This healthy vegan noodle salad is the quick dinner you'll crave at the end of a long day. Ready in under 20 minutes, rice noodles, edamame, and veggies are tossed with an easy ginger-miso dressing. Vegan, oil-free, and gluten-free.
As we move into warmer weather, my opinion on cold pasta salad recipes is that you can never have too many! Last week I shared this Creamy Orzo Pasta Salad, and now we're switching gears to rice noodles and Asian-inspired flavors. Dishes like these are just so versatile, whether you need something to take to a backyard cookout or an easy, comforting dish for dinner. Noodles to the rescue!
The main goal with this Ginger-Miso Noodle Salad is to get a flavorful, healthy, easy meal on the table in record time! This noodle salad rocks that mission because:
- rice noodles cook in just 5 minutes
- carrot, frozen edamame, and corn cook in the same pot with the noodles
- the fresh ginger-miso dressing is whisked together in a bowl; no special equipment required
Instead of the white Pad Thai noodles pictured here, in the final recipe and other photos I opted for the brown rice variety by the same brand. Both are delicious!
Prep Flow
While the water heats for the noodles, dice a carrot, peel a thumb-size piece of ginger, and zest half of a lime.
Toss the rice noodles and carrot into the pot. When the water returns to a boil, add the shelled edamame. Since it's frozen it will cool the water down a bit, so allow the water to return to a boil again before adding the frozen corn.
While the noodles and veggies finish cooking, whisk together the dressing ingredients:
Lime juice and zest, if using
Tamari
Mellow white miso
Freshly grated ginger
Sweetener of choice
Rice vinegar
Garlic
Drain the rice noodles and veggies in a colander and rinse very well with cold water. This keeps the noodles from sticking together and also lowers the temperature.
And just like that, you're ready to assemble and serve this cool, ginger-y, vegan noodle salad! Chop some green onion, and gather the fresh spinach, cabbage, or any other crunchy, salad-type green you like.
Toss the noodles in the ginger-miso dressing, and serve it with greens and freshly cracked black pepper.
For varying color and texture, I like to arrange both spinach and cabbage on my plate, then top it with a healthy pile of rice noodle salad.
Options and Serving Tips
If you're into spicy foods, try a drizzle of sriracha on top, or add crushed red pepper to the dressing.
Having trouble finding rice noodles? No problem! Use any type of noodle you like - spaghetti, angel hair, linguine, or any gluten-free variety.
In case you haven't noticed, this recipe is very light. Not only is it oil-free, but it has zero added fat. This is partially what makes it so appealing as a summer potluck dish or an easy dinner on a warm night. But if you're sharing it with family members who have big appetites, you might want to add some fat for the additional calories. Serving it with avocado, sesame seeds, peanuts, or cashews is an easy way to accomplish that. You can also whisk a couple of tablespoons of nut or seed butter into the dressing for added richness.
Heck, maybe the lightness of this dish is a bonus because it leaves more room for dessert!
Check out these sweet treats:
Peanut Butter Brownies
Oil-Free Banana Brownies
Healthier Peanut Butter Cookies
The nutty flavor and toothsome texture of edamame is one of my favorite things about this meal. And paired with the subtle sweetness of corn and carrot it's even more delicious!
I hope you enjoy this quick, weeknight-friendly Ginger-Miso Noodle Salad as much as we do. If you try it I would love to hear from you. Be sure to leave a comment and star rating below to let us know how it turned out!
You might also like:
Thai-Inspired Vegan Larb
Creamy Orzo Salad With Broccoli Rice (oil-free)
Carrot-Ginger Hummus (oil-free)
Oil-Free Ginger-Turmeric Dressing (Trader Joe's copycat)
Ginger-Miso Noodle Salad (vegan, oil-free, gluten-free)
Ingredients
- 8 ounces rice noodles I used brown rice Pad Thai noodles.
- 1 large carrot, peeled and diced
- 2 cups frozen shelled edamame
- 1 cup sweet corn kernels, frozen is fine
- zest from half a lime, optional This adds significantly more lime flavor than the juice, so use it if you're a fan!
- 2 tablespoons lime juice From about 1 lime.
- 2 1/2 tablespoons tamari Sub soy sauce or shoyu if GF isn't needed.
- 2 tablespoons white miso
- 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger About a small thumb-size piece of ginger root.
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup, agave, or cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 large clove garlic, minced or grated Or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder.
For serving:
- 1/4 cup chopped green onion
- 4 ounces fresh baby spinach
- 1/4 head green cabbage, chopped, optional
- black pepper
Instructions
- Heat a large pot of salted water for the noodles. Check the instructions on the noodle package; cook time for rice noodles is typically around 5 minutes. Add noodles and carrot to boiling water, and cook for 1 minute. Stir occasionally to prevent noodles from sticking.
- By the end of the minute the water should have returned to a boil. Add the edamame to the pot, stir, and set timer for 5 minutes. As soon as the water returns to a boil, add the corn. Once noodles are tender, drain in a colander. Thoroughly rinse with cold water to lower the temperature and prevent the noodles from sticking. Drain well.
- In a large serving bowl whisk together the lime zest and juice, tamari, miso, ginger, sweetener, rice vinegar, and garlic. Add the cooled noodles and veggies to the serving bowl and toss with the dressing. Top with green onion.
- Arrange spinach and cabbage, if using, on individual serving plates, top with noodle salad, and serve with pepper.
Useful Equipment
Hi, I'm Lori. I share approachable vegan recipes, everything from gluten-free and oil-free recipes to decadent, veganized classics!
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