This Thai crunch mason jar salad combines hearty noodles with crunchy vegetables and peanuts plus an amazing peanut dressing that you’ll want to eat on its own. Make this salad on prep day and enjoy it hot or cold when hunger calls.
Thai Crunch Mason Jar Salad
This salad has been a favorite from Plenty all year long! I finally have the recipe to share. It has layers of noodles tossed in sesame oil (and seeds!) plus crunchy fresh vegetables, fresh cilantro and salted peanuts. It will keep in the fridge for a few days (especially if you go avocado-less or add that at the end). Also, it can even be served hot as a stir-fry (again, hold the avo, cucumber, and cilantro if you do that as garnishes!). This recipe is designed around filling four big wide mouth mason jars, but you could easily make this in one big bowl as well.
The Peanut Dressing
Let me tell you – the secret is always in the sauce, but THIS sauce is just incredible. It’s a lot of peanut, a little sesame, and a little sweetness (from honey and rice wine vinegar). It is thick and so good you’ll want to lick the jar!
How To Make The Thai Crunch Salad
Cook your noodles. These are technically wheat ramen noodles (from Trader Joe’s) but you can use soba noodles or even spaghetti.
You don’t need this much cilantro so use the rest for cilantro pesto!
Short cut: use pre-shredded carrots + cabbage and zucchini noodles to save time on assembly! Then you just have to chop cucumbers and peppers.
The Recipe
Thai Crunch Mason Jar Salad with Peanut Dressing
Ingredients
- 10 ounce pack Ramen wheat noodles or spaghetti
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp mixed color sesame seeds white + black
- 1 bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 cup shredded purple cabbage
- 1 cup zucchini noodles
- 1 cup chopped seedless cucumber
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1/4 cup salted roasted peanuts
- 1/4 cup cilantro
For the dressing
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos or soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 garlic clove grated
- 1/2 tsp ginger grated
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 3/4 cup peanut butter melted slightly in the microwave
- 2 tbsp chopped peanuts
Instructions
- Cook ramen according to package until al dente
- Toss noodles in 2 tsp of oil and sesame seeds and allow to cool.
- For the dressing, combine aminos, vinegar, honey, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes in a jar. Add olive oil and blend with stick blender. Pour into a bowl and whisk in heated peanut butter until smooth. Stir in chopped peanuts.
- Portion noodles into the bottom third of a large wide-mouth mason jar. Add veggies in layers and top with avocado, peanuts and cilantro.
Renee says
This sounds amazing. And hey I keep seeing a glimpse of a tattoo on your arm lol. I think we don’t see your arms much or it’s new. What is it of? Also you may have said this and I missed it- does this just store in the fridge ok pre made or would you hold off on the veggies?
KathEats says
It’s Della (from Plenty’s) arm!
And yes, this holds up in the fridge for a few days so it’s ideal for a prep day. Your avocado might go a little brown, so if you know you’ll be saving it, I’d add that fresh at serving.
Julie Scheu says
Do you eat this right from the jar or pour it into a bowl to mix? I am going to make these to bring to work and want to be prepared for how easy/hard it will be to eat right from the jar!
KathEats says
Pour it into a bowl and toss with dressing : ) You COULD eat it from the jar, but I think bowl is best.
Tonya says
I’m making that dressing tonight and it’s going on whatever!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
Thai-inspired salads are the best! The dressing for this sounds so good. Thanks for sharing, Kath! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Jill says
I have a nut allergy. Do you think this dressing could be made with sun butter as a substitution? This salad sounds so good and would be great to take to work for lunch.
KathEats says
Yes for sure!
Julie says
Ohh this looks so good! I didn’t know Trader Joe’s had dry ramen noodles! I’ll have to make a trip out there this weekend. Are they with the spaghetti and other pastas?
KathEats says
It should be with the pasta
Bex says
I just added the dressing into my fitness pal and divided it by 4 and it was over 500 calories. When you serve it do you use less dressing and save some for other things? Or do you divide the dressing into four containers?
Kath Younger says
The dressing makes a LOT! Use it as needed on the 4-6 servings.
Jocelyn Dietrich says
That salad looks delish!! I love anything with peanut sauce/peanut butter in general lol
Susan R says
I saw zucchini noodles listed – that’s one of the noodle options, right? I wasn’t positive or if diced raw zucchini is part of the ingredients…
Thanks – looks great!
Lina says
Hi, this looks delicious, any suggestion to replace the rice vinegar, I can’t have any type of vinegar? Thank you!
Kath Younger says
I’d probably either use a splash of coconut water or just a bit more of the other ingredients to make up the liquid volume.