Ramen Noodle Napa Cabbage Salad with Asian Dressing

This recipe is a favorite salad for picnics, and a great side for any meal. Add a protein and its the perfect light meal. Lots of crunch, crisp texture and a sweet Asian dressing make this salad the perfect side dish! It is sure to become one of your new go-to salads.

Why we love this salad so much!

This salad is probably the most requested salad by my family. My brother-n-law loves it so much we used to call it “his” salad.  It is always a hit.  My dear friend Susan brought this salad to a cookout many years ago and graciously shared the recipe with me, and I have been making it ever since! There are many versions of this salad on the world wide webs, this one evolved from the recipe that Susan shared with me, I haven’t changed it much. Sometimes I add this or that to use up extra vegetables I have on hand. (I’ve shared my variations below.)  The only downside to this recipe is once you mix it together, it needs to be eaten soon after, the leftovers do not hold up well, which honestly is never much of a problem because there are rarely leftovers! Swoon! This is such a good recipe, I just love it. I hope you do to!

Gather these ingredients

How to make Ramen Noodle Napa Cabbage Salad

1. Slice napa cabbage into thin strips and wash with cold water.

2. Crunch up the ramen noodles into small pieces, discard the seasoning packets.

3. Melt butter in a frying pan and add ramen noodles, sliced almonds to pan over medium heat. Keep moving around with spatula coating with butter and toasting, keep moving continuously until golden brown.

4. Add sesame seeds and continue to toast until golden brown and nice and toasty. Remove from heat before they over toast, they will continue to brown if pan stays hot so you might want to remove them to a baking sheet to insure they don’t burn. Set aside to cool and make the dressing.

5. In a bowl add dressing ingredients: avocado oil (or any neutral flavored oil, canola oil works as well), sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and black pepper, whisk. You may need to whisk again before tossing dressing with salad ingredients.

NOTE: Here you have all the components, at this point you want to pause until just before serving. The cabbage tends to get soggy if it sits too long, so you want to mix within 15 minutes of eating.

6. Toss napa cabbage, green onion, and bell pepper with salad dressing.

7. Add toasted ramen and nuts to asian slaw, toss and serve immediately.

Tips, Variations & FAQs

• Where do I find rice wine vinegar and sesame oil? Most grocery stores will have an international section, but yours may add these ingredients in the oils and vinegar section.
• What is the best way to transport this salad if I’m bringing it to a potluck? Great question!! When I bring this salad to a party I prepare all the components and then I put the crunchy vegetables in a ziploc plastic bag, the toasted ingredients in another bag or airtight container, and the salad dressing in a mason jar. Fifteen minutes before people are going to start eating, I add the three components to a large salad bowl and toss!
• Tip 1: The sesame seeds brown very fast so be sure to add them last when toasting crunchy ingredients, so they don’t burn.
• Tip 2: This salad does not hold its crunch, so if you think that you wont be able to eat it all would either cut the ingredients in half, or mix it as your going to eat it. For example if you are meal prepping and you want to pair this with a protein for a light lunch I would mix the amount you want just before you eat it.
• Tip 3: this salad lends itself well to shrimp, chicken, pork, and beef, for a light dinner make this salad and top it with any one of these proteins.

• Variation 1: This tasty salad pairs well these add ins: mandarin oranges, shredded red cabbage, snow peas, shredded carrot. Honestly this side dish can turn into the best darn meal in a few minutes. Get creative and add what sounds good!
• Variation 2: If you want to serve this as a light dinner, make the salad and then add shredded rotisserie chicken to it and serve immediately! I promise this will be a go to dinner. It is so delicious.

 Fresh, crunchy, and full of flavor this salad will surely become a favorite at your table too! This recipe is so versatile, side dish, main dish, perfect potluck item. Be sure to be prepared to share, because everyone will want the recipe and you can say, “Go to eat2gather.net search ramen noodle napa salad”. Thank you very much!

Ramen Noodle Napa Cabbage Salad with Asian Dressing

Sheila

Crunchy cabbage paired with toasted ramen, almonds, and sesame seeds tossed in a vinaigrette with Asian flavors is the perfect side dish or add protein for a light meal.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

time for toasted ramen to cool down 15 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Asian

Servings 8 servings

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 large head of Napa Cabbage cleaned and chopped/shredded into thin strips
• 1 bunch of Green Onions sliced thin
• 1 red bell pepper cut into long thin strips
• 2 packages Ramen Noodles any flavor discard flavor packet
• 1 cup sliced Almonds
• 1/2 cup Sesame Seeds
• 6 tablespoons Butter
• 3/4 cup Vegetable Oil
• 2 tablespoons Sesame Oil
• 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup Rice Wine Vinegar
• 3/4 cup Sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked Pepper more if you prefer

Instructions

 

• Shred or cut cabbage in to thin strips. Clean cabbage by rinsing it with cold water and letting drain in colander.
• In skillet melt butter, add crushed ramen noodles to the pan. Move around with spatula until noodles begin toast, add almonds, saute for a few minutes longer, then add sesame seeds, continue to saute until sesame seeds begin to toast. Remove from heat and let cool.
• Whisk together oil, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sugar, and pepper until sugar has dissolved.
• Combine cabbage, with sliced green onions, and sliced red bell peppers.
• -Just before serving add ramen mixture to cabbage, pour dressing onto salad and toss. Serve immediately.

Notes

Note: If you are going to bring this to a potluck or picnic, I suggest, you transport the three components separately and toss on the spot just before everyone eats.

Keyword almonds, Asian flavors, light meal, napa cabbage, ramen, salad, sesame, slaw

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