This cold noodle salad is a delicious recipe bursting with flavor! It’s served with indulgent, creamy nut dressing made of peanuts, walnuts, and pecans.

If you now me, you know how vocal I am about my aversion to salads. Not all salads of course, just the ones that should really only be served as a side. But switching to a plant-based diet meant that side salad was often my only option in a restaurant or at a social gathering.

Ever since then, I have been on a mission to prove that salads can be filling, flavorful, and full of color. This cold noodle salad is served with a three-nut dressing, which provides it with earthy, nutty flavor along with sweet, zesty notes. And did I mention the texture? It is to die for! The noodles are combined with fresh, crunchy veggies, including carrots and red cabbage. Together, it’s like a work of art – and the colors attest to that.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • The flavor profile is inspired by Southeast Asian dishes. Imagine a Thai takeout, but in a form of salad!
  • This is the kind of salad that will keep you satiated. It has a great source of carbs (rice noodles) and a hearty nut dressing, making sure you don’t feel hungry in another half an hour.
  • Did you know that this cold noodle salad could contribute to a longer lifespan? That’s right, eating brightly colored vegetables such as carrots, purple cabbage, red bell peppers and green onions can make you live longer. That’s because plants contain pigments known as phytonutrients, responsible for the vibrant colors of your fruit and veggies. They come with various benefits, from antioxidants to increased nutrient absorption.
  • This is a great meal prep option! You can keep the dressing separate, or mix everything together – there is nothing in this salad that can wilt once you’ve prepped it.
  • It’s naturally gluten-free, as long as you use rice noodles or glass noodles. I highly recommend making this salad with flat Pad Thai noodles!

How to Make This Recipe

The dressing is fairly simple to make. You just need to remember to soak the nuts in advance. That way, the dressing comes out creamy and smooth. Add peanuts, walnuts and pecans to the blender, along with a peeled orange (or orange juice), maple syrup, water, garlic and soy sauce. Blend until you get a smooth, nutty dressing with an even consistency.

Depending on the type of noodles you’re using, you may need to do some extra prep. I used Pad Thai rice noodles, so I made sure to soak it in hot water to soften them. You’re welcome to buy ready-to-use noodles, too. If you have to cook your noodles, wait for them to cool down before you add them to your salad.

All that’s left is to chop and dice your veggies, add them to a bowl with noodles and dressing, and voila!

Hack It!

  • You can use almost any type of noodles. I used flat rice noodles, but you can also use rice vermicelli, glass noodles, sweet potato noodles, and more! Those were just the gluten-free options! You can also enjoy this cold noodle salad with cooked ramen noodles or udon, provided you’re not allergic to gluten.
  • As you can tell, the dressing features nuts quite extensively. But don’t worry, you can still enjoy this cold noodle salad with the ginger tahini dressing, hummus caesar-style dressing, or one of PlantYou oil-free dressings.
  • You can very easily modify this salad by adding or swapping veggies. Don’t have any purple cabbage? Try it with napa cabbage! Ran out of bell peppers? How about fresh beansprouts! Craving something spicy? Add some chilli flakes!
  • If you don’t have a blender, you can still make the delicious nutty dressing using nut butter, orange juice, warm water, and minced garlic (or garlic powder). Easy-peasy.

Other Recipes You’ll Love

For even more healthy, plant-based recipes, check out the PlantYou Planner! It’s a digital meal planner that features over 500 delicious vegan recipes! Every recipe, from breakfast and lunch, to Christmas dinner and Valentine’s dessert, can be adjusted to make enough servings for your household size. What’s more, you can take advantage of the autogenerated shopping list you can take with you to the store.

And in case you haven’t heard, the PlantYou Cookbook has finally been released! It features 140+ recipes that are guaranteed to make your plant-based lifestyle easier and more colorful! Thank you so much for your support, it wouldn’t have been possible without my PlantYou famil!

Cold Noodle Salad

The Recipe: Cold Noodle Salad With Nut Dressing

A delicious cold noodle salad with a creamy dressing made up of peanuts, pecans and walnuts.
5 from 33 ratings

Ingredients

3 Nut Dressing

  • ¼ cup peanuts, soaked for 3 hours
  • ¼ cup walnuts, soaked for 3 hours
  • ¼ cup pecans, soaked for 3 hours
  • 1 orange
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • ¼ cup water , from the soaked nuts
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce

Salad

  • 6 oz noodles, I used rice vermicelli pad thai noodles
  • 1 cup parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 carrot, ribboned
  • 1 green onion, diced
  • 1 cup red cabbage, diced

Instructions 

  • Add all dressing ingredients to a blender, along with 1/4 cup of the water that the nuts were soaking in.
  • For the salad, add all remaining ingredients to a bowl, and pour the dressing over top. Combine until everything is mixed thoroughly.
Calories: 245.5kcal, Carbohydrates: 33.1g, Protein: 8.5g, Fat: 9.8g, Saturated Fat: 1.1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4.5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3.6g, Sodium: 524.6mg, Potassium: 388.3mg, Fiber: 4.2g, Sugar: 7.3g, Vitamin A: 3399.8IU, Vitamin C: 60.1mg, Calcium: 63mg, Iron: 2mg
Nutty Rainbow Noodle Salad