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This Asian Ramen Salad recipe is a crunchy cold salad with a sweet and tangy homemade dressing, loads of crunchy Ramen noodles, almonds, green onion, and more! Made in just 10 minutes! It’s an easy recipe that is always the first to go at potlucks.
There was a period of my life where this Ramen Noodle Salad made an appearance at every potluck, summer BBQ, and holiday dinner I attended.
Sometimes I was the one bringing it along, sometimes it was another party-goer. But, you could be sure that every Midwestern event you attended from the years of 2000-2010 were going to feature this crispy, crunchy, delightfully sweet and tangy salad!
Not sure where this salad went, but I realized the other day that I hadn’t made it or seen it in years and it took about 4 seconds for me to hop up, head to the store, and grab the ingredients.
Ramen salad is still always and forever a favorite around here. So many flavors and those crunchy ramen noodles are just *chef’s kiss.*
This is perfect for your next cook out, along with my turkey burger recipe or animal style burgers. Our orzo pasta salad and cornbread salad are other fun sides for a potluck.
Ingredient Notes:
Ramen Noodles – You’ll need two packets of dry noodles. We won’t use the seasoning packet, so discard that or save it for something else.
Coleslaw Mix – Pick up a package of coleslaw mix from the store. It’s quick and easy, just like the ramen noodles!
Mix-Ins – We’re stirring in slivered almonds, sesame seeds, and lots of green onion.
Dressing – You’ll prepare a homemade dressing from olive oil, sesame oil, vinegar, and sugar. The ramen noodles will soak up some of the dressing and soften them a bit the longer the salad sits.
What We Love About This Recipe:
- No cooking involved! This recipe is ready in just a few minutes with some simple mixing.
- Sesame oil is a popular Asian ingredient that works perfectly in the homemade dressing for this ramen noodle salad recipe!
- This salad is sweet and tangy, crispy and crunchy, and just an all around crowd-pleaser.
How to Make Ramen Salad:
Ramen: Crumble the dry ramen noodles into your mixing bowl. Do not cook them first.
Mix: Add in the coleslaw mix, almonds, sesame seeds, and green onions, and give it a stir.
Dressing: Whisk together the olive oil, sesame oil, vinegar, and sugar.
Serve: When you’re ready to serve pour the dressing over the salad mix and stir it up until all the ingredients are well coated in the dressing. This Asian salad is best served right away if you want the ramen noodles to stay nice and crunchy.
Helpful Tip!
The dressing will soften the ramen noodles the longer the salad sits. If you want it to be as crunchy as possible wait to add the dressing until just before serving! Or prepare it with the dressing and add the ramen noodles before serving.
Is Asian Ramen Salad actually an Asian dish?
While there is a Ramen Salad that is a local specialty of Hokkaido, this version is not it. While I don’t know the origins of this version of Ramen salad, my guess is that it is not an authentic Asian dish, but I could be wrong!
FAQs:
This salad will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days, but the noodles will soften up as they soak up the dressing. We prefer this salad freshly made, but if you don’t mind the soft noodles then go ahead and enjoy it!
While you probably could add cooked noodles to this salad, you would really be missing the texture and crunch of the ramen. The crunchy noodles are what make the dish!
MORE EASY COLD SALAD RECIPES!
- Deviled Egg Potato Salad
- Amish Macaroni Salad
- Broccoli & Cauliflower Salad
- Taco Pasta Salad
- Tortellini Pasta Salad
- Tomato Cucumber Salad
Asian Ramen Salad
Ingredients
- 2 packages Ramen noodles 3 ounces each, any flavor
- 16 ounces coleslaw mix
- 1 cup slivered almonds
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
- ½ cup chopped green onions
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup white distilled vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Open the ramen packets and set aside the seasoning packets for another use. They won’t be used in this recipe. Crumble the ramen into small chunks into a large mixing bowl.
- Add the coleslaw mix, almonds, sesame seeds, and green onions and toss.
- Add the olive oil, sugar, vinegar, and sesame oil to a small bowl and whisk well to combine.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and stir to coat.
- Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 6 hours. Best served fresh.
June Busby says
A friend used to bring this for pot luck dinners at work and I loved this salad. Glad for the recipe
Jo says
Great recipe that has also been a staple for me in the past too. I would just add that due to “shrinkflation” those noodle packs have probably 1/4-1/3 less ramen than original recipes although your recipe has probably accounted for that. I usually add an additional 1/2 pack of noodles. Thanks for the recipe.
Kathie says
Excellent tip! Everything is LESS these days. The companies never take in to consideration that there are RECIPES OUT THERE from when they had MORE WEIGHT in the Pkg. Also, for way less money. I swear I remember those Ramen Noodles being $.10 a pkg on sale at one point! Ha Ha. I’m making this recipe this week.
Mary says
Love this salad. I toast the ramen noodles and really adds to the flavor.
Wendy Dell says
I make this all the time! Back in the day no one told me to not boil the ramen! It is fantastic with the ramen boiled and cooled.
NicoleBee says
One of my favorite recipes. I always crumble and toast the ramen noodles and almonds in a little butter first so they stay crunchier a little bit longer.
Alice says
This recipe is also good by seasoning the dressing with the ramen packets! Super easy just use the Oriental flavored blue ones or Soy flavored
Kathy Higgins says
This recipe was just what I was looking for! I added a few things I like and used a homemade dressing from one of your other recipes. It was delish!
Karly says
So glad you enjoyed this one! 🙂
Brenda says
So so good! My Mom turned 85 on 2-5-23 so I made all her favorite things to eat.She will sometimes get slaw from the deli,but I decided to make this,it was a huge success!
Karly says
Happy Birthday to your mom! So glad she enjoyed the salad!
Carie says
This was delicious! Only thing I will do differently next time is reduce the sugar just a bit. It was a tad sweet and I’m trying to cut down on sugars anyway so shouldn’t be a big issue. I could see this being amped up to a full meal with a meat added and maybe even some mandating oranges? I will be eating it with curry lentil soup so the cool freshness will be welcome.
Karly says
So glad you enjoyed this! And yes, you can reduce the sugar to suit your tastes with no problem. We often toss in rotisserie chicken and then serve this as a wrap in a tortilla. Makes a tasty lunch! 🙂
Judy Harris-Betts says
I mke almost h xact ne…I use bef ramen and soak he noodles in hot water yo make them soft….I add the packets to the dressing and add some soy sce too,,,,otherwise exactly the same….delicious…always a hit!!!!!
Ati Dro says
I still make this but use maple syrup instead of sugar.
Sandrajskaggs says
Loved this recipe. Had this many years ago and had forgot about it. Thanks
Karly says
Hope you give it another try! 🙂
Mary Wolf says
I also add the beef flavoring from the noodle package to the dressing. It makes a difference. Heat the vinegar in microwave and add the beef flavoring to that.
Arline says
Looks so yummy! But what’s the serving size for a person?
Karly says
We didn’t calculate a serving size based on volume, but the nutrition info is based on this servign 10.
John Craig says
The Ramen noodle salad recipe has no measurements for the oil, vinegar, sugar or sesame oil??? I can’t look at your picture and see how much of each to mix together!
Karly says
Hi John! I’m sorry, I can’t replicate that issue on my end. Are you looking at the recipe card where it shows the ingredients listed in order and then the detailed instructions or are you reading the blog post with just a brief step by step on how to make it? You can also hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the page and that will ensure you’re in the right spot.
Diane says
yes it does have measurements for them
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar