This Asian style pasta salad is full of flavor and perfect for lunch or dinner!
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Although I consider our cat Cheeto to be just like a son, and I have celebrated Mother’s Day with him in the past, it was nice to to celebrate with Eli this year. We brunched, played in our new mini pool and I enjoyed a few mimosas 🙂
Mondays are never anyone’s favorite, so hopefully this Asian Peanut Pasta Salad will cheer you up!
This pasta salad is loaded with tons of veggies, bulked up with some tofu and topped off with a creamy and flavorful peanut sauce. If you are not a fan of the mayo soaked pasta salad you find at the deli counter, then this recipe is for you.
Although, it isn’t officially summer yet, it’s been really hot here and we’ve been barbecuing quite a bit. This Asian Peanut Pasta makes for a great summer BBQ side dish. It’s not too heavy and the Asian flavors are a nice change from the traditional pasta salads you see a lot.
It’s also great for make ahead lunch or a quick and easy dinner!
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Asian Peanut Pasta Salad with Tofu
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 12 oz rotini pasta, or your favorite kind
- 1 (14 oz) container extra firm tofu, drained and patted dry
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon tamari, or soy sauce (gluten free if necessary)
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1 cups thinly sliced purple cabbage
- 1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper, cut into bite size pieces
- 1 cup chopped broccoli
- 1/3 cup sliced green onion
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
Peanut Dressing:
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 3 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tamari, or soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil, tofu and Tamari. Cook tofu until browned and crispy, 10 minutes.
- Place all dressing ingredients into a blender and blend until creamy, 30 seconds – 1 minute.
- Add the cooked pasta, tofu, all the vegetables and the peanut dressing to a large bowl and mix until combined. Pasta salad can be enjoyed immediately or refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Dinner, Lunch, Gluten Free, Vegan
Finally a healthier version of the pasta! Thanks, it’s looks so delicious!
Thank you! It’s so good 🙂
Thank you.. tasty and healthy
Glad you liked it!
I made this pasta salad tonight and had a big problem making the dressing. 1 cup of peanut butter is just way too much and not enough liquid. I finally had to start over using just 1/4 cup of peanut butter and it came out much better. Not sure if the amount of peanut butter was a typo or not? Everyone loved it though.
Oh my gosh, I’m so so sorry about that!! I just looked back at my notes and it should have been 1 1/4 cups water not 1/4 cup. Eek! Again, I’m so sorry about that but glad you were able to salvage it and that everyone still enjoyed it!
I LOVE the idea of an asian pasta salad! That dressing sounds incredible! It’s starting to get pretty warm here and pasta salads like this are on my mind!