Vietnamese Noodle Salad Recipe

Need a healthy recipe that is quick to make and packed full of flavour?

This Vietnamese Noodle Salad has all the crunch and freshness of a great salad, with enough protein and carbohydrate to keep you satisfied. If you have committed to healthy eating, your meals should not only be tasty and nutritious — but they should also give you enough energy to work out on a regular basis.

If you want to try something new for dinner, give this dish a try — it’s quick to make and really tasty!

Healthy Vietnamese Noodle Salad Recipe

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2

Ingredients:

• 100g (3 ½ oz) rice vermicelli noodle

• Oil spray

• 340g (12 oz) firm tofu

• 2 tbsp fish sauce

• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

• 2 tsp maple syrup

• Lime juice

• 1 tsp crushed garlic

• 1 tsp fresh red chilli

• 2 medium carrots, peeled and grated

• 1 large cucumber, finely sliced

• Fresh mint

• Fresh coriander (cilantro)

• Sesame seeds (to serve)

• Method:

1. Place the noodles in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Leave for 10 minutes, then loosen the noodles with a fork. Drain and refresh under cool running water. Drain well and set aside to cool slightly.

2. Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frypan over medium-high heat and spray lightly with oil spray. Add the tofu and cook for 5 minutes or until the tofu is golden brown, stirring occasionally.

3. To make the dressing, whisk the fish sauce, rice wine vinegar, maple syrup, lime juice, garlic, chilli and 4 tbsp water together in a small bowl.

4. Place the noodles, tofu, carrot, cucumber, mint and coriander in a mixing bowl. Drizzle over the dressing and toss gently to combine.

5. To serve, place the Vietnamese Noodle Salad in a serving bowl and garnish with extra mint leaves and sesame seeds if desired. Enjoy!

Adapt this recipe to suit your dietary preferences

This recipe can be doubled if you want to make it for more people. If you want to add a bit of variety, switch out the tofu for chicken breast or prawns (shrimp).

If you’re vegetarian or vegan, the fish sauce can be swapped for low salt tamari or soy sauce, and you can add in different vegetables if you want to mix it up — bean shoots, red onion, shredded cabbage or lettuce and red capsicum (bell pepper) are all great substitutions or additions to this dish. Variety is key to sticking with your healthy eating goals!