An Asian slaw of sorts made with Wombok Chinese cabbage (Napa cabbage), toasted almonds and lots of crispy noodles, this Chang’s Crispy Noodle Salad is a back-of-packet Aussie staple. Always a winner at backyard BBQs!
Welcome to Day 5 of the inaugural Holiday Salad Marathon, a series where I’m doing the polar opposite of the usual baking countdowns and bringing you a new salad recipe every single day through to Christmas Eve!
Today I’m sharing a great Aussie classic:
Chang’s Crispy Noodle Salad
This is a salad from that comes to you from the back of the Chang’s Crispy Noodle packet. It’s an Aussie summer BBQ favourite that hits the spot with everybody.
It’s all about the crispy noodles and the sesame dressing. The cabbage is just a vehicle to deliver those into our mouth!!
What you need for Chang’s Crispy Noodle Salad
Here’s what goes into the salad:
The Crispy Noodles
Any crispy fried noodles is fine, preferably thin like pictured though wider ones are great too. Though for the great Aussie classic version, nothing but Chang’s will do! In Australia, you’ll find it in the Asian or noodle section of supermarkets (costs about $1).
There’s other brands that make virtually the same noodles that you can find at Asian stores and copy-cats at Aldi. Here’s one I found in the US – La Choy Crispy Chow Mein noodles – Walmart & Amazon.
Excellent substitute – BAKED ramen or instant noodles!
If you can’t find it, use two packets of ramen or instant noodles (like Maggi!). Discard seasoning packet, break it up into pieces, spread on tray, spray with oil and bake at 180°C/350°F for 10 minutes, tossing halfway. Works a treat (I also do this for Crispy Chow Mein Noodles).
Chinese Cabbage (aka Wombok / Napa Cabbage)
Also known as Wombok and Napa Cabbage, Chinese Cabbage is best for this salad because it’s softer than traditional cabbage like you use for Coleslaw which needs to be left to wilt so you don’t have pokey bits of cabbage flicking all around your mouth when you eat it.
The texture of Chinese cabbage is somewhere between traditional stiffer green cabbage, and soft leafy greens.
You will need half a giant one or a full one because because we (well, I) only use the top half with the leafy bits. The bottom 1/3 or so is a bit too crunchy so the texture doesn’t meld as well with the rest of the salad, so I leave it (toss into stir fries and noodles).
By the way, this is how I cut the cabbage: two slits then finely shred. Fast and neat!
The Dressing
As for the dressing, all you need is white vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil and olive oil. Asian influence yes, but the soy sauce is more about the salt than giving this an Asian flavour.
Note: I can’t help but tamper with virtually every recipe and in this case, I made the following changes (none of which will surprise regular readers):
Reduced olive oil from 1/2 cup to 5 tablespoons
Reduced sugar from 1/4 cup to 2 tablespoons
It’s still balanced enough with less oil and sugar, and nobody has ever complained!
How to make this Crispy Noodle Salad
It’s as simple as:
Shake the dressing in a jar (really, shaking in a jar is so much more effective than stirring…); and
Toss it all together!
There’s just one rule….
There’s just one rule – don’t add the crunchy noodles until just before serving. Nobody wants a SOGGY Noodle Salad!
Serve with everything – Asian and non Asian. It might have Asian roots, but this is a salad we Aussies will serve on the side of everything, from Beef Kebabs on the BBQ to Steak with Chimichurri Sauce, to a simple grilled marinated chicken.
And yes, sometimes we even serve it alongside our favourite Asian foods too….!!! 😇 – Nagi x
PS No video today, for such a simple recipe. But if there’s a step in particular you’d like to see me demonstrate, just ask nicely and I’ll show you! 😉
What is the Holiday Salad Marathon?
This is my inaugural Christmas recipe countdown where I am sharing 30 salad recipes in a row until Christmas Eve – something completely different to people’s usual baking countdowns!
These salads are in addition to my regular 3 new recipes a week. Because aren’t you bored of the usual tomato-cucumber-lettuce garden salad routine??
