How do you like yours? I like mine with lots of colorful veggies tossed in with the noodles, so it feels more like a “salad” and not just highly seasoned cold noodles. Nothing wrong with plain noodles, mind you! In fact, the beauty of this salad is its flexibility. Add as many or as few extras as you want. I love the colors and crunch of purple cabbage and red bell peppers so they’re in, along with carrots and steamed broccoli. I’ve also made this salad with almost all noodles and just some sliced green onions and bell pepper. It’s all good. The trick is to let the noodles dry after you cook them, and then dress them with soy sauce alone, so they absorb the flavor of the soy sauce. Then toss in whatever vegetables you are using plus a sweet and sour, ginger garlic sesame dressing. The salad holds up well for several hours, so it’s perfect to take to a potluck too. The types of vegetables you can use in this salad is flexible. Don’t like broccoli? Leave it out. Prefer napa cabbage to red cabbage? Use it instead. The recipe calls for the type of Chinese noodles that are typically used for making chow mein. You can also use Japanese soba noodles or any long and skinny, wheat-based pasta (not egg noodles). *This dressing is just enough to dress the noodle salad in the proportions given, and then lightly so. If you prefer stronger seasoning or more dressing, just increase the amounts by a half and add a bit more soy sauce to the noodles.
10 ounces Chinese noodles, for making chow mein 1/3 cup soy sauce 2 to 3 cups raw bite-sized broccoli florets (from about 1 head broccoli) Salt 4 ounces mung bean sprouts (about 1 1/2 cups) 3 green onions, thinly sliced white and green parts 1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded, thinly sliced and cut into 1-inch-long pieces 1/4 large purple cabbage, cored and thinly sliced (about 2 cups) 1 large carrot, peeled and slivered (just continue to peel with a peeler)
For the dressing
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped 4 tablespoons sugar 1 medium clove garlic, roughly chopped 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1/3 cup canola, rice bran, or vegetable oil 1/3 cup unseasoned rice vinegar 4 teaspoons dark sesame oil
Add the noodles to the pot. Stir the noodles frequently while they cook. Check the noodle package instructions, if using Chinese noodles, they should be done after 5 minutes of cooking. Drain the noodles, rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Spread the noodles out on a sheet pan to air dry. If making more than a day ahead, toss the noodles with the soy sauce and half of the dressing and prep the vegetables. Then when ready to serve, toss the noodles with the vegetables and the rest of the dressing.
