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This ridiculously amazing Asian ramen salad will have you and your guests going back for thirds and fourths. Everyone will be asking for the recipe and you’ll want to bring this easy dish to every potluck!
This Asian ramen salad is so ridiculously amazing!
This salad is true to its name.
My aunt gave me this recipe from which she got from her late husband’s family in Indiana. Every single time we make this salad and bring it to potlucks, it is the FIRST to go. Every single time! There’s never a time we leave with some of the salad left in the bowl. It’s always devoured.
I’ve been eating this Asian ramen salad for years and years. I always think of my aunt whenever I have this salad and I love the memories it evokes. See? Food is always attached to a memory!
The best part is, this is probably the easiest thing to throw together. If you need a side dish to bring to a party or potluck, this Asian ramen salad has your name written all over it!
Bring this Asian ramen salad to a potluck or party. It is fit for a crowd!
It’s so easy to double, triple, or quadruple this Asian ramen salad for whatever size potluck or party you are going to. I have heard of someone trying to make this for 100 people.
Can you imagine?
That is a whole lot of Asian ramen salad to go around! Haha
But I think the most appealing part of this recipe is how easy it is and the fact that it’s okay if it sits out at parties and potlucks. Nothing will “go bad” in this recipe so after you take it out of the fridge from its initial chilling, it is fine to sit out at the table.
What kind of add-ins could I add into this Asian ramen salad?
So, my Asian ramen salad recipe is from my aunt and just like all recipes, there is a bunch of different ways that people make this recipe. There are so many variations and different ways it has been passed down!
In being passed down from generation to generation, there’s always little add-ins that I have heard of through the years that would make a great addition to this salad.
Here are some that I think would be great:
- Shredded chicken
- Mandarin oranges
- Edamame
- Napa cabbage
With or without the seasoning packet?
I get a lot of questions on this and my answer is no.
In my recipe below, I actually tell you to omit the seasoning packet from the ramen because it’s filled with not-so-good ingredients and so much sodium.
Would sesame oil work in this Asian ramen salad?
Using sesame oil would completely overpower the salad. I would say if you want to add in sesame oil, use like 1/2 tablespoon.
Are the ramen noodles supposed to be crispy/uncooked?
Yes. That’s the point. The crunchy ramen noodles give it texture and bite.
They do get “soggy” after they have been sitting in the salad for awhile (since it soaks up the liquid) so there are two ways you can go about this:
- Don’t add the ramen noodles until right before you serve if you want the crunchy texture.
- Add the ramen noodles in before you put it in the fridge to chill; you’ll get slightly softened/soggy noodles but some people don’t like the extra crunch.
Alright, so now I’ve talked your ear off about this Asian ramen salad you should probably go grab the ingredients listed in the recipe below and get to making!
It’ll be gone soo fast and you’ll get requests from everyone for the recipe :)
Come back and let me know how it goes ;) That’s how positive I am that it’s THAT good!
Other great potluck recipe ideas:
- Honey mustard and onion pretzels
- Tangy potato salad
- Mexican Street Corn off the Cob
- Cabbage Slaw with Creamy Hummus Dressing
- Cowboy Caviar
- Broccoli Salad
Ridiculously Amazing Asian Ramen Salad
Ingredients
- 16 ounce (454 g) bag coleslaw mix
- 1 cup (134 g) sunflower seeds, de-shelled/shelled/no shells
- 1 cup (237 g) sliced almonds
- 6 ounces (170 g) dried ramen*, (any flavor, you won’t be using the seasoning packets so it doesn’t matter)
- 5 stalks of scallions, sliced
- ¾ cup (177 ml) vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup (79 ml) white vinegar
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
Instructions
- In a large bowl, place coleslaw mix, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, crushed ramen (see note below), and scallions.16 ounce (454 g) bag coleslaw mix, 1 cup (134 g) sunflower seeds, 1 cup (237 g) sliced almonds, 6 ounces (170 g) dried ramen*, 5 stalks of scallions
- In a large measuring cup, add vegetable oil, vinegar, and sugar. Whisk together. Don’t worry if the sugar will not completely dissolve.¾ cup (177 ml) vegetable oil, ⅓ cup (79 ml) white vinegar, ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- Pour oil mixture over the coleslaw mix and toss everything together with a large spatula until everything is coated well.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
- Serve cold or room temperature.
