Annnnnd we are back on track!
Er, okay, getting there, at least. With the help of this friendly little Thai Noodle Salad and its packed-in veggies, protein, healthy fats, and major flavor, I am doing some post-girls’-trip resetting to get back to the norm of solid healthy eating. And by “norm”, I mean the first time in a few months thanks to all that first trimester craziness. Just let me pretend.
Our girls’ trip to San Diego this weekend was just… well, it was a lot of different things. Mostly it was really nice to get away from Facebook and CNN and NPR radio news for a few days, and to have 4-hour extended happy hour sessions and watch seals flopping in and out of the ocean and pop in for a little ice cream at 11am because it’s California and WHY NOT. We soaked up the sun and the ocean, we had pizza delivered to our room for a midnight snack, and we reconnected over slow meals in sweet, hard, and meaningful ways.
I’ll tell you more about it later this week – I have just a few pictures to share. ? And I want to talk more in depth about everything that’s going on right now, because is it just me? Or does it feel like things are kinda heavy? I am still mentally working out how to even talk about it.
But for today, I’m just giving my food life to you in real-time. I got home from the trip on Sunday night, did a reset on Monday including a speedy fast trip to the grocery store, and found myself yesterday chopping like a ninja and then devouring this salad as a “detox” back into normal person eating.
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Thai Noodle Salad
This Thai Noodle Salad is a quick and tasty meal that is perfect for a weeknight. Full of crunchy vegetables and vibrant Thai flavors, it is sure to please!
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
for the dressing:
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 large cloves garlic, peeled
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon lemongrass or ginger paste
- a couple BIG squeezes of lime juice (to taste)
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
for the salad:
- 4 ounces brown rice noodles (regular rice noodles are fine, too)
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 5–6 cups baby kale or spinach
- 3 large carrots, cut into small, thin pieces*
- 3 bell peppers, cut into small, thin pieces*
- 1 cup packed cilantro leaves, chopped
- 4 green onions, green parts only, chopped
- 1/2 cup cashews or peanuts
Instructions
- PREP: Start soaking the rice noodles in a bowl of cold water. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- DRESSING: Pulse all the dressing ingredients in a food processor EXCEPT peanut butter. Place the chicken in a plastic bag and use about ¼ to ½ cup of the dressing (without peanut butter) to marinate the chicken in the fridge for about 15-30 minutes. Add the peanut butter to the dressing in the food processor; pulse, then taste and adjust. Set aside.
- VEGGIES: Prep all your veggies and toss together in a bowl.
- CHICKEN: Bake the marinated chicken for 15-20 minutes. Rest for 5-10 minutes, then cut and add to the veggies.
- NOODLES: Drain the noodles (they should be softened at this point). Finish cooking them in a skillet over medium high heat. Add a little oil and a little dressing and toss them around until they are soft and pliable (if you need to add a little water to soften them, that works, too).
- ASSEMBLY: Toss stir-fried noodles with the chicken and veggie mixture. Serve hot or cold. Top with extra peanuts and cilantro (and dressing, and lime juice, and sesame seeds, and…)
Notes
You can cut the carrots and peppers however you like, really. But I like to cut them so they sort of match the shape and texture of the noodles. A spiralizer, peeler, or mandoline are my favorite tools for this.
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 400mg
- Fat: 8g
- Carbohydrates: 12g
- Protein: 10g
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