing is a colorful and healthful lunch that works great for meal prep. This cold noodle salad is also perfect for a picnic!

Can I just tell you guys how much I love this Asian noodle salad recipe? It’s one of my very favorite weekday lunches ever, and it also travels really beautifully to the beach or on a picnic (I’ve done both!).
And since this cold noodle salad recipe was originally published in 2013, so many of you have shared my love for it! It’s one of the most popular recipes on this blog.
I think we all love it because it’s a little something different than the typical green salad. As much as I love fresh greens with miso salad dressing or miso ginger dressing, I need to change it up every once in awhile. And who doesn’t love something Asian-inspired, like wonton nachos or Korean meatballs?
Even though there aren’t salad greens, this Asian pasta salad is absolutely PACKED with vegetables. It’s an easy way to eat a ton of veggies without it feeling like a chore (just like my carrot cake smoothie). All of the colors make it a feast for the eyes, too.

This Asian noodle salad can be served in a bowl or in jars:
Toss this cold noodle salad together and serve it up right away in a big, beautiful serving bowl, or pack it into a tupperware container for your picnic tomorrow (my acini de pepe pasta salad is also great for a picnic).
Or, you can build the noodle salad in layers, in mason jars, to “meal prep” for your lunches throughout the week.
Just like with a mason jar taco salad, the dressing goes in the bottom of this Asian pasta salad.
Then, the noodles go in. That means the noodles basically marinate in the dressing as the jars sit in your fridge, making them super flavorful when you finally un-cap that jar and dump it into a bowl.
The veggies sit on top of the noodles, staying crisp since they’re not covered in dressing.
To keep the rice noodle garnish crispy, simply put the rice noodles in a small ziploc bag, and either squeeze that bag into the jar above the veggies, or pack it separately.

Since this post was originally published I’ve received LOTS of questions about it, and I’m happy to answer them. I’m providing an “Asian Noodle Salad Recipe FAQ” below:
How long does this cold noodle salad last?
Unlike my fried goat cheese salad, which needs to be eaten immediately, this Asian noodle salad recipe stays fresh up to five days in the fridge. I highly recommend sprinkling the rice noodles on JUST before you eat.
What kind of noodles do I use for this Asian pasta salad?
My absolute favorite kind of noodles to use for this Asian noodle salad recipe is Ka-me brand Soba Stir-Fry Noodles. I love their flavor and texture. They have a bit of a chew to them and don’t get too mushy, even after being tossed with dressing for a few days.
The noodles I use for this Asian noodle salad recipe are pictured in the photo above, which I hope will make it easier for you to find them in the Asian section of your grocery store.
The Ka-me noodles are packaged and sold fully cooked, and need just a few minutes in the microwave to loosen them up before tossing with the rest of the salad ingredients.
If your store doesn’t carry these noodles, you can use dried soba noodles or whole wheat spaghetti for this cold noodle salad. I recommend 8 ounces of dried noodles, prepared according to package instructions.
Why use peanut butter for this Asian noodle sauce? Can I substitute something else?
Peanut butter isn’t just the star of the show in desserts like my apple rose tart. I frequently use peanut butter as an emulsifier in salad dressings. The flavor works especially well in Asian-style salads. The peanut butter allows the oil and vinegar in this Asian noodle sauce to come together into one harmonious substance.
Tahini (sesame seed paste) is another good option in place of the peanut butter for these Asian noodles. Extra tahini can be used to make a tahini dressing for a green salad.

What is sambal oelek? Can I use sriracha instead?
Sambal oelek is an Asian chile paste made with raw red chiles, vinegar and salt. You may have seen it before as the spice in my spicy coconut risotto.
It’s found in the Asian food aisle of most grocery stores, right near the sriracha. If you can’t find sambal oelek, you can use the same amount of sriracha to make the dressing in this Asian noodle salad recipe.
Don’t be nervous about buying a jar of sambal oelek for these Asian noodles – it’s a super versatile ingredient! It can be used to make tomato ramen, shrimp wonton soup, and tofu pizza.
If you buy sriracha for this Asian noodle sauce instead, it can also be used in chicken sloppy joes, Asian pulled pork, buttermilk chicken marinade, and orange ginger chicken.
Can I make the dressing for these Asian noodles more mild?
If you’d like a dressing without any spiciness at all, you can simply leave the sambal oelek out of this Asian noodle sauce. However, if you do this, the dressing might be a touch on the too sweet side from the peanut butter.
So if you are leaving out the sambal oelek, I recommend adding 1 teaspoon of grated fresh ginger to the cold noodle salad dressing to balance out the peanut butter flavor a little bit in this Asian pasta salad.
Can I add protein to these Asian noodles?
Sure! I recommend adding roasted or grilled chicken, sautéed shrimp, or cubed tofu if you’d like to add more protein to this salad. I also love serving it alongside Instant Pot sweet and sour chicken or bourbon glazed salmon.