If you make this recipe with ingredients as listed this is the way it is supposed to taste. If you cook the noodles and add other ingredients you are not making this recipe.
After you cook for a while, you learn to tailor things to your own taste, to add things, etc… It’s one thing if you give a recipe a bad rating after you make changes. That is a terrible thing to do. But taking a base recipe and playing with it, and giving it good reviews is another–as long as you mention your changes in your review, it;s all good. This recipe is especially fun to play with and add to. It’s a part of becoming a good cook.
Love this!!! Made it for a work potluck and roasted the almonds in a little butter and used napa cabbage; I also added mandarin wedges but cut the sugar a little. Yummmmmm
I make this substituting 2 Tbs vegetable oil for 2 Tbs Seaseme oil and I use one packet of the beef flavoring. Personal preference. It’s always a winner.
What flavor of ramen would you recommend? I’m thinking oriental flavor but would that be too strong?
You don’t use the flavor seasoning packet in the ramen for the recipe.
We tried oriental once it it had a very strong ginger taste. Chicken is nice and mild, so we use that. We always add the packet. It makes the dressing.
Do the ramen noodles get soft? Or stay hard? Thank you!
If you add them in prior to refrigeration, they get soft. If you like the crunchy texture, you can add them in after the salad has chilled.
I made the Asian salad. I used garlic vinegar and next time I am going to add an extra bag of ramen or cut down the amount of oil I also used the seasoning packets (the chicken picante ones)freshly ground pepper, red onion and celery. I am letting it sit for the 2 hours, just tossed it again and there is to much oil for my taste
can you use other oil in this recipe?
olive oil or avocado oil?
I would say avocado oil and not olive oil since olive oil has more of a taste and you don’t really want that in this salad.
Try adding a little sesame oil in with the vegetable oil…yummy!
We had it last night. Great!! I used rice wine vinegar and sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and almonds. We starting snacking on it before dinner couldn’t stop! Grilled bone in chicken breast with Weber Kick’n Chicken seasoning. A new go to summer dinner.
Jane, how funny that we ALL have been making this salad, each with a different “tweak”! I’ve been making the original recipe for at least 30 years, always being told I need to bring it to the Bunco, Tupperware or Princess House party of the week! LOL! Not to mention Baby Showers, Wedding Showers……ya’l get where I’m going! And yes, The recipe is always requested! After making this for many, many years, I too felt a “tweak” was in order! After a lot of test runs, finally landed on one that I liked. My dressing is made with evoo, red wine vinegar, 6 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Chicken flavor or Roasted Chicken flavor Top Ramen packets, soy sauce, sesame oil, and jam! Yep! I use one of the following, depending on my mood, Apricot, Peach, Orange Marmalaide, or any variety of berry. I also use 1 bag cabbage slaw and one bag of broccoli slaw. I toast with a pat of REAL butter almond slices or slivers and use one whole bunch of green onions. Oh yeah! I almost forgot! I add an entire bag of raw Snow Pea pods. It’s so good! And I don’t add the dry noodles or dressing until just before serving. I swear ladies, I think I’ve have each one of your recipes at least once through the years. I guess this is why I read cook books like a novel! So much FUN trying a new “tweak”!
Lots of variations on this recipe out there. It’s a good one. I like to add snow pea pods to this as well. A really nice addition is to add some soy sauce and some grated ginger to the salad dressing. To cut the calories, I only use about 1/3 c. oil and sometimes I change the vinegar to rice vinegar or change the oil to sesame oil. Fresh Edamame is also a good addition. For a full meal, add shredded cooked chicken, diced leftover pork loin roast, or cooked shrimp to the dressing to marinate it for about 15 minutes before adding to the coleslaw. This works with any of the Ramen noodle flavors, but Oriental is still the best.
We add edemmamme and cashew, along with bell pepper and english cucumber, the ramen packet, a dash of sesame oil, and soy sauce. We also just add one tbsp. of sugar and use rice vinegar (it’s milder.)We don’t add meat and just have an extra big bowl to make it a meal. It’ so good.