In just 15 minutes, you could be enjoying this DELICIOUS super saucy sesame soba noodle salad. It’s a favorite for busy weeknights, meal prep, hot weather AND is easy to adapt to whatever you have in the fridge. Plus, it’s gluten-free and vegan.
Tossing fresh, crunchy veggies through super saucy noodles is ALWAYS a good idea in my mind! This is the kind of meal I rely on in summer when I really can’t face turning on the oven, but it’s equally fab for any time of year. I also love to take it along to potlucks and cookouts or to serve as an easy side when entertaining.
This is one of those recipes that you can absolutely make your own once you know how to make the base. Use green beans, edamame, broad beans, peas, asparagus, shredded cabbage, red peppers, onion, baby corn or sugar snap peas…it’s a great way to get lots of veggies in.
It’s also a fab make-ahead meal because it keeps SO well once it’s mixed. I love to make a batch on Sunday to enjoy throughout the week.
Along with adding more vegetables, to add more protein, you could throw in some shredded cooked chicken (this miso grilled chicken or sticky gochujang chicken would be great), grill some halloumi and add that in or flake in cooked salmon (try this miso grilled salmon).
Ingredients
- Soba noodles. These are made from buckwheat flour, which means they’re gluten-free, so they’re fab for anyone with a gluten intolerance. I also actually prefer them to regular egg/flour noodles because they have more flavor and a satisfying bite. They should be easy to find in the grocery store, but if you can’t find them, you could use udon noodles or regular wheat noodles instead. PRO TIP: Not all soba noodles are gluten-free, so make sure you check the ingredients to ensure there’s no wheat flour in them if you are cooking for someone with an intolerance.
- For the sauce. I’m using a combination of nutty tahini (or use unsweetened peanut butter), sesame oil, chili oil, light soy sauce, rice vinegar (use white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar if you don’t have any), chili jam), garlic and ginger.
The noodles and sauce are mixed with DELICIOUS marinated smacked cucumber (this uses similar ingredients as the sauce does, minus the tahini) as well as blanched broccolini to create a super satisfying, saucy salad.
How to make it
Start by smacking the cucumber and tossing it through a marinade. The method of smacking cucumber, as well as being super therapeutic, makes lots of little craggy bits in the cucumber that the marinade can cling to.
Soba noodles often have a reputation for being a little tricky to get right. They can end up gummy or sticky, rather than lovely, glossy noodle strips ready to be tossed in a sauce.
The hack for getting them right is to plunge them in cold water after they’re cooked, and then give them a little scrunch/massage in the water. This action removes the excess starch (which can make them stick and go gummy in texture). It seems weird, but it works.
Chop the ends off the broccolini (or broccoli) and slice into bite-sized pieces. I like cutting them small so that they’re easier to mix in with the noodles. My favorite, lazy hack for blanching vegetables is to pour boiling water on top of them and let them sit for a couple of minutes. Blanching vegetables like broccolini cooks them so they’re not raw, but they’re still lovely and crunchy.
Make that magical sesame tahini sauce, then toss everything together. Scatter with extra sesame seeds, scallions, cilantro and chili oil, then serve.
Got a question?
You can keep these in the fridge for 3 days, in a sealed container. It’s a great make-ahead meal.
Udon would be a good alternative to the soba noodles here and they’ll last for the same amount of time in the fridge. You could even use spaghetti to make this if you like.
I think the salad is hearty enough by itself, especially for lunch. But if you do want to bulk it out, it pairs well with salmon (try miso grilled salmon) or chicken (take a look at sticky gochujang chicken or miso chicken). It would also be delicious with sweet chili glazed halloumi.
This is a super customizable recipe. You could use asparagus, cauliflower, green beans, edamame, broad beans, peas, spinach, red peppers, onion… All of those would be delicious in this, so you can improvise based on what you have in your fridge or freezer.
Like this recipe? Here are more make-ahead salads to try
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! You can leave me a comment below.
