This simple recipe for vegan Peanut Noodles is ready for munching in less than 30 minutes. Talk about a weeknight dinner dream come true! Part noodle bowl and part salad, this crunchy, crisp and refreshing make-ahead meal is a perfect salve for weary tastebuds.
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This easy recipe for Vegan Peanut Noodles is one of my all time favorite meal prep dishes for so many reasons. And don’t fret if you’re allergic to peanuts or gluten! I’ve included some instructions in the Tips & Tricks section below to make this recipe work for you.
My peanut noodles require just a handful of ingredients, less than 30 minutes of your time, and can easily be made ahead of time. It is a perfect recipe for those of you who are short on time but want to eat delicious and healthy meals all the same.
The 5-minute Thai peanut dressing is spicy and sweet, acidic and creamy, hitting every possible flavor note. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also extremely versatile, so one batch can see you the whole week through. Double up the recipe to use your prep time wisely.
These slightly spicy peanut noodles are also served cold, making them a perfect candidate for a healthy packed lunch. You don’t even need a microwave to dig right in!
Recommended Ingredients & Equipment
This healthy Thai-inspired recipe requires just 8 simple ingredients and less than 30 minutes of your time. With simple to find ingredients, you should be able to get everything at your local grocery store.
Here is everything you need.
Ingredient Notes
- Thai Peanut Sauce – This homemade recipe is a staple in my refrigerator at almost all times. Make a batch each week and use it for salads, noodles, spring rolls, or tofu. You can also opt to purchase your favorite store brand instead. To make this sauce gluten free, opt for tamari or coconut aminos.
- Rice Noodles – Rice noodles are naturally gluten free and come in a variety of shapes. Feel free to choose any long noodle that suits you and cook according to package directions.
- Peanuts – If you’re allergic to peanuts, feel free to substitute them with cashews or any other nut or seed. Make sure you opt for an alternative to peanut butter in the sauce, too.
- Other Veggies – Feel free to swap in any color of bell pepper or carrot you might have on hand. Just note that green bell peppers will not be quite as sweet as their yellow, orange, or red counterparts.
- Cilantro – If you don’t like cilantro, feel free to either omit it or opt for another fresh herb like Thai basil or mint instead.
Recommended Equipment
As you can imagine, you don’t need much for this recipe. A Microplane (for the ginger), a chef’s knife, and a whisk or an immersion blender are all you need to make the sauce. Other than that, you’ll just need a sauce pot for the noodles and a salad bowl. (<<affiliate links)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step One – Make the Peanut Sauce
Using a Microplane, grate the ginger and set aside. Peel and mince the garlic.
Combine all the ingredients EXCEPT the water. Using a fork or an immersion blender, whisk the ingredients together until a thick, uniform sauce is formed. Add water, as needed, until you have reached the desired, pourable consistency.
Pro Tip: Feel free to amp up the heat by adding extra Sriracha or cayenne.
Step Two – Make the Rice Noodles
Bring salted water to a rolling boil. Note that cook times will depend on which shape and brand of rice noodles you choose, but rice noodles generally cook pretty quickly.
Pro Tip: When cooking starches like potatoes or pasta in boiling water, it is important to salt the water appropriately. Take a spoonful once the salt has dissolved; it should taste like the sea.
Once you tip the dried noodles into the pot, stir to break up any clumps and encourage even cooking. When your noodles are al dente, drain them, rinse them with cool water and set them aside to cool.
Step Three – Prepare the Veggies
The hardest part about making my vegan Thai peanut noodles is cutting the carrots and bell peppers into matchsticks. In the chef world, this cut is known as the julienne, meaning the pieces are roughly 2.5-3 inches long and about 1/8th of an inch thick.
While it’s important to cut your carrots and bell peppers in uniform pieces, it isn’t as tough to do as you think. Watch this (short!) instructional video to see how it’s done. Start at 1:00 if you’re very short on time.
Once that’s out of the way, thinly slice your green onions from root to tip. You can use both the white and green pieces in this recipe. You’ll also need to cut your lime into wedges.
Pro Tip: To get the most juice out of your limes, give them a quick roll on the countertop using medium firm pressure with your palm.
Step Four – Assemble the Noodle
Toss the cooled noodles in the Thai peanut sauce. Stir in the prepared vegetables, peanuts, fresh lime juice, and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings. Enjoy!
Serving and Storing
Serving – Once assembled, you can either opt to eat these vegan peanut noodles right away or package them up for future meals. Leftover noodles will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you happened to make extra peanut sauce (and I hope you did!), it will last for up to a week in the fridge.
Storing – If you are planning on eating this meal throughout the week, I recommend keeping some peanuts and cilantro separate to sprinkle on top as garnish right before serving. Not only does it make your meal look extra appetizing, it will also help to preserves the crunch of the peanuts and the vibrant color and turgidity of the cilantro.
Tips & Tricks
- Need to make gluten free peanut noodles? Simply swap tamari or coconut aminos for the soy sauce in the Thai peanut sauce.
- Allergic to peanuts? Swap in chopped cashews and make the sauce with cashew butter. If nuts are entirely out of the question, opt for seed butters (e.g. sunbutter or tahini) and larger seeds (e.g. pepitas) instead.
- Feel free to amp up the heat by adding extra Sriracha or cayenne.
- If you’re already cooking for present you, do future you a favor and make a double batch of the peanut sauce. Later in the week you can either opt to make these peanut noodles again, or opt for a salad, spring rolls, or tofu instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! I won’t stop you. But they are super delicious chilled, so give them a shot, okay?
Heck yeah! I’d venture to say that these noodles are best at room temperature rather than straight from the fridge. In terms of food safety, this is also an ideal picnic food. You can get away with leaving them out of the fridge for up to six hours.
In my opinion, the Thai peanut sauce should be made with all natural (preferably organic) creamy peanut butter. The only two ingredients should be peanuts and salt.
Yep! A fork or small whisk should do the trick.
Sure! I think some shelled edamame would make for an excellent addition to this pasta salad. You can also get fancy and serve it with my Peanut Ginger Tempeh.
More Related Recipes
- Raw Pad Thai with Jalapeño Almond Sauce
- Creamy Thai Red Curry with Tofu
- Thai Salad with Sesame Peanut Sauce
- Thai Noodle Soup with Tofu
Thai Peanut Noodle
Ingredients
Vermicelli Salad
- 1 batch peanut sauce
- 8 ounces rice noodles
- 2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup cilantro, loosely packed
- 1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts
- juice of one lime
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients for the peanut sauce in a small bowl and whisk together until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Remove from heat and add the rice noodles, stirring to break up any clumps. Let the noodles cook in the warm water for 5 minutes before straining them through a colander. Rinse them under cold water and set aside.
- Chop the carrots, bell pepper, and green onions.
- Toss the cooled noodles in the peanut sauce. Stir in the prepared vegetables, peanuts, fresh lime juice, and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- Need to make gluten free peanut noodles? Simply swap tamari or coconut aminos for the soy sauce in the Thai peanut sauce.
- Allergic to peanuts? Swap in chopped cashews and make the sauce with cashew butter. If nuts are entirely out of the question, opt for seed butters (e.g. sunbutter or tahini) and larger seeds (e.g. pepitas) instead.
- Feel free to amp up the heat by adding extra Sriracha or cayenne.
Hi, I’m Sarah. I’m a 14-year (and counting) vegan, professionally trained photographer, former pastry chef, founder of My Darling Vegan, and author of the
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