Low Sodium Cold Peanut Noodles Recipe
This low sodium cold peanut noodles recipe is a light and refreshing lunch or side dish, made with fresh vegetables for delicious crunch in each bite! Ready in just 20 minutes, this easy and versatile salad is hearty, creamy, and so good.
The secret to this recipe is our flavorful 5-minute peanut vinaigrette dressing, which is made with pantry staples and so easy to make. See our step-by-step photos in our video below and make this recipe along with us today!
Want more low sodium salad recipes? Try our low sodium Caesar salad recipe, low sodium Waldorf salad, and our favorite low sodium tomato salad.
I first tested this recipe to add to our new cookbook: Low Sodium Lunches! I needed a few more salad recipes and this is one of my favorite summertime meals that I’ve been making for years: cold peanut noodles.
Start by cooking up your pasta and running it under cold water until cool. Toss it with fresh chopped vegetables, like cucumbers and carrots, and our easy one-bowl peanut butter dressing.
Notes from Our Kitchen
- This sesame peanut noodle salad is light, crisp, refreshing and delicious.
- It’s versatile – you can add in your favorite fresh chopped vegetables. See our suggestions below for more great ideas.
- It’s ready in under 30 minutes, making it a great light lunch option.
- Aside from cooking the pasta, nothing else needs to be cooked in the salad… so it’s a great summertime meal. Or is great to use with leftover pasta.
- Cooks of any skill level can successfully make this low sodium noodle salad by following along with our step-by-step photos below.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Be sure to visit the recipe card below to see the full ingredient amounts and directions!
The base of this recipe are noodles. I use regular spaghetti noodles that I cooked and cooled, but you can use any long pasta shape you prefer. Rice noodles, angel hair pasta, linguine, or fettuccine are all great options.
This recipe uses delicious, fresh chopped vegetables like sliced cucumbers, grated carrot, green onion, and cilantro.
And for our simple peanut dressing we use unsalted peanut butter, low sodium Worcestershire sauce, unseasoned rice vinegar, a little bit of maple syrup or honey, and toasted sesame oil for an amazing flavor.
Additions and Substitutions
More chopped vegetables you can add into this pasta salad: thinly sliced red or green cabbage, sugar snap peas, sliced bell pepper strips, or chopped broccoli.
Be sure to check the sodium content of your noodles before cooking. Some Asian noodle varieties like soba noodles or udon noodles do contain added sodium, so be sure to choose a variety that has 0mg or is low in sodium.
If you don’t like the flavor of cilantro, you can substitute parsley or leave out the herbs altogether.
Step-By-Step Photos & Directions
Step 1: Cook noodles according to package instructions (omit salt in the boiling water, it’s not needed)! When the noodles are done, drain them, rinse under cold water, drain again, and place them in a mixing bowl.
Step 2: While the noodles are cooking, slice the cucumber and chop the carrots into matchsticks (or grate them). Chop the green onions and cilantro, and set aside.
Step 3: When the cool noodles are in the bowl, add the cucumber and carrot on top.
Step 4: Sprinkle in the green onions and cilantro in the bowl as well.
Step 5: In a small mixing bowl, add the peanut dressing ingredients. Stir or whisk well to combine – it will take a few minutes for the peanut butter to blend with the other ingredients.
Step 6: Pour the dressing over the noodles and vegetables, and top with sesame seeds. Toss well and serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Recipe FAQs
These low sodium noodles have 77mg sodium per serving, as we use low sodium ingredients and unsalted peanut butter and unseasoned vinegar in our dressing. If you eat peanut noodles salad from a deli or restaurant, your nutritional content will vary based on the ingredients used.
You can add low sodium baked chicken, low sodium salmon, low sodium steak, or our low sodium grilled to chicken into these bowls to make them hearty. They would also be great with our low sodium honey garlic tofu as well.
Store leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up 3 days. These salads don’t have lettuce so they keep fresh without wilting and are great for meal prepping.
Serving Suggestions
This salad is great on its own as a light meal. To make it more hearty, you can add in your favorite cooked protein.
These noodle bowls are great with low sodium baked chicken, low sodium steak and especially good with our low sodium honey sesame salmon.
For a vegetarian version, serve these alongside our low sodium honey garlic tofu… crispy and delicious.
Expert Tips
- These sesame noodle salads are great to meal prep and make ahead of time. I like to make a batch on the weekend, portion them into individual containers, and then have ready-made meals throughout the week.
- This recipe also works great if you have leftover spaghetti or cooked pasta already in the fridge.
- Make sure to whisk the sauce completely so that the peanut butter isn’t chunky in the dressing.
More Low Sodium Noodle and Pasta Salad Recipes
- Low Sodium Pesto Pasta Salad
- Low Sodium Couscous Salad Recipe
- The best Low Sodium Macaroni Salad
- Low Sodium Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
- Low Sodium Orzo Salad
Let’s keep in touch – don’t forget to follow over on Instagram, Facebook, & my Youtube channel for more easy low sodium recipes.
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Low Sodium Cold Peanut Noodles
Equipment
- Pot
- Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
For the Noodles
- 12 ounces spaghetti noodles
- ½ large English cucumber sliced into half moons
- 1 large carrot cut into matchsticks
- 2 green onions sliced
- 2 tablespoons cilantro chopped, optional
For the Peanut Dressing
- 3 tablespoons unsalted peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon low sodium Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Cook noodles according to package instructions (omit salt in the boiling water, it’s not needed)! When the noodles are done, drain them, rinse under cold water, drain again, and place them in a mixing bowl.
- While the noodles are cooking, slice the cucumber and chop the carrots into matchsticks (or grate them). Chop the green onions and cilantro, and set aside.
- When the cool noodles are in the bowl, add the cucumber and carrot on top.
- Sprinkle in the green onions and cilantro in the bowl as well.
- In a small mixing bowl, add the peanut dressing ingredients. Stir or whisk well to combine – it will take a few minutes for the peanut butter to blend with the other ingredients.
- Pour the dressing over the noodles and vegetables, and top with sesame seeds. Toss well and serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition estimate (for 1 serving)
*Please note, all nutrition content is estimated based on the ingredients we used in our kitchen. It will vary based on your ingredients. Always check your nutrition labels to verify your nutrition content and sodium amounts.
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