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Saucy Sesame Soba Noodle Salad
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Diet: Vegan
Description
In just 15 minutes, you could be enjoying this DELICIOUS super saucy sesame soba noodle salad. It’s a favorite for busy weeknights and meal prep and is easy to adapt to whatever you have in the fridge. Plus, it’s FAB for hot weather.
Ingredients
For the sauce –
- 1/4 cup tahini (or use unsweetened peanut butter)
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or tamari)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (or use white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon sweet chilli jam
- 1 tablespoon chilli oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger
For the salad –
- 1 cucumber
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon chilli oil
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 2 scallions (spring onions), chopped finely
- Handful of cilantro (coriander), chopped
- 200g/7oz dried soba noodles
- 100g/3.5oz tender stem broccoli (or use regular broccoli)
To serve –
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 scallion (spring onion), thinly sliced lengthways, and put in a glass of water to curl up
Instructions
- Make the smacked cucumber. Chop the ends off the cucumber and lay it out on a flat surface. Using a rolling pin, whack the cucumber, moving up and down until it cracks. Slice in half lengthways, then scoop out the seeds and discard them. Slice into long strips, then dice into small cubes. Transfer to a mixing bowl along with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of chili oil and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar. Using a microplane (or garlic press) grate or crush the garlic clove directly into the bowl. Mix the cucumber through the sauce and then set aside.
- Make the sauce. In a large mixing bowl, combine ยผ cup tahini, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons sesame oil, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon chili oil, 1 tablespoon sweet chili jam and 1 tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds. Using a microplane or fine side of a grater, grate in the 2 garlic cloves and ginger. Mix the sauce vigorously with a fork.
- Cook the noodles. Get a pot of water over a high heat on the stovetop and bring to the boil. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions (probably for 5 minutes). While theyโre cooking, prepare a bowl of cold water. After 5 minutes, drain the noodles in a colander, then plunge into the cold water. Often, soba noodles can be sticky or gummy once cooked. The trick to avoiding this is to rinse and squeeze them in a bowl of cold water after cooking. This removes the excess starch and will stop them from sticking together. Give them a good scrunch for 30 seconds with your hands, then drain again. Repeat the cold water squeezing again, then drain in the colander again and set aside for any excess water to drain out.
- Blanch the broccolini. Get the broccolini in a large, heatproof bowl. Boil your kettle, then pour the boiled water into the bowl so that the broccolini is covered. Leave for 2 minutes, then drain in a colander, rinse with cold water and set aside.
- Mix the noodles. Add the drained soba noodles to the mixing bowl with the sauce, along with the smacked cucumber, broccolini, chopped scallions, cilantro and sesame seeds. Toss everything together really well to make sure the noodles are coated in the sauce. Divide between plates, then top with more toasted sesame seeds and the curly scallion strips.
Notes
STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: This is a great make-ahead salad. You can assemble the whole thing and then store it in a container in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. It will last well for 4 days.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS: This is a meal in itself, but you can bulk it out with some sticky gochujang chicken, miso grilled chicken or miso salmon. Adding sweet chilli glazed halloumi slices on top would also be delicious.
SUBSTITUTIONS: If you don’t have soba noodles, udon is a great alternative. Play around with your veggies – green beans, edamame, peas, sugar snap peas, zucchini or asparagus are great additions.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 5
- Category: salads
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: asian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 350g
- Calories: 560
- Sugar: 5.7g
- Sodium: 1912mg
- Fat: 28.1g
- Saturated Fat: 3.2g
- Carbohydrates: 65.9g
- Fiber: 3.8g
- Protein: 16.1g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
Made this for lunch today – was so delish!! And really easy too
Yayyyy I’m so pleased you enjoyed it!!
So mouth watering, the flavours are delish with the miso chicken.
Yayyyy so happy you enjoyed and that’s a fab combo!! Perfect flavours together x