Lemongrass Vermicelli Salad – a summer showstopper! A twirl of vermicelli noodles, pan-fried tofu, fresh herbs and veggies, and a lime-and-lemongrass-based sauce that just slips all over the plate.
Lemongrass Vermicelli Salad
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This was a huge hit with my family! Added sliced snap peas for some extra crunch. Will DEFINITELY make again, such a great summer recipe.
Kristine
Holy moly. This salad is a summertime flavor showstopper for your mouth, and it’s all thanks to the simple but incredibly lime-and-lemongrass-based sauce that just slips all over the plate, coating every bite and putting flavor into every last delicious corner and crevice.
And as a person who really enjoys big, savory-sweet, nuanced flavor, even though I always always question the fish sauce, I really cannot say enough how much I love this salad.
Like most of us, my favorite kinds of salads are based around noodles. In this case, thin, delicate skinny little rice noodles called vermicelli. Team carb salads!
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I also love it when salads are beautiful:
But listen – I also live a real life where I don’t always have time to FIND something to eat for before 3pm much less assemble beautiful salads? Know what I mean?
So I wanted to give you two options for this salad.
- Pretty Method: that’s what’s pictured above.
- Meal Prep Method: that’s what I most often use and it’s what’s pictured below.
With the Meal Prep Method, we cut our losses with a slightly less beautiful bowl, but we embrace some advance assembly and have a really quick way to throw a meal together come lunchtime.
Or breakfast? And I’m not just saying this: I woke up the next day and craved this salad for breakfast.
I hope you love your lemongrass-loaded, sauce-slicked summer showstopper as much as I did.
This recipe was inspired by a conversation about Vietnamese Bun Bo Xao (thanks, Ann!) as well as this fresh new recipe from I Am A Food Blog which is actually what I WANTED to make but then kind of ran out of time due to toddler life and had to find something similar… but also easier. And that’s how we ended up here!
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Lemongrass Vermicelli Salad
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
Lemongrass Vermicelli Salad – a summer showstopper! A twirl of vermicelli noodles, pan-fried tofu, fresh herbs and veggies, and a lime-and-lemongrass-based sauce that just slips all over the plate.
Ingredients
Units
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Lemongrass Sauce:
- 1–2 tablespoons lemongrass paste, or 2 tablespoons freshly grated lemongrass (white parts only)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup lime juice (3-4 limes)
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2–3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon roasted red chile paste (I used this kind but you can use whatever will give you some heat)
Vermicelli Salad:
- 1 package vermicelli or thin rice noodles (about 8 ounces)
- 2 large carrots, shredded or julienne cut
- 1 cucumber, julienne cut
- 1 cup fresh mint
- 1 cup fresh cilantro
- 1/2 cup chopped peanuts
- 1 lb. cooked tofu, shrimp, or chicken (or whatever protein you like)
Instructions
- Sauce: Make the sauce by blending in a food processor or shaking together in a jar.
- Noodles: Cook vermicelli according to package directions. Rinse well with cold water to cool and remove starchiness. Drain well. Toss noodles with about half of the sauce.
- Pretty Serving Method: Plate individual servings of noodles in a bowl and top with the tofu, carrots, mint, etc. Spoon extra sauce over the top.
- Meal Prep Serving Method: Toss all the noodles with the tofu, peanuts, and carrots (leave out the cucumber and herbs – they will get soggy). Add a little more sauce as needed and store in the fridge. When you’re ready to eat, serve up your pre-mixed stuff with some fresh cucumbers, herbs, and extra sauce.
Equipment
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Notes
I cooked my tofu by frying it in a skillet with some oil and soy sauce! Other methods for cooking tofu that we love can be found here. Poached or sautéed shrimp or chicken would also be great – just use what you have / what you like.
The sauce can be made several days in advance and stored in the fridge (i.e. prep on Sunday for your dinner on Tuesday).
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Chop
- Cuisine: Vietnamese-Inspired
Keywords: vermicelli noodles, vietnamese salad, noodle salad, tofu salad, summer salad, cold noodle salad, pasta salad
Time To Show You Off!
Filed Under: All Recipes Dairy-Free Gluten-Free Healthy Lime Meal Prep Pasta Recipes Salads Summer Tofu Vegetarian
July 7, 2020
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
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first one to comment !! nice recipe.
Love lemongrass! This salad looks fantastic!
Love this idea of a “deconstructed spring roll” if you will! And that lemongrass sauce sauce divine!! Definitely a recipe I’m going to have to try!
Enjoy, Jacob! 😊
I am curious if you have a vegan replacement for the fish sauce? I would love to be able to try this!!
Here to ask this same question! Strict vegetarian here, I usually just omit fish sauce from stir fries, but this is quite a bit more than most recipes so I think it would need a replacement. This looks amazing!
hi Morgan/Maggie – I’m not from POY, but here’s what I use for fish sauce:
—-
When flavor-boosting nucleotides are paired with glutamates, the perception of umami is significantly increased. Sure enough, a salty broth made with dried shiitake mushrooms (rich in nucleotides) and soy sauce (glutamates) provided just the right meaty punch as a 1:1 substitute for fish sauce. Here’s how to make it:
In a saucepan, simmer 3 cups of water, ¼ ounce of dried sliced shiitake mushrooms, 3 tablespoons of salt, and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce over medium heat until reduced by half.
