Make Zoodle Salad

Zoodle salad is a great, low-carb alternative to pasta salad. Zoodles are created by using a spiralizer to slice the zucchini into long noodles. Zoodle salad is simple to make and can be completed in about 20 minutes. You can make a basic, Greek, or Asian zoodle salad.

Ingredients

Basic Zoodle Salad

• 1 medium daikon radish
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1/2 white onion
• 6 to 8 green onions
• 1 small red bell pepper
• 1 small green bell pepper
• 1 small yellow bell pepper
• 4 carrots

Makes 6 servings

Greek Zoodle Salad

• 2 zucchinis
• 1/4 English cucumber
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 10 pitted Kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup (85 g) of thinly sliced red onion
• 2 ounces (56.7 g) of crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons (29.6 mL) of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons (29.6 mL) of fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon (14.2 g) of dried oregano
• Salt
• Ground black pepper

Makes 4 servings

Asian Zoodle Salad

• 3 to 4 zucchinis
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 g) of salt
• 1 ½ cups (354.9 g) of thinly sliced and roughly chopped red cabbage
• 1 large, grated carrot
• 1/2 large red bell pepper
• 2 green onions
• 1/2 bunch of chopped cilantro
• 1/3 cup (78.9 mL) of seasoned rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons (29.6 mL) of olive oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons (7.4 mL) of dark roasted sesame oil.
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• Pinch of red pepper flakes

Makes 4 servings

Steps

Making a Basic Zoodle Salad

1. Spiralize the radish, zucchini, and cucumber. You will need to use a spiralizer. A spiralizer looks similar to a very large pencil sharpener. Before use, peel the vegetable. Then, hold the vegetable in place with the clamp over the grinder. Use the hand crank to feed the vegetable through the spiralizer. Spiralize the radish, zucchini, and cucumber until you have long, curled ribbons.
   • You can also use any other spiral vegetable slicing tool if you don’t have a spiralizer.
   • You can cut the vegetable noodles in half with a knife if you think they’re too long.
2. Cut up the onions, peppers, and carrots. First, chop up the six to eight green onions with a chef’s knife. Then, chop up the three bell peppers. Make sure you remove the stem and seeds. Next, slice up the half white onion. Finish by julienning the four carrots.
   • To julienne, cut the carrots into short, thin strips.
3. Put the vegetables into a large mixing bowl. Once all of the vegetables have been spiralized or cut, add them to a large mixing bowl. Leave out a few of the chopped vegetables to top the salad. Mix the vegetables together by gently tossing the contents of the bowl.
4. Pour the dressing over the salad. An avocado ranch dressing is recommended for this zoodle salad. You can make your own dressing, or buy it at the store. Pour the dressing over the salad. Mix the dressing and salad together with your hands or salad tongs until it has been thoroughly combined.
5. Add extra vegetables on top. Take the chopped vegetables that you set aside and put them on top of the salad. Then, serve the salad immediately. You can store the salad covered in the refrigerator for about one day.

Creating a Greek Zoodle Salad

1. Spiralize the zucchini. First, peel the zucchini. Hold the zucchini in place with the clamp over the grinder. Use the hand crank to feed the zucchini through the spiralizer. Feed it through until curled slices of the zucchini are produced.
2. Add in the cucumber, tomatoes, olives, red onion, and feta cheese. Put all of the ingredients into a large bowl. The “zoodles” should also be in the bowl. Gently toss the salad to mix all of the ingredients together.
3. Make the dressing. Put olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper into a smaller, separate bowl. Whisk all of the ingredients together. Pour the dressing over the salad, and toss the salad to coat it in the dressing.
4. Marinate the salad for 10 to 15 minutes. Put the salad into the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes after it has been coated in the dressing. After is has marinated, serve immediately. If you have leftovers, cover it and store in the refrigerator for no more than one day.

Putting Together an Asian Zoodle Salad

1. Use a spiralizer on the zucchini. Begin by peeling the zucchini. Clamp the zucchini in place over the grinder. Crank the spiralizer to feed the zucchini through it. You should end up with 5 or 6 (1/2 to 1 kg) cups of the zucchini noodles.
2. Drain the zoodles. Put the zoodles in a colander. The colander should be set over a bowl. Put a pinch of salt into the bowl. Allow the zoodles to drain during the time you prepare the other vegetables.
3. Add cabbage, carrot, bell pepper, onions, and cilantro to a large bowl. Roughly chop the cabbage into thin slices. Grate the carrots. Cut the pepper into 1-inch (2.5 cm) segments. Thinly slice the onions into a diagonal. Chop the cilantro, leaving the stems. Put all of these ingredients to a bowl with the zoodles.
4. Create the dressing. Put seasoned rice vinegar, olive oil, dark sesame oil, minced garlic, and red pepper flakes into a separate bowl. Whisk the ingredients together until thoroughly mixed. Toss the salad and dressing together. Then, serve the salad immediately.

Tips

• You can add grilled chicken or fish to the salad for protein.
• Make your own seasoned rice vinegar by adding salt, pepper, and vinegar to regular rice vinegar.

Warnings

• Make sure all of the ingredients have been washed and are fresh before incorporating them into the recipe.

Things You’ll Need

• Spiralizer or other spiral vegetable slicing tool
• Chef’s knife
• Large mixing bowl
• Whisk

Sources and Citations

See also

• Cook Vegetarian Pasta
• Make Vegetarian Lasagna