I love dinner-sized salads. Not only are they quick to put together, but they are also healthy and delicious. This Asian-inspired tempeh noodle salad is fresh and flavorful. It is a 30-minute recipe that is perfect for picnics, barbecues, and busy weeknights.
The inspiration for this recipe came from a need to create a way to feature homemade tempeh. Even if soy isn’t something you typically enjoy, soybean tempeh is worth trying out. The fermentation actually turns the soybeans into a complete protein!
However, tempeh doesn’t always have to be made from soy. I like to play around with other types of bean tempeh. And if I’m being honest, sunflower seed tempeh is my absolute favorite. It’s so deliciously nutty!
Switch up the recipe!
This tempeh noodle salad is a great base for all sorts of different toppings and ingredients. Here are a few ways to switch up this salad:
- Noodles: Switch out the rice noodles for buckwheat soba
or edamame noodles
.
- Vegetables: Use any fresh vegetables that you have in your kitchen. Add microgreens like radish sprouts or sunflower seed sprouts. Replace the colored peppers and cucumber with other firm vegetables like carrots, beans, and sweet peas.
- Protein: Change the tempeh for stir-fried tofu or toasted peanuts.
- Flavors: If you don’t have all the specialty ingredients in your larder, feel free to replace them with something similar. For example use cider vinegar instead of rice vinegar, vegetable oil for sesame oil. If you’re not into heat, skip the sriracha. Personally, I like to up my selenium intake with a 1/4 cup of soaked wakame
(affiliate link.)
or edamame noodles
.
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Tempeh Noodle Salad
This Asian-inspired salad is a fresh and healthy meal. The recipe is easy to adjust to whatever vegetables you have in your fridge. Use tempeh, tofu, or peanuts for a delicious and filling meal. See the section above for more suggestions on how to adjust the recipe to suit your taste buds.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4–6 1x
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Asian
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Dressing
- 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
- Juice and zest of 2 limes
- 2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1–2 tsp sriracha
- 3/4 tsp salt, to taste
Salad
- 1 small package of rice noodles (about 300 g)
- 1 colored pepper, diced
- 1 cucumber, diced
- 1 package of tempeh
- Cilantro leaves and toasted sesame seed
Instructions
- Mix all of the salad dressing ingredients together in the bottom of a large bowl.
- Dice up the vegetables and mix with the salad dressing to marinate.
- Cook the rice noodles according to the package. When they are done, rinse with cold water.
- Taste the salad and adjust the salt, vinegar, and sriracha as needed. The salad can be plated before you even start to cook the tempeh.
- Chop the tempeh into strips or bite-sized pieces. Fry on medium heat until warmed through and browning.
- Add the tempeh to the salad and serve immediately with a pinch of with cilantro and sesame seeds.
Keywords: vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, soy-free, nut free, dairy free, egg free, spring, summer, picnic, barbecue, potluck, 30 minutes or less
I just recently became vegan, and this is a goto quick meal after work. Which sriracha recipe do you suggest? I’d like to give making that a try too sometime.
★★★★★
I’m working on a fermented siracha recipe… however, there are a few different ones that you could try making on the web. I can’t recommend a particular one, but I’m sure google can! 🙂