I can’t find edamame at my supermarket. What else can I use?
Snow peas or sugar snap peas are a great substitute for edamame in these Asian noodles. If you like eating these types of peas raw, you’re welcome to add them raw to this Asian pasta salad.
Or, you could quickly cook (blanch) them to make them a bit more tender. To do that, I recommend following this how to blanch and freeze sugar snap peas tutorial, steps 1 – 4 (you just won’t be freezing them!).
Cut snow peas or sugar snap pea pods in half crosswise before adding to the salad, for easier eating.
And heads up – if you have extra bell peppers after making this salad, try my fajita veggies.
Where do I find crunchy rice noodles?
You’ll also (hopefully) find these in the Asian aisle of your supermarket. I used La Choy brand crunchy rice noodles for this Asian noodle salad recipe.
You can also look for chow mein noodles, which are a little thicker, but just as crunchy and delicious.
Alternatively, you can top this cold noodle salad with chopped up peanuts for crunch, and skip the crunchy noodles altogether.
Is Asian noodle salad vegan?
As long as you ensure that whatever brand of soba noodles and crunchy rice noodles you buy are vegan, this cold Asian noodle salad recipe is vegan!
At the time of this writing, to my knowledge, the Ka-Me noodles and La Choy crunchy noodles I’ve recommended above for these Asian noodles are vegan.
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Asian Noodle Salad
Asian noodle salad with spicy peanut dressing is a colorful and healthful lunch that works great for meal prep. This cold noodle salad is also perfect for a picnic!
Ingredients
- 1 package (14.2 ounces) soba stir-fry noodles (see Home Chef Tip)
- 1 cup frozen shelled edamame
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons sambal oelek or sriracha
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons black sesame seeds
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 cup crunchy rice noodles
Instructions
- Prepare noodles and edamame according to package instructions. Rinse under cold water and drain well.
- In large bowl, whisk together peanut butter, sambal oelek, soy sauce and vinegar. While whisking, slowly drizzle in olive oil until all oil is incorporated. Stir in sesame seeds.
- Add onions, bell pepper, carrots, noodles and edamame to bowl with dressing; toss until well combined.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate up to 5 days. Just before serving, sprinkle salad with crunchy rice noodles.
Notes
Home Chef Tip: I use Ka-me brand soba stir-fry noodles, which are sold fully cooked, and need just a few minutes in the microwave to loosen up before tossing with the rest of the salad ingredients.
If your store doesn't carry these noodles, you can use dried soba noodles or whole wheat spaghetti. I recommend 8 ounces of dried noodles, prepared according to package instructions.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 476Total Fat: 39gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 31gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 843mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 5gSugar: 5gProtein: 10g


