Cold Noodle Salad Sesame-Ginger (Printable Version)

A vibrant cold salad with chilled noodles, fresh vegetables, and a zesty sesame-ginger dressing.

# Needed Ingredients:

→ Noodles

01 - 8.8 oz dried soba noodles or rice noodles

→ Vegetables

02 - 1 medium carrot, julienned
03 - 1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced
04 - 1 cucumber, seeded and julienned
05 - 3 spring onions, finely sliced
06 - 1.8 oz red cabbage, thinly shredded
07 - 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

→ Sesame-Ginger Dressing

08 - 3 tbsp soy sauce
09 - 2 tbsp rice vinegar
10 - 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
11 - 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
12 - 1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely grated
13 - 1 garlic clove, minced
14 - 1 tsp Sriracha or chili sauce (optional)
15 - 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

→ Toppings

16 - 2 tbsp roasted peanuts or cashews, roughly chopped
17 - 1 tbsp additional sesame seeds

# Steps:

01 - Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook noodles according to package directions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside to cool completely.
02 - Julienne the carrot, thinly slice the red bell pepper, seed and julienne the cucumber, finely slice the spring onions, and shred the red cabbage. Set all vegetables aside.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, honey or maple syrup, freshly grated ginger, minced garlic, and Sriracha if using. Stir in toasted sesame seeds.
04 - In a large mixing bowl, toss the cooled noodles, prepared vegetables, and chopped cilantro. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well to coat evenly.
05 - Divide the salad into serving bowls. Sprinkle with roasted peanuts or cashews and additional sesame seeds for garnish.
06 - Serve immediately, or refrigerate for 1 hour to allow flavors to meld before serving.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It comes together in under 30 minutes and tastes like you've spent way more effort than you actually have.
  • The noodles can be prepped hours ahead, so it's perfect for meal prep or dinner parties when you want to relax instead of stress.
  • It adapts beautifully—add shrimp, chicken, tofu, or keep it vegetarian; swap any vegetable you have on hand.
02 -
  • Cooling the noodles completely is not optional—warm noodles will wilt your vegetables and make the dressing separate and look unappetizing; I learned this the messy way.
  • Seeding the cucumber genuinely matters because that excess water will dilute your dressing and turn everything into a soggy mess by the time you eat it.
  • Make the dressing just before serving unless you're prepping ahead, because the ginger flavor gets aggressive if it sits too long, and nobody wants an overly spicy dressing that drowns out everything else.
03 -
  • Toast your own sesame seeds in a dry pan for exactly 2 minutes if they taste bland—that makes a dramatic difference in the final flavor and costs almost nothing.
  • Taste the dressing before it goes on the noodles because ginger strength varies so much between batches, and you want to adjust the balance to your preference.
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