Asian Noodle Salad is an easy oriental pasta salad filled with fresh vegetables and tossed in a sesame soy dressing. Asian Pasta salad is a perfect side dish for outdoor entertaining or can star as a light main course.
This delicious cold noodle salad is perfect for pot-lucks and picnics, just like Bacon Ranch Potato Salad, Old Fashioned Baked Beans, and Homemade Brownies.
I think I have shared with you a time of two that my kids prefer raw veggies to cooked vegetables 9 times out of 10.
There are exceptions to the rule like with my Healthy Pasta Primavera or Easy Veggie Stir Fry or when they are baked into treats like Carrot Cake Muffins, BUT typically my kids beg for raw veggies.
So whenever I can make a dish filled with fresh vegetables that my kids beg for, you better believe I will put that recipe on repeat.
Asian Noodle Salad
Take this easy vegetable pasta salad with an sesame dressing.
This Asian Noodle Salad is filled with fresh broccoli, carrots, peppers, sugar snap peas and tomatoes. And my kids LOVE it!
And I love that this easy Asian Pasta is so versatile.
- Perfect for outdoor events–no mayo, so can sit out at room temperature safely for hours.
- Perfect for any season–carrots, broccoli and peppers are easy to find year round so you don’t have to wait for summer to make this oriental pasta salad.
- Kid-friendly–any veggie heavy dish kids love works for me!
- Make a great meatless meal–the whole wheat noodles are filled with fiber and a good dose of protein, making this Vegetarian Asian Pasta perfect for a summer meal or even a great lunch option.
- Travels Well–I often pack this sesame noodle salad for my kids lunch as it can be eaten cold or room temperature.
How To Make Oriental Cold Noodle Salad
It is incredibly simple to make this Asian Pasta Salad. The only thing that is time consuming is chopping the vegetables—of course you could always buy pre-chopped vegetables and this pasta salad would come together with almost no effort.
Step One: Make the Sesame Dressing
This simple sesame dressing is the perfect balance of sweet and savory and can be made in just a few minutes of time by whisking the ingredients together.
Step Two: Prepare the Pasta
- Cook pasta according to package directions in heavily salted water.
- Once cook time is done, drain pasta, but do not rinse.
- After draining the pasta, immediately toss the noodles with the sesame dressing–this allows the warm noodles to soak up the dressing then add your vegetables.
PRO TIP: DO NOT rinse pasta. Warm pasta will absorb whatever it is tossed with. If you rinse with water, then it will lack flavor. By tossing your pasta with the sesame dressing, the pasta will have flavor. If you have ever had a bland pasta salad, my guess is they rinsed the pasta with water. That dooms pasta salads from the start.
Step Three: Prepare the Vegetables
You can pick and choose any vegetables you like.
- Sliced carrots
- Sugar snap peas
- Chopped broccoli florets
- Sliced yellow or red peppers
- Sliced grape tomatoes
- Steamed Edamame
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Shredded cabbage
PRO TIP: If your family prefers crisp-tender vegetables over raw vegetables, add the broccoli, sugar snap peas and carrots to the boiling water for the last 3 minutes the pasta cooks.
Step Four: Toss everything together and Serve
- Add vegetables to pasta salad and toss to combine.
You can serve this pasta immediately, and have a contrast of warm and cold flavors–or you can refrigerate and let the flavors marry and deepen in flavor and serve after several hours or up to 3 days later.
Notes on Asian Pasta Salad
- Any pasta shape can be used, but I do recommend a whole wheat pasta for extra fiber and protein. Feel free to use a gluten-free pasta if you need this Asian Noodle Salad to be gluten-free (just remember to use gluten-free soy sauce in the dressing as well).
- I use honey in my Sesame dressing, but you can use brown sugar to make this a vegan pasta salad. This is one occasion I would not recommend using maple syrup, as the flavor is a bit overpowering.
- This dressing uses a tiny bit of sesame oil–a little bit goes a long way. Be sure to store unused sesame oil in the fridge to keep it from going rancid.
- If you don’t have rice wine vinegar, use fresh lemon juice.
- Save your carrot peels, broccoli stems, and other vegetable scraps to make homemade broth.
- If your Asian Pasta salad is a bit dry before going to serve it (this can happen if you wait several days before serving), add a teaspoon of rice wine vinegar mixed with a teaspoon of soy sauce and toss with the pasta salad to moisten it up.
More Pasta Salad Recipes
Asian Noodle Salad
Ingredients
For the Asian Pasta Salad
- 1 pound whole wheat spaghetti noodles
- 3 cups fresh broccoli florets chopped
- 1 cup yellow pepper slices
- 1/2 pint grape tomatoes halved
- 2 cups sugar snap peas
- 3 carrots sliced on the diagonal
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, optional
For the Sesame Dressing
- 1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, and garlic together. Set aside.
- Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions and then drain.
- Toss pasta with sesame dressing and add in vegetables to toss.ย
- Top with sesame seeds if desired and serve immediately or refrigerate 4-8 hours for flavors to develop and pasta to cool.
Notes
- Use any shape pasta desired.
- To make this gluten-free, use gluten free pasta and gluten-free soy sauce (tamari)
- Use any vegetables you like.
- If you don't have rice wine vinegar, use fresh lemon juice.ย
- Keeps for 3-4 days in fridge.ย
I love the Summer season for recipes like this one! Cold salads are totally my jam!
I LOVED the flavors in this salad and will definitely be making it again!
I tried your recipe last night and loved it! Can’t wait to make it again!
One of my favorites! Love this recipe.
So happy to hear that!
I actually love the warm and cold contrast of flavors and textures – so GOOD! Great recipe!
I agree Jenn!! Thanks so much
This salad tastes so fresh and delicious. I love how easy it is to make, it’s the perfect summertime salad.
YAY!! We love to enjoy it on summertime picnics!