Click here to see all the Holiday Salad Marathon recipes to date, or sign up for instant updates and you’ll receive a free email alert whenever I publish a new salad! 🙂
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Chang’s Crispy Noodle Salad
Ingredients
- 1 Chinese cabbage (wombok), or 1/2 a giant one (Note 1)
- 100g/ 3.5oz Chang's crispy noodles (store bought, the fine ones not chunky ones, Note 2)
- 5 green onions , finely sliced on the diagonal
- 100g/ 3.5oz slivered almonds
Dressing:
- 4 tbsp white vinegar (just ordinary vinegar, nothing fancy!)
- 2 tbsp white sugar (or brown)
- 2 tbsp soy sauce , all purpose or light, NOT dark soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil , toasted (brown, not yellow untoasted)
- 5 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Toast almonds: Lightly toast the slivered almonds in a small skillet over medium heat until lightly browned (no oil). Remove immediately and let cool.
- Dressing: Shake Dressing ingredients in a jar until sugar is dissolved. (This keeps for 3 weeks!)
- Shred cabbage: Cut cabbage (see photos in post, helpful): cut 1 slit down the middle lengthwise (or 2, if it's giant like the one I used). Then finely slice so it's shredded. Just use the top 1/2 – 2/3, mostly leafy part. Reserve the thick crunchy white part for another use (excellent in stir fries!).
- Toss everything except crispy noodles: Place cabbage in a big bowl with toasted almonds and green onions. Pour over Dressing, toss well.
- Add crispy noodles! Toss through noodles just before serving so they stay crisp!
Recipe Notes:
Life of Dozer
I knew I’d find another use for my $3 Melbourne Cup Fascinator!!! (And yes, he’s a he 😂)
Hi Nagi
We love this recipe and always made it like this.
BUT I went to a friends for lunch and she made it with baby bok chow, and I loved it !
I am making Asian Chilli Chicken tonight with this salad and Cilantro Coconut Rice.
I love to fry up tofu that has been marinated in teryaki sauce and cut into smallish cubes to toss through. Also carrots and cucumber finely shredded. Y U M.
BEAT SALAD EVER
Have always this salad and kids actually love it!!
Love this salad! Any advice on how best to substitute the sugar in dressing?
THE BEST SALAD I HAVE HAD ALMOST EVER!!! I’m quite ashamed at how much I ate at one meal!! Just know I ATE A WHOLE LOT!! Thanks it was delicious!
Love your recipe site, but mostly LOVE DOZER!!!
And I LOVE HEARING THAT!! 😂
We loved this salad Nagi. It’s simple to make and fun to eat. Even my 18 month old and 5 year old boy enjoyed it!
Wonderful salad!!! Thank you so much for your delicious recipes. There is never been a bad one. I was talking to a friend the other day and we were talking about good recipes and she gets hers from you too!! 💕
Hi Nagi
I’m a bit confused with the toasted sesame oil I use YEOS is this toasted or raw
Thanks 🤩
Most sesame oils on market are toasted, including the one you’re using 🙂
Yummo love this salad, I used to make it all the time. Nice reminder for me to get it back into my dinner rotation – thanks!
This was great. My husband does not like too many onions, so I put in half the amount of onions and added cilantro and sesame seeds- wow. He now has added it to his favorites. Loves the wonton soup with it.
Hi Nagi. LOVE your recipes! Being fellow Aussies, this is a favourite salad in our family too, however we’ve also made some adjustments. Swap the wombok for red cabbage and add in fresh mango. Sooo delicious. There would be an outcry if this was not served at big events like Christmas Day
This has been a family favourite here for many years. We add shredded BBQ chicken & make it a lazy weekend meal.
My parents and I made this salad (minus the onions) and it was absolutely delicious! Our crunchy noodles weren’t as thin as yours (still on the hunt for those), but it was super tasty anyways. Thanks for the excellent recipe!!
Thanks so much for the fried noodles variation of baking any packet noodle. I’m Aussie but live in Africa where there is not so much Asian influence. But flavoured packet noodles are always plentiful. Thanks so much for this tip! I’m so happy to make it again after many years! 🎉
This is the family favourite salad. Awesome with my asian style pork spare ribs.
I take packets of Changs noodles to the UK when I visit family so I can make it over there for them.
For some reason the shops there don’t sell the pre fried packs of noodles. I never thought of spraying and baking 2 minute noodles. Genius!
By the way, what do you think of the ready made dressing you can buy now?