This Gluten Free Soba Noodle Salad is a quick and easy vegan dish perfect for dinner, lunch, or even as a side! Made with gluten free soba noodles, fresh vegetables and herbs, and a spicy cashew dressing.
I’m a huge fan of noodles and typically use rice noodles especially in warm soups whether it be in a Gluten Free Pho or in a Ginger Bok Choy Soup! But what I love about buckwheat noodle recipes (aka soba) is that soba noodles can be served warm or cold, making them great for a no reheat meal prep!
This vegan soba noodle recipe is packed with so many veggies and herbs, and can be customized to include your favorite ingredients!
For the soba noodle sauce, I love to use a homemade Spicy Cashew Dressing (quite mild) to add a creamy lime and cilantro flavor. It’s made of a few simple ingredients like cashew butter, sriracha, cilantro and lime juice.
What are Soba Noodles?
Soba is Japanese for buckwheat, which is a gluten-free grain-like seed. Soba noodles are thin noodles made from buckwheat and water, sometimes adding a bit of whole-wheat flour to keep the noodles together.
Soba noodles are earthy and nutty. They can be served hot or cold, making them very versatile.
Are soba noodles gluten free?
Buckwheat is gluten-free, but the issue is that most soba noodles have a mixture of buckwheat and whole-wheat flour. This means that it can be tough to tell whether the soba noodles are gluten-free. To avoid any issues, it’s better to make them homemade.
I highly recommend Eden Gluten-Free Soba Noodles made from 100% buckwheat.
Ingredients
Making a vegetarian soba noodle salad has never been easier!
- Soba Noodles - Ensure you have 100% buckwheat noodles and not those combined with whole-wheat flour.
- Scallions / Green Onion
- Cilantro - If you are a cilantro hater then substitute for (thai) basil or omit!
- Shredded Carrots - Use pre-shredded to save time. Substitute for your favorite veggies, like bell peppers, mushrooms or bok choy.
- Shredded Cabbage - Use pre-shredded to save time. Substitute for your favorite veggies, like bell peppers, mushrooms or bok choy.
- Spicy Cashew Dressing - I love using homemade spicy cashew dressing for this buckwheat noodle recipe. It adds zesty lime, spicy sriracha, and cashew butter to make the perfect creamy sauce. Substitute for any other creamy peanut sauce or nut based dressing.
- Cashews (optional for garnish and crunch)
While the add-in’s above are my recommendations, you can always change it up to reflect your favorite veggies! You can always add mushrooms, bok choy, bell peppers, snap peas, english peas, edamame, or your other favorite vegetables!
Instructions
Making this gluten-free soba noodle salad is really easy! Inonly a few steps and just under 15 minutes, you’ll have this vegan dish ready to go.
Because this dish comes together quite fast, the first step is to prep your herbs and vegetables. You can always use pre-shredded carrots and cabbage to make this step even quicker!
Next, put a large pot filled with water on the stove and bring to a boil. It’s super important to not salt your water.
Once the water is boiling, add the soba noodles. Cook per the instructions on the packaging, typically between 5 to 8 minutes on the stove.
After the buckwheat noodles are cooked per instructions, strain and immediately run under cold water. The water does not need to be so cold that it hurts to touch. You can do this by leaving the noodles in the colander and running under cold water, or transferring the noodles from the colander into a large bowl filled with the cold water. Either way, you want to rub the noodles, making sure to remove any starches left. This will make sure the noodles are not gummy and not mushy.
After washing the noodles, drain again and place noodles in bowl to serve or in a prep bowl. Add the herbs, vegetables, and spicy dressing. Mix ingredients together to combine well.
Top with extra cashews, or scallions for garnish. Serve and enjoy!
Top Tricks for Buckwheat Noodles
Soba noodles are infamous for difficult cooking, but that’s not true! With these top tricks, you’ll get the best soba noodles possible.
- Do Not Salt the Water
Although you should normally cook pastas and noodles in salty (almost ocean-like) water, do not add salt to this water.
- Rinse After with Cold Water
Soba noodles are unlike most other pasta noodles in that they should be rinsed in cold water after cooking. This helps remove the gluten and starches that are released in cooking. Skipping this step means mushy noodles - which nobody wants!
You can do this by either:
- Leaving the noodles in the colander and running under cold water, or
- Transferring the noodles from the colander into a large bowl filled with the cold water.
Either way, you want to rub the noodles, making sure to remove any starches left. This will make sure the noodles are not gummy and not mushy.
- Wash the Noodles
You want to make sure to wash off the excess starch of the soba noodles in order to prevent the gumminess. Rub the noodles under the cold water and wash them off. Do this for about one minute to make them the best texture.
- Give the Noodles Space
You don’t want to cramp the pot of noodles. Make sure to use a large pot, giving the noodles space and enough water to cook and move around.
How to Store / Meal Prep
Store leftovers (or if making for meal prep) in an airtight container in the fridge
Frequently Asked Questions
Are soba noodles gluten free?
Soba noodles are technically gluten-free, as they are intended to be only buckwheat flour (which is gluten-free). However, most store bought brands add whole wheat flour to keep the noodle from deteriorating.
Are buckwheat noodles gluten free?
Buckwheat noodles are technically gluten-free, as they are intended to be only buckwheat flour (which is gluten-free). However, most store bought brands add whole wheat flour to keep the noodle from deteriorating.
Are soba noodles vegan?
Soba noodles are vegan and are typically made from buckwheat flour and water, with brands sometimes adding whole wheat flour.
How do you keep soba noodles from sticking?
To keep soba noodles from sticking to each other, make sure to not salt the cooking water, to rinse the noodles in cold water after cooking, and making sure to use a large pot for cooking to give the noodles space.
Should you rinse soba noodles?
You absolutely should rinse soba noodles after cooking. Do this in cold water either in the colander or placing in a large bowl of colder water after draining. Use your hands to wash off the excess starch by rubbing the noodles in the water.
What to Serve with Soba Noodles
For adding protein, I love to add salmon, shrimp, orange sesame chicken, thin sliced beef or pork tenderloin and drizzling with extra spicy cashew dressing! For a vegan/vegetarian option, try adding whole cashews!
If you’d like to add simple side dishes to make a bigger meal, try Asian Cucumber Salad.
Other Gluten Free Noodle Dishes
📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Soba Noodle Salad with Cashew Dressing
Ingredients
- 8 Oz. Soba Noodles
- 1 Bunch Scallions sliced thinly
- ½ Cup Shredded Carrots
- 1 Cup Shredded Cabbage
- ½ Cup Spicy Cashew Dressing
- Cilantro
- Cashews for garnish
Instructions
- Prep your herbs and vegetables.
- Put a large pot filled with water on the stove and bring to a boil. Do not salt your water.
- Once the water is boiling, add the soba noodles. Cook per the instructions on the packaging, typically between 5 to 8 minutes on the stove.
- After the buckwheat noodles are cooked per instructions, strain and immediately run under cold water. You can do this by leaving the noodles in the colander and running under cold water, or transferring the noodles from the colander into a large bowl filled with the cold water.
- Rub the noodles under the cold water for about one minute, making sure to remove any starches left. This will make sure the noodles are not gummy and not mushy.
- After washing the noodles, drain the noodles again and place noodles in bowl to serve or in a prep bowl. Add the herbs, vegetables, and spicy dressing. Mix ingredients together to combine well.
- Top with extra cashews, or scallions for garnish.
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