(Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Meat Free | Paleo-Friendly) This sumptuous salad is quick and packed full of flavour. I mean, that’s the ideal combo, right? The leftovers make a great packed lunch as well, which is always a massive bonus!

I didn’t know much about buckwheat noodles (also called soba noodles) before I found this recipe. As it turns out, they’re naturally gluten-free and have more nutrients than your average noodle. Unfortunately, they’re a bit hard to find in the average UK grocery store. I even ventured to the Piccadilly Circus Whole Foods in London, but they only had spiral buckwheat noodles, which wasn’t exactly what the recipe asked for. If you’re in a real bind, maybe just skip the noodles -the veggies and sauce are tasty enough on their own!

I tried this recipe because I could use over half the contents of my veg box in the process. Just look at this beautiful Nature’s Window veggie box that got dropped off at my door!

Okay, enough about buckwheat noodles and my veggie box. On to the recipe!

Noodle Salad Ingredients

• 170 g buckwheat noodles (I could only find buckwheat pasta spiral noodles so I used those instead)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 small red onion or 3 spring (green) onions, finely sliced
• Large handful of finely chopped carrots
• Large handful of shredded cabbage (Red/white/savoy were all recommended, but I only had spring greens so I used those instead -they were good!)
• Large handful of cruncy veggies (Broccoli/sliced fennel/radishes were all recommended, but I had asparagus and closed cup mushrooms so I threw them in)
• 2 handfuls of leaves such as watercress, baby spinach or sliced lettuce

Dressing Ingredients

• Juice and zest of 1 unwaxed lime/lemon
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, grated
• Sea salt and pepper to taste
• A splash of tamari (I didn’t have this so I just skipped it)

Topping Ingredients

• Small handful of any nuts or seeds, such as cashews, peanuts, almonds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds or poppy seeds (I had cashew nuts and chia seeds so I used those)
• Handful of fresh herbs such as coriander (cilantro), mint, chives, basil or Thai basil (I used mint)

Here are my tasty veggies all prepped for the fun they’re going to have in my frying pan!

Directions

1. Make the dressing by adding everything to a jam jar and shaking well (For those of us who don’t have jam jars kicking about, a simple bowl and whisk will do)
2. Cook the buckwheat noodles according to the packet, using plenty of water. During the first minute of cooking, use two forks to stir and separate the noodles.
3. When tender, drain and rinse with cold water for about 15 seconds to stop them from cooking further. Set aside to drain then toss a little extra virgin olive oil through to stop the noodles sticking.
4. Over medium heat dry toast your nuts or seeds in a frying pan until golden brown then set aside. This only takes a minute so don’t leave them.
5. Turn the heat up and add in the coconut oil and onion. After 30 seconds or so, add the ‘hardest’ vegetables (for me, this was the carrots and asparagus), and stir-fry over a high heat for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and stir-fry for a further minute –you want to lightly cook the vegetables to retain their crunch and bright colours. Cook the vegetables a little more if you prefer (I do), adding a few tablespoons of water to steam them if they catch on the bottom of the pan.
6. Turn off the heat, add the cooked noodles and toss.
7. Add any raw leaves. Spoon over the dressing and toss everything together. Top up with toasted nuts/seeds and herbs.

Serves 2 with 1/3 portion for lunch leftovers

Source | Hemsley Hemsley, ‘The Art of Eating Well’

(Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Meat Free | Paleo-Friendly) This naturally gluten-free salad is an explosion of fantastic flavours and makes a great packed lunch/picnic goodie! The dressing was created and tested in my kitchen from a few different recipes to make it an extra good time. Feel free to add chicken if you want, but it’s still very filling without -especially if you add chia seeds. If you’re not keen on spice, just skip the chili and red pepper flakes in the dressing.

Salad Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 small red onion, chopped fine (I only had a white onion, so I used that)
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 400 g (4 cups) shredded Napa cabbage (I had spring greens knocking about in my fridge so I just used those instead)
• 3 carrots, grated
• 2 spring (green) onions chopped
• Small handful (¼ cup) fresh basil, chopped
• Small handful (¼ cup) fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
• Small handful (¼ cup) raw cashews, toasted and chopped

Dressing Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons lime juice
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce (You can purchase gluten-free soy sauce)
• 2 tbsp vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)
• 2 tbsp natural peanut butter (I’ve also used whole peanuts that I ground down in a blender when I didn’t have peanut butter on hand)
• 1 tbsp honey (Add more/less to taste)
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tbsp water
• 5 cm (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
• 1 chili pepper (or cayenne pepper) –if you like spicy things!

Instructions

• Heat coconut oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for two minutes.
• Make dressing by whisking together or putting all ingredients into blender (the blender option is best).
• In a large bowl combine cabbage, carrots, green onion, basil, and coriander (cilantro). Toss with dressing. Top with cashews and serve.

Tips

• Add chicken I you want! Just sauté the chicken breast until browned and fully cooked in coconut oil with onion and garlic. Allow it to cool and shred.
• I threw some Chia seeds on my salad for added protein, since my salad didn’t have chicken.
• Because of the hardiness of cabbage (or, in my case, spring greens), this salad makes a great packed lunch! The greens didn’t get soggy even though I had already mixed in the dressing the night before. Here I am on a gloriously sunny Friday eating this delightful packed lunch in the park…what a treat!