Vegan Sesame Cashew Soba Noodle Salad

This Spicy Sesame-Cashew Noodle Salad is my grown-up version of that law school-favorite. It’s made with nutrient-rich whole foods, tastes incredible, and is easy to make! What more could you ask for? Plus, it’s packed with protein!

Ingredient notes

Soba noodles

They’re my favorite because they have this hearty, nutty taste and are packed with protein (1 serving has 8 grams of protein). Feel free to use another type of noodles, such as brown rice noodles, rice noodles, or spelt noodles. Soba is simply the Japanese word for buckwheat. If you buy 100% soba/buckwheat noodles, they will be gluten-free, as buckwheat is a pseudo-grain that’s naturally gluten-free. However, many commercial varieties of soba noodles are made with part buckwheat flour, part wheat flour and are therefore not gluten-free.

Tempeh and edamame

This noodle salad also gets a ton of protein from tempeh and edamame. Tempeh is another one of my favorite foods, though for some reason, I don’t eat it very often (I am trying to change that with this delicious recipe)! It’s made from fermented whole soy beans and is minimally processed, making it a highly nutritious, protein-rich option. Just three ounces of tempeh has 16 grams of protein, 7 grams of fiber, and of course absolutely zero cholesterol. You can bring that nutrition fact up anytime someone insists that a vegan diet can’t provide enough protein!Not a fan of tempeh? Try my Baked Peanut Tofu instead! Big fan of edamame? Try my flavor-packed Garlicky Sesame Edamame Salad or this Noodle Salad with Rainbow Veggies. Or, for a more traditional East Asian noodle dish, try these Chinese Sesame Noodles!

The sauce

Now for my favorite part, the spicy sesame-cashew sauce! This sauce is unreal. Like finger-lickin’ good. It’s spicy, a little sweet, a little tangy, and bursting with flavor. When it’s not dressing this noodle salad, I also use it as a dipping sauce for spring rolls/dumplings/various finger foods (just leave out the water called for in this recipe). I love the flavor combination of cashew and sesame, but if you can’t find cashew butter and/or don’t make it home, almond butter will do the trick. I recommend using peanut butter only if you really love the taste of peanut butter because it has a more pronounced, less subtle taste than either cashew butter or almond butter. I used a whole teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes because I LOVE very spicy food, but for most people, a half teaspoon will be sufficient. And if you’re sensitive to spicy food, just a pinch will do (or omit it entirely).

Tips for making this recipe

Steam the tempeh. Typically, I steam the tempeh for 10 minutes before further cooking it because it removes that slightly bitter taste, but I find that the combination of thinly slicing them and brushing on the tamari or soy sauce masks that taste. However, if you are ultra-sensitive to bitter food, I recommend steaming the tempeh for 10 minutes before pan-frying it. The pan-frying part couldn’t be simpler. You just need a tiny bit of cooking oil, a hot pan, and some tamari or soy sauce! Serve either warm or cold. This is a noodle salad, but it can be served warm or cold. I served it warm when I first made it, and then ate leftovers both cold and hot. I hope you enjoy this recipe for Spicy Sesame-Cashew Noodle Salad, and if you make it, please drop me a comment below and tag me on Instagram!