These incredibly delicious cucumber noodles come together quickly and make the perfect side to all your Asian food faves–no spiralizer needed! Twirl this umami-drenched cucumber noodle salad around a fork or chopsticks, ‘cuz cucumber has never tasted this good!
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Cucumber Noodle Salad Ingredients
These cucumber noodles are an Asian-inspired side dish, full of pantry staples. Here’s what you’ll need to gather:
- The noodles: I prefer English cucumbers, as they’re easiest to slice into noodles. Skip mini cucumbers. I like to remove the peel, it often has a bitter taste and waxy texture.
- The sauce: Ginger, garlic, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sriracha, and a touch of sugar–feel free to use your favorite sugar substitute, my preferred sweetener would be granular Swerve (see my full chart of keto sweeteners).
- The toppings: A bit of crunch goes a long way–crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, and green onions are my favorites.
Can I Use a Different Sauce?
Cucumber noodles can be used in lieu of pasta or veggie alternatives in all your favorite cold pasta dishes. Think:
- Pasta salad
- Pesto sauce
- Greek salad
- Peanut dressing, as I use in my spring roll in a bowl
How to Make Cucumber Noodles
You can make cucumber noodles as you would zucchini noodles or butternut squash noodles–this veggie is easy to slice into whatever shape you’re craving. Here are a few ways, all of which can be used to make this cucumber noodle salad:
- With a veggie peeler, which I do below. This is my preferred method, as the seeds in the center are super watery, and may not shape well into noodles. Using the veggie peeler allows you to skip the very center.
- With a mandolin, into long, thin noodles, similar to lasagna noodles (see my zucchini lasagna for tips), or into very thin medallions, giving this recipe a cucumber salad feel.
- With a spiralizer, which is usually what I use for veggie noodles, and can work really well! However, your noodles may be fragile depending on how watery your cucumbers are.
Storing Leftovers
These cucumber noodles are best served fresh; As they rest in the fridge, cucumber noodles will continue to release their liquid, and your sauce will get watery. If you happen to have leftovers, give everything a toss before serving–these cucumber noodles will still be delicious!
More Noodle Recipes
Cucumber Noodles
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
- 1 1/2 pounds cucumbers about 2 large
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 –5 scallions minces
- 1 teaspoon ginger grated
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon sugar or swerve/lakanto for a sugar free version
- 1 teaspoon sriracha
To Garnish:
- Sesame seeds
- peanuts chopped
Instructions
- Use a veggie peeler to remove the cucumber skin. Then spiralizer or use a y-shaped veggie peeler to shape into noodles.
- Place noodles in a bowl and toss with salt. Allow them to release their liquid for about about 10 minutes.
- Dab the cucumber dry with paper towels, and place them in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the scallions, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, sriracha and toasted sesame seeds until the sugar dissolves.
- Pour dressing over the noodles and toss to combine. Taste and adjust the noodles to your liking.
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