Thai Salad with Peanut Dressing

I’ve been wanting to add more plant based meals to my diet, but eating the usual salad or noodles can get boring quickly. This salad is a fun way to switch things up by incorporating Thai flavors with freshly chopped vegetables, chewy noodles and creamy peanut dressing.

I’m a visual eater and try to make my salads as colorful as possible, that also means there are more veggies and more nutritional benefits! The cabbage, red bell pepper, carrots and radishes add a nice crunch to each bite. While the cilantro and scallions add a fresh herbal note and the salted peanuts add a rich nutty flavor.

The true star of this salad is the SAUCE! If you haven’t noticed, we love sauces because they tie everything together in a dish. This peanut salad dressing is an explosion of flavor – it’s sweet, savory, spicy and tangy!

Easy Button:

• Make the dressing ahead of time and store in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
• If you’re serving this later in the day cut up all the veggies and toppings but wait to toss until right before serving.
• Leftovers will wilt a bit but still great for a meal the next day.

Pairs With: This salad can be made more hearty by adding extra protein, we personally love adding tofu or pairing it with grilled shrimp.

Serving Size: 6 servings

Ingredients

Salad

• 6 oz dry udon round noodles (You can use your favorite noodles: soba, linguini, spaghetti. Click here for the noodles we use)
• 2 cups red cabbage finely chopped
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1 cup sliced radishes
• 1 red bell pepper finely sliced
• 1 cup edamame (you can buy this frozen and cook per the package)
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 cup scallions chopped
• 1/2 cup salted peanuts crushed
• 1 jalapeño or red fresno chili pepper finely chopped (optional)

Peanut Dressing

• 2 tsp grated ginger
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• 1 lime zested and juiced
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp chili garlic sauce (click here for our favorite brand, you can also substitute in sriracha)
• salt to taste (we recommend 1/2 tsp-1tsp)

Instructions:

1. Cook noodles according to the package. Once cooked drain and run under cold water to cool them off and transfer to a large serving bowl.
2. Cook the frozen edamame according to the package. Also like the noodles, run under cold water to cool them off.
3. Top the noodles with sliced red cabbage, shredded carrots, sliced radishes, sliced red bell pepper, edamame, scallion, and jalapeño or red fresno chili pepper.
4. In a blender, mix together: ginger, garlic clove, water, peanut butter, lime zest and juice, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, chili garlic sauce and salt until it’s smooth.
5. Once ready to serve top the noodle mix with cilantro and peanuts and gently toss together the ingredients and then pour the peanut dressing over the top and toss again to combine all the ingredients.
6. Enjoy!