Strain, cool, and store in the fridge for up to three weeks.
A combination of dried shiitake mushrooms and soy sauce create a vegetarian substitute for fish sauce.
—
https://www.cooksillustrated.com/how_tos/6610-making-a-vegetarian-substitute-for-fish-sauce
That’s super helpful, thanks Lesley!
Can’t wait to try this recipe!
I don’t know if your stores stock it near you, but the brand Ocean’s Halo makes a really good vegan fish sauce. 🙂 I’ve seen it at Whole Foods and Kroger in my area. You can probably order it online as well.
made this for lunch today! was so quick and easy and very tasty, fried up some shrimp to put on top, added basil because I didn’t have mint but a perfect lunch for my family!
Yum! Love the idea of putting shrimp on top!
I love everything about this salad – how tasty it looks, how simple it is, and how quickly it can come together. Thanks so much for sharing.
I love a light and summery meal like this! The fresh herbs I bet just MAKE this. I can’t wait to try! Thank you for the healthy recipe Lindsay!
Enjoy, Megan!
These are simple and fast to prepare and everyone enjoyed them!
So glad to hear this! 🙂
I bought lemon grass from store, because they did not have paste. It was really dry and made only a small amount I could use. Is there a substitute/something I could add instead of the lemongrass?
You could try lemon zest instead.
Looks great! You mention that sauce can keep several days in fridge. How long have you kept the meal prep method stored? (Noodles with sauce, peanuts and protein). Thanks
We’d say it keeps best all tossed together for 3-4 days.
Made this last night – it is outstanding, as were the leftovers for lunch today. My husband had an insight – I made the “pretty” version and he said he liked being able to pick and choose what flavors he had in each bite, rather than a blended thing where each bite tastes the same. I mean, right?! As for the tofu, I used Budget Bytes honey-lime glazed tofu from her Mango Coconut Tofu bowls recipe (also outstanding). Thanks for such a yummy recipe!
Yum! So glad you enjoyed this, Ashley!
This was a huge hit with my family! Added sliced snap peas for some extra crunch. Will DEFINITELY make again, such a great summer recipe.
Yum! So summery!
I will be the first person to buy your cook book. Please make one !! I love your recipes. I used to be overwhelmed by food blogs because they were always a lot. I instantly loved your style of simple recipes, that have great ingredients, very diverse recipes, and all the videos give me a quick idea of what will go into it. I really don’t use other food blogs and pinch of yum is my go to. I thank you for all of your inspiration.
Very tasty and special! Thank you! The fish oil is very smelly in the sauce, so I might try leaving that out next time or using less (while sacrificing authenticity).
I made this and ate it for lunch, then dinner, and then breakfast the next day. No joke. It’s amazing!
Hahaha! Love it!
This recipe has such amazing and unique flavor! It was my first time cooking tofu and vermicelli rice noodles and it was an absolute success. I used the directions for cooking tofu she has linked and it turned out great. I kept the ingredients separated like she suggested and it was delicious for lunch still two days later.
Glad you enjoyed this salad, Andrea!
oh my god this SALAD!! i’ve been getting bored of cooking in shutdown, scrolled your blog for inspiration (as I do daily) and convinced myself I had the energy to make this…. WOW the flavors were so complex and bright, everything came together easily and beautifully. 10/10 recommend, especially since the ingredients are all ones I tend to have on hand. definitely a new favorite!
So glad to hear you enjoyed this, Rianna!
Have you made this with an oil besides vegetable? I want to make this but don’t have that kind of oil on hand. I love your recipes BTW!
I’ve made it with avocado oil and it worked well! Haven’t tried it with any other oils.
This was delish!!!! Hubby and two teens gobbled it up. Next time I will double it. I forgot the lime juice in the sauce and it was still fabulous!!! Thank you. This is a keeper.
Forgot to add: my husband threw a fried egg on these and it was a great addition!
Awesome! So glad to hear it!
Wow! This was excellent. Also pretty straightforward prep wise. I made it with shrimp and it was enough for several lunches. Will absolutely be making this again.
So glad you enjoyed it, Allison!
Hey Lindsay, First of All I want to thank you for sharing such a fantastic recipe with us. I tried cooking it yesterday and it turned out really good. I have started cooking in these quarantine days and was unsure about my skills but the way you explained everything made it quite simple for me.
This is an amazing variety of salad with so much uniqueness in it. Adding lemongrass to it makes it just better! Thanks for this!.
You are a food angel flown down from heaven and this dish is, without a doubt, THE BEST THING TO EVER GRACE MY TASTEBUDS!!! Seriously packed with flavour….it’s a zingy, crunchy, fresh and healthy joy-of-a-dish to eat. I would happily eat this everyday of the week!!
Made this tonight so easy. Dressing was delicious. Was a better salad than the cactus club version. I made 2 servings and kept half dressing for tomorrow. This is my new go to salad! I used chicken panfried with some soy and chili paste. To switch it up tomorrow I will top with some sliced mango which will offset the spice . So happy to find this.
Looks great!