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    Home » Salads

    Asparagus Noodle Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette (The Kids Cook Monday)

    Jun 3, 2013 · Modified: Jun 19, 2021 by Andrea · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · 5 Comments

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    Asparagus Noodle Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette - Andrea Meyers

    It's time for another post for The Kids Cook Monday, and this time we made asparagus noodle salad using cellophane noodles.

    Cellophane noodles are known by many names and are made from plant starches such as mung beans, yams, potatoes, or cassava. I typically have a package of the mung bean variety in the pantry, ready to whip out when we want a noodle fix. You may find them in your grocery store labeled as bean threads, glass noodles, saifun, sotanghon, harusame, wun sen, long rice, or other names depending on the country of origin. Cellophane noodles are a fun food for kids and adults because they have a unique slippery texture that makes them a treat to slurp, plus they are very versatile and work well in soups, salads, or hot dishes with meat or vegetables. They are also very easy to cook, just soak the dry noodles in boiling water for up to 10 minutes, then drain.

    For this dish, we make the vinaigrette and let it stand while we cook the noodles, then let the noodles cool while we prepare the vegetables. It’s also a great make ahead dish, just prepare the vinaigrette and the noodles the day before and let them chill in the refrigerator until ready to eat the next day.

    The only hard work is chopping the asparagus, which is an easy job for a 6-year-old.

    Chopping asparagus - Andrea Meyers

    Make sure to visit The Kids Cook Monday for more recipes to cook with your kids, and check out the rest of our Kids Cook Monday recipes below.

    How Adults Can Help the Kids

    • Demonstrate and assist with any tasks that might be new: measuring, stirring, pouring, chopping, stir-frying.
    • Assign the simpler tasks to the younger kids, and save the more challenging tasks for the older kids and adults.

    Safety Tips

    • Make sure an adult is present at all times.
    • Young children should not handle hot woks. Make sure an adult or older child or teenager does the stir-frying.
    • The oil in the wok will be hot, so be careful when adding the vegetables and watch for splatters.
    Asparagus Noodle Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette - Andrea Meyers
    Print Pin

    Asparagus Noodle Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

    Prep Time5 mins
    Cook Time10 mins
    Total Time15 mins
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: Asian
    Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
    Keyword: asparagus, carrots, noodles, summer
    Servings: 6
    Calories: 405kcal
    Author: Andrea Meyers

    Equipment

    • small bowl or cruet
    • medium heavy bottom pot with lid
    • wok or large skillet

    Ingredients

    • 5 ounces gluten-free cellophane noodles
    • 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
    • 1 pound asparagus spears (cut into 1-inch pieces)
    • 1 cup matchstick carrots
    • ¼ cup chopped cilantro

    Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

    • juice of 1 lime
    • 1 tablespoon gluten-free hot chili sauce
    • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
    • 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
    • ¾ cup olive oil
    • ¼ cup gluten-free rice vinegar
    • ½ cup gluten-free soy sauce
    • 2 tablespoons honey
    • ¼ cup water
    US Customary - Metric

    Preparation

    Vinaigrette

    • Whisk together all the vinaigrette ingredients in the small bowl, or shake together in a cruet. Set aside.

    Noodles

    • Bring a pot of water to boil, and add thee noodles. Remove from heat and soak the noodles until soft, about 10 minutes. Drain and cool to room temperature, or refrigerate until ready to eat.
    • Heat the sunflower oil in the wok, and stir-fry the asparagus and carrots until crisp tender, about 5 minutes. Put the noodles in individual bowls, top with the the asparagus and carrots, and toss with the vinaigrette and chopped cilantro.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 405kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 762mg | Potassium: 268mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 4197IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 3mg
    Tried this recipe?Share in the comments!

    More Kids Cook Monday Recipes

    Chicken Chow Fun - Andrea Meyers
    Chicken Chow Fun (The Kids Cook Monday)
    Grilled Zucchini with Herb Marinade - Andrea Meyers
    Grilled Zucchini with Herb Marinade (The Kids Cook Monday)
    Salsa Fresca - Andrea Meyers
    Salsa Fresca (The Kids Cook Monday)

    For the complete list of The Kids Cook Monday recipes, visit my Cooking with Kids page.

    More Recipes with Cellophane Noodles From Other Blogs

    • Use Real Butter – Chinese Cellophane Noodle Soup
    • Coconut & Lime – Pork & Cellophane Noodle Salad
    • Bev Cooks – Thai Pork Salad with Cellophane Noodles
    « Iced Mocha Cappuccino
    Quinoa Avocado Salad with Parsley, Corn, Tomatoes, and Lemon Vinaigrette »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kara says

      June 03, 2013 at 7:28 pm

      Just a quick note on teaching your kids to cut stuff; I think a 6 year old is absolutely old enough to be trusted with a knife (supervised, of course) but I noticed that the way your son is holding the knife is more likely to cause the knife to slip and roll, especially when cutting round things like asparagus.

      Teach your son to hold the knife properly, which means holding it closer to the blade and even pinching the blade between his first finger and his thumb. (see the illustration at the bottom of this page: http://www.chefdepot.net/knifesharpening.htm)

      The knife is less likely to roll, flip, or slip out of his grasp if he's holding the whole "handle" and some of the blade, rather than holding it by the end of the tang.

      Reply
      • Andrea says

        June 05, 2013 at 9:11 am

        Hi Kara. Yes, you are correct that Monkey Boy's knife mojo was off on that day. He wasn't exactly in a cooperative mood, so even though we've worked very hard to teach our children proper knife skills, at that moment I was just happy that he let me take a picture of him. 🙂

        Reply
    2. Kalyn says

      June 04, 2013 at 1:22 pm

      Love this!

      Reply
    3. kristy @ the wicked noodle says

      June 07, 2013 at 11:36 am

      Hi Andrea,

      I just want to commend you for the great job you do teaching your kids to cook. I look forward to reading your "Kids Cook Monday" posts and am always impressed at how you've managed to make cooking a family affair, right down to your littlest family members! The best part is that your kids always seem to really be enjoying themselves. It's a skill they'll use their entire lives, well done.

      Cheers,

      Kristy

      Reply
    4. Elise says

      October 21, 2013 at 5:41 pm

      The photos are great and the recipe seems easy enough for cooking with kids. It's simple enough for after school cooking that they can eat early or can be saved. Keep up the great postings! Thanks

      Reply

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