Delicious Ramen Noodle Salad - A Taste of the Orient

  

 

Several years back, when I was serving a Mission as a Senior Missionary for my church, we often hosted a get-together with the younger serving Missionaries for the Fourth of July Holiday Not all of them were American of course, but they all seemed to enjoy getting together and celebrating this day with some good food and companionship. 

One year, one of them remarked ahead of time that he really missed his mother's Chinese Noodle Salad. What was I to do?  I love to spoil the missionaries with a little taste of home whenever I can. I just had to make the salad for him.  A quick search came up with several versions of what looked to be a very easy and delicious-looking salad. I hashed the best of them together and came up with this.  It was a hit!

Crunchy Ramen Noodle Salad is a delicious salad loaded with plenty of crunchy fresh vegetables and the surprise ingredient of crumbled uncooked dry Ramen noodles.  Toasted flaked almonds and sunflower seeds add additional texture and crunch. 

Everything gets tossed together in a wonderfully flavorful vinaigrette dressing.  Toasted sesame oil really adds a taste of the Orient!  

Not only is this a quick and easy-to-make salad, but it is exceptionally tasty. It also uses fairly simple ingredients that most of us have in the kitchen already, or that are not that difficult to procure. In the case that they might be, I have added some suggestions you can use in place, and I have also offered a few suggestions on how you can make some variations to the salad, possibly making it even more delicious than it is already!

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CRUNCHY RAMEN NOODLE SALAD

Just a few fresh ingredients and some store cupboard ingredients.  There is nothing too out of the ordinary here!

For the Salad:

• 1 (16-ounce) bags of coleslaw mix (see notes)
• 4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
• 1/2 cup (85g) of toasted flaked almonds
• 1/2 cup (60g) of shelled sunflower seeds
• 1 package of dry Ramen-type noodles, crushed

For the dressing:

• 1/3 cup (80 ml) of sunflower or canola oil (I use light olive oil)
• 1/2 TBS toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 cup (50g) of sugar
• 1/4 cup (60ml) of Chinese rice wine vinegar
• the seasoning packet from the noodles
• salt and pepper to taste

 

Coleslaw mix is a bag of vegetables that have already been prepared and are ready to toss together with a dressing in order to make coleslaw. It is a very popular ingredient here in North America and can be found in the salad aisle of the grocery stores. It usually contains shredded white cabbage, red cabbage and carrot.  Occasionally, it will also contain kale.

You can certainly prepare your own vegetables for this if you would rather. I give you approximate measures in the recipe notes.

You can toast the flaked almonds either in a hot skillet or a moderate oven.  Just heat until beginning to toast a golden brown. You can, of course, use untoasted almonds, but toasting them does add a measure of flavor.

There are many brands of dried Instant Ramen Noodles available in the shops these days. Pick your favorite and go with that.

I use light olive oil because it is healthier.  It does not have the same intensity of flavor as extra virgin olive oil and is perfect to use in salads like this one and in cooking.

 

HOW TO MAKE CRUNCHY RAMEN NOODLE SALAD

Nothing could really be any easier. This salad is what I would call a delicious doddle to make!

1. Put all of the vegetables into a large bowl, along with the nuts, seeds, and crushed noodles.
2. Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until well blended and emulsified. Taste and adjust seasonings as required.
3. Pour the dressing over the vegetables in the bowl. Toss everything together to coat evenly.
4. Cover with some plastic cling film and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. (I would not make this much more than an hour ahead of serving time. You could have all of the veggies and nuts combined and then add the dressing at the last minute.)

 

DELICIOUS VARIATIONS

Here are a few things that you can do to vary the flavor and texture of your salad.

• Add some chopped or sliced apple, or dried cranberries or raisins.
• Use toasted sesame oil.
• Use slivered almonds instead of flaked
• Add a can of well-drained chunk or crushed pineapple.
• Add some Sriracha Sauce or Sweet Chili sauce to the dressing to taste. This will add a bit of zip to the salad.
• Add a handful of crispy fried chow mein noodles for even more crunch!

 

CAN THIS SALAD BE MADE AHEAD OF TIME?

Yes, you can make the salad ahead of time, bar adding the dressing. I do not recommend adding the dressing until more than an hour before serving, however.  The noodles will soften in the dressing, and you will lose a lot of their delicious crunch!

Just prepare all of the vegetables and toss them together in the bowl with the nuts and seeds.  Whisk the dressing together separately. Cover and store separately tossing them together when you are ready to serve.

That way you won't be missing out on any of the crunch!

 

SOME OTHER DELICIOUS SIDE SALADS FOR YOU TO ENJOY! 

GREEK PASTA SALAD - This delicious salad embodies all of the elements of a good Greek Salad with fresh crisp cucumbers, ripe tomatoes, red onions, kalamata olives, plenty of parsley and a delicious red wine herbed dressing. Pasta twists, which while not exactly traditional, make this a fabulously tasty and hearty salad! Don't have pasta twists?  Use any other pasta that will hug that delicious dressing and hold it close!

POTATO, EGG & GREEN BEAN SALAD - A fresh, flavor-filled potato salad with plenty of color, texture, and a fabulously light and tasty Dijon Herb Vinaigrette dressing. Fork-tender new potatoes, crispy tender fresh green beans, semi-hard-boiled eggs. Just in between hard and soft, so that some of the yolk is a bit coddled. It mixes in with the vinaigrette when you are tossing the salad together, creating an almost creamy texture.  

Pin This Recipe To Your Side Dish or Salad Boards and Remember to FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST,    FACEBOOK, or INSTAGRAM

That way, you can be assured that you are always up to date with fresh content as soon as I post it. You can also sign up to receive a weekly newsletter from Grow. 

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Author: Marie Rayner

Crunchy Ramen Noodle Salad

Prep time: 20 MinTotal time: 20 Min

A small batch recipe for a very popular type of salad. With lots of crunchy bits and a lovely sweet and sour dressing, it always goes down a real treat. Best served on the day, however, so that everything stays nice and crunchy.

Ingredients

For the Salad:

• 1 (16-ounce) bags of coleslaw mix (see notes)
• 4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
• 1/2 cup (85g) of toasted flaked almonds
• 1/2 cup (60g) of shelled sunflower seeds
• 1 package of dry Ramen-type noodles, crushed

For the dressing:

• 1/3 cup (80 ml) of sunflower or canola oil (I use light olive oil)
• 1/2 TBS toasted sesame oil
• 1/4 cup (50g) of sugar
• 1/4 cup (60ml) of Chinese rice wine vinegar
• the seasoning packet from the noodles
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Put all of the vegetables into a large bowl, along with the nuts, seeds, and crushed noodles.
2. Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until well blended and emulsified. Taste and adjust seasonings as required.
3. Pour the dressing over the vegetables in the bowl. Toss everything together to coat evenly.
4. Cover with some plastic cling film and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. (I would not make this much more than an hour ahead of serving time. You could have all of the veggies and nuts combined and then add the dressing at the last minute.)

Notes

If you do not have coleslaw mix available, you can use the following substitution:

• 1/2 small head of cabbage, trimmed, cored, and thinly sliced,
• 1 small carrot, peeled and grated
• 1/8 of a small red cabbage, cored and thinly sliced

You could add dried cranberries or chopped dried apple to this salad, and it would be delicious, as would chopped dried apricots and sultanas.

All rights reserved The English Kitchen

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @marierayner5530 on instagram and hashtag it #TheEnglishKitchen

This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.

 

Thanks for visiting! Do come again!! 

 If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing to/following me on Grow? You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right-hand side of the screen.