Vermicelli Salad

This refreshing vermicelli salad is a delightful treat on a lazy Summer afternoon. With colorful vegetables, vermicelli , roasted crushed peanuts and sesame-soy sauce, this salad is full of Asian flavors. With a simple salad dressing, this vermicelli salad comes together in no time. Serve this healthy and flavorful salad as a side dish, a light meal or as a mid-day snack.

What is a Salad?

 A salad is a dish consisting of a mixture of small pieces of food, often including cold or raw vegetables and fruits which may be mixed with a sauce or salad dressing. Salad is either served as a separate dish or served with another food as a part of the meal. Salads are usually served at room temperature or chilled with few exemptions like Lebanese spiced potato salad, Batata Hara which is served warm. Salad is a wide variety of dishes that falls into major 4 groups, namely green salads , vegetable salads (Khamang Kakdi), Salads of pasta (Summer Macaroni Salad), legumes or grains and mixed salads Moong Sprout Salad that incorporate meat, poultry, sea food or fruit salads (Muskmelon Salsa, Chickpea Mango Salad). Sundal is a South Indian variety of legume based salad that serves as a low-fat, protein rich snack. You may want to try out the Chickpea Sundal and Rajma / Kidney Bean Sundal.

Reasons to include Salads in our Daily Diet:

Salads made using fresh fruits and vegetables are not only eye appealing and mood enhancers as they add colors to our palate but they are also easy to put together and have a crunchy and flavorful texture. Let's have a look at the health benefits of including salads in our daily diets. 

• A diet rich in vegetables and fruits can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart disease and digestive problems and have a positive effect upon blood sugar.
• Including salads rich in vitamins and minerals in our everyday diet increases the level of powerful antioxidants in the blood. 
• Eating salads before actual meal helps in weight control as salads are rich in fiber and thus help one feel full faster, so one ends up consuming less calories than one might when a meal is served without such appetizer.
• The high levels of water found in salad veggies improves hydration in our bodies, which is necessary for a youthful skin.

What goes into this Vermicelli Salad ? The Ingredients:

This is a refreshing vermicelli salad that is tossed with anti-oxidant rich colorful vegetables and a delicious Asian flavored Sesame soy dressing. Let's have a look at the ingredients one by one.

• Vermicelli : You may use rice or wheat vermicelli noodles, a carbohydrate source that is the base of the salad. 
• Salad Vegetables: You may use any salad vegetables of your choice like purple cabbage, table radish or broccoli. I have added carrots, colored bell peppers and cucumber.
• Peanuts: Roasted peanuts add a lovely nutty flavor and crunch to the salad apart from being a good protein source. You may add any toasted nut like almonds, cashews etc.
• Herbs: I have used fresh mint leaves. You may use coriander and / or mint. 
• Salad Dressing: This vermicelli salad is loaded with Asian flavors coming from the salad dressing which is made by using sesame oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, honey, minced garlic, red chili paste and toasted sesame seeds.

                            

Dietary Tips:

• Vegetarian Salad
• Healthy
• Vermicelli Salad
• Kid Friendly

 Related Event: Salad Stories @ Foodie Monday Blog Hop and A to Z Recipe Challenge Group - Alphabet "V"

Foodie Monday Blog Hop is a gourmet group on Facebook where a bunch of passionate food bloggers share their culinary skills depending upon a pre-decided theme. The theme for the 289th week on this group is Salad stories suggested by yours truly. Looking forward to the wonderful varieties of salads my fellow bloggers share.                                

This healthy and refreshing Vermicelli salad is also featured in the a to Z recipe challenge group on Facebook, where i post every month with a key ingredient having particular alphabet. Going by the alphabetical order, for the month of March, we have to cook a dish starting with the Alphabet "V". I chose Vermicelli as my key ingredients and made this Asian flavored Vermicelli salad.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Serves:2

Salad Ingredients:

• 100 grams wheat / rice vermicelli 
• 1 carrot, cut into match sticks
• 1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 small yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 cucumber , sliced into half moons
• 1/4 cup roasted peanuts
• Handful of mint leaves
• Lemon wedges

Salad dressing Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice / vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1-2 teaspoon chili sauce/ paste
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Cook the vermicelli as per packet instructions. Drain and set aside to cool down.
2. Roast the peanuts if not using pre-roasted ones. Crush them coarsely in a mortar and pestle.
3. Mix all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
4. Once the vermicelli is cool, transfer it to a mixing bowl and toss it with vegetables and herbs. Stir in the salad dressing and mix it thoroughly with the vermicelli and veggies using your hands. 
5.  Serve the salad in 2 plates or bowls and top it with crushed peanuts and enjoy with your loved ones !

                      

Recipe Notes:

• You may use rice or wheat vermicelli noodles to make this salad.
• To make it more filling and wholesome, roasted or pan fried tofu may be added to the salad.
• You may use any salad vegetables of your choice like purple cabbage, table radish or broccoli. I have added carrots, colored bell peppers and cucumber.
• I have used roasted peanuts, you may add any toasted nut of your choice like almond or cashew nut.
• I have added homemade chili paste in the salad dressing. Just soak dry red chilies in some hot water for around 10-15 minutes and then pulse the soaked chilies with little water to get the chili paste in a grinder jar.

Would love to hear from you !

I hope you would love trying out this healthy and flavorful Vermicelli Salad. If you do so, feel free to share your feedback with use in the form of likes and comments in the section below this post.

All your suggestions are more than welcome. If you like my work, and feel that it is worth following, do hit the follow button on the top right corner of this blog. Your appreciation means a lot to me. It gives me the inspiration and motivation to keep doing my work and give my best each time.

If you like my work and want to be updated with new recipes, do follow us on various social media platforms. My social media handles for your kind reference are as follows.

Facebook Handle: https://www.facebook.com/poonambachhavblogspot

Instagram Handle: https://www.instagram.com/poonambachhav/

Pinterest Handle : https://in.pinterest.com/poonambachhav/

Twitter Handle: https://twitter.com/poonampagar_B

 

See you soon with yet another healthy and delicious creation from my Kitchen. Until then Stay safe and eat right !

 

Happy Cooking !

Happy Eating !

 

Regards

Poonam Bachhav

 

For more healthy and flavorful salad recipes, do check out the following from this blog.

• Moorish Crunch Salad                                      

• Chickpea Mango Salad

• Summer Macaroni Salad   

• Lobia Bean Salad

• Quinoa Summer Salad

• Moong Sprout Salad

• Muskmelon Salsa

• Khamang Kakdi