I love this type of salad, but since I need to eat low carb it won’t be happening for me. By the way, sambal oelek is from the island of Java in Indonesia.
Hello Lori!
Wow these tasty and yummy jars are looking very delicious, I hope all the readers will love this interesting and amazing article. Thanks for sharing this article with all of us
My boyfriend absolutely loves this recipe! The spicy peanut dressing is delicious and works perfectly with the soba noodles. Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Thank you so much, Lexi! The dressing is my favorite part 🙂
Just wondering how good you are in those recipes. I layered some shredded chicken between the noodles and veggies for extra protein, and stored the crispy chow mien noodles in a separate container so they didn’t get soggy. Well, Thanks for sharing!
I prepped this recipe for the week and oh my goodness I am obsessed. I subbed crushed peanuts in lieu of crunchy rice noodles (couldn’t find them at the grocery store), and ate it within 5 minutes! I loved how veggie-heavy it was without using greens as a base, the soba noodles helped to keep it a little more interesting than a standard salad
I am so glad to hear that, Jess! Now you’re making me want to make this for lunches next week 🙂
This is one of my favorite recipes to prep for the work week. I love how everything stays fresh and crisp! I usually add a bit of fresh garlic to the dressing along with some sesame oil. Thanks for posting!
Yum! Sometimes I add sesame oil, too 🙂 So glad these jars help you get through the work week, April!
Hi. For the dressing I always use tahini (sesame paste) as emulsifier – which is on texture the same as peanut butter and make dressing nice thick. You can also buy sweetened Tahini with honey as well.
Love the tahini idea, Anumati!
What is sambal oelek? I am seeing it when I google as a hot sauce … would siracha work in its place?
Sambal oelek is made by the same brand that makes the most famous sriracha. But yes, sriracha will work in place of sambal in this recipe!
Do you think powdered peanut butter would work?
Hi Jen – I’ve never tried it with powdered peanut butter, so I’m not sure. I know that in the original recipe, the peanut butter acts as an emulsifier in the dressing between the oil and the vinegar. I’m not sure if powder would function the same way.
These were fantastic! Will definitely make them again. I double the recipe and made them in quart size mason jars (instead of pint size) and added mixed greens on the top to buff it up a little. Thanks for posting!
Hi Madeline – So glad these were a hit for you. Thanks for stopping by!
What can I sub for the Soba noodles? Not a big fan of noodles. I like the dry noodles though.
Hi David – this recipe was really created with noodles in mind. How about zucchini noodles?
Every single one looks wonderful…………
Hi, may I know what brand of crunchy noodles you used for this salad? And where you can get them?
Thank you!
Hi Charmaine – I used La Choy Chow Mein Noodles. I actually found them in my grocery store, but looks like you can get them on Amazon, too: http://amzn.to/2sU6a8n
I loved this salad, especially because it looks all cute and colorful in a jar! I’ll have to try your other salad jar recipes now!
Thank you so much, Giddy!
I made these for lunches this week and they were so good! I layered some shredded chicken between the noodles and veggies for extra protein, and stored the crispy chow mein noodles in a separate container so they didn’t get soggy (also because between the noodles, chicken, and veggies, my mason jars were stuffed to capacity).
Thanks for the great recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these, Sara. I love the addition of shredded chicken! I’m actually making a (plated) version of this salad this week for dinner, and adding shrimp.
I made these without noodles and used romaine instead and added chicken, and i didn’t have any of the sambal oelek, but added a little sesame oil instead. but the dressing is AMAZING and I love these so much! I’m pretty sure I could just drink the dressing straight.
I’m just having one now from being packed and in the fridge since Monday night, and still crisp and delicious! I like to keep my dressing separate in baby mason jars, so i can have some leftover for anything I might want it for!! This combo all makes it work for 21dayfix as well!!
I’m so glad these turned out well (and fit into your nutrition needs, too) Amy. The dressing is by far my favorite part. I’m addicted to that combo of flavors!
Made this for my weekly lunch yesterday and just devoured the first one! Can’t wait for the next three days. I couldn’t find pint sized mason jars so used tupperware. I was worried it wasn’t going to fill me up but so far so good!
I’m so glad you loved them, Cassie. Tupperware or jar, it really doesn’t matter. The important thing is you have lunches for the week! Woot woot!
Omg this salad is my absolute new favorite! <3
So glad to hear that, Alissa! I just made myself another batch of these jars earlier this week, actually 🙂
Are the crispy rice noodles the kind used for chow mein?
Yes, I think they are the same kind, Melanie! These were La Choy brand, if that helps.
Hi!
Where did u get the crispy rice noodles from? Any particular brands?
Hi Jasmine! I found them in the Asian section of my grocery store, with the soy sauce, stir-fry sauces, etc. I think they were La Choy brand!
I’m really excited to try this 🙂 But I can’t seem to find edamame in our local supermarket. Can you suggest any alternatives?
Hi Andy! Snow peas or sugar snap peas would be a great substitute, if you can find those. I would just cut them in half crosswise for easier eating. Hope that helps!
this salad sounds amazing but I cant handle spicy foods at all 🙁 is there any way to make the sauce more mild? should I just leave out the sambal oelek?
Hi Megan! Yep, you can definitely just leave out the sambal. The sauce might be a touch on the sweet side from the peanut butter, but if you’d like, you could add a touch of ground fresh ginger to balance out the peanut butter flavor a little bit. Hope you like it!
This is one of the most delicious lunches ever. I’m actually looking forward to eating the same thing all week. Thanks so much for sharing!
I’m so glad you thought it was delicious, Danielle! I think something about that peanut sauce is addictive, because I feel the same way – I can eat this four days straight and not get tired of it 🙂 Happy New Year!
Hi George – I’d recommend plugging it into an app like My Fitness Pal.
These look great. Do the rice noodles get soft or soggy over a few days? Might hold them aside in a zip lock. Thanks!
Hi Nancy! Thanks so much for stopping by. I used soba noodles for my jars, and I’ve found the texture to be ok even after sitting in the fridge for a few days. But, if you’re sensitive to soggy noodles (I get it), you could even put the noodles as the top layer so that they aren’t sitting in the dressing (of, like said, keep them in a ziploc). Enjoy!
What size mason jars?
Hi Julie – these are pint-sized mason jars 🙂
These are so colourful! Sounds like they’re more than pretty if the veg stays crisp too 😉
I’m really enjoying have a look around your blog btw 🙂
So glad to have you here, Natalie. And thank you so much 🙂
I really really enjoyed this salad. I prefer a bit more dressing so I doubled the recipe. I’m also big on texture and found this to be a bit too crunchy. Adding in some mandarins gives an unexpected sweetness and helps to balance the crunchiness.
I hope this helps…. thanks for sharing this great easy and tasty recipe!
So glad you enjoyed this. Love the additions of mandarins!