Discover the fresh and vibrant flavors of Thailand with our simple recipe for Thai glass noodle salad (Yum Woon Sen)! A healthy, fresh, low-carb, and vegetarian Asian Salad that is quickly prepared.

thai glass noodle salad on a plate

Thai Glass noodle salad, also known as Yum Woon Sen in Thai, is next to the papaya salad, one of the most popular and well-known Thai salads! It consists mainly of cellophane noodles (or glass noodles, hence the name) tossed with quite a spicy dressing.

The authentic recipe is prepared with shrimps, minced meat, and fish sauce. However, I’ll show you a vegan recipe variation with crunchy vegetables that tastes just as fresh, delicious, spicy, and intense as the original.

Thai Glass Noodle Salat served on a plate

By using cellophane noodles made of green beans and mung beans, this salad is low-carb, gluten-free, and very healthy.

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Learn how to make Thai glass noodles salad and bring authentic Thai cuisine to your home. You can serve it as a starter with any Thai dish or as a low-carb meal for lunch or dinner. The recipe is easy and quick to prepare.

Ingredients

See recipe card for quantities.

  • Cellophane Noodles (Glass Noodles)ย – The main ingredient! A type of transparent noodles made from starch (usually bean and mung bean starch) – also known as bean thread noodles or mung bean noodles. You must squeeze the cooked cellophane noodles very well by hand to remove any excess liquid. This helps prevent your salad from being too watery, which would result in a diluted and less intense dressing.
  • Celeryย – The authentic recipe uses Chinese celery, which is more delicate and less intense than regular celery. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to find Chinese celery; your best shot is a large Asian market. Therefore, it’s OK to use regular celery’s light green inner stalks.
  • Tomato, Carrot, Peanutsย – The crunchy vegetables provide a little more flavor in this vegetarian version. The peanuts simply belong in any Thai salad – for more flavor, use roasted peanuts!
  • Scallionย – Authentic Thai glass noodle salad is prepared with coarsely chopped shallots and onions, which give the salad a lot of spiciness. Personally, I prefer to prepare the salad with scallion, which is much milder.
  • Cilantroย – The stems are full of flavor and therefore used for the dressing. Use the cilantro leaves to decorate the salad.
  • Garlic, Thai Chili, Ginger, Lime Juice, Soy Sauce, Sugar, and Saltย – Ingredients for the glass noodle salad dressing. Originally, it is prepared with fish sauce. However, soy sauce is a great alternative to make glass noodle salad vegan or vegetarian! Thais use palm sugar, but brown sugar will do too.
Thai Glass Noodle Salad Ingredients

Visual Step-by-Step Instructions

This visual step-by-step instruction will help you along the way โ€“ definitely recommended if youโ€™re a cooking beginner!

  1. Cook cellophane noodles according to the package instructions. Prepare all the veggies for the salad.
  2. Dressing:ย Place cilantro stems, garlic, ginger, and Thai chilies in a mortar and pound with the pestle into a paste. Add sugar and salt, pound until dissolved. Add lime juice and soy sauce, stir to mix. โ†’ If you don’t have a mortar, finely mince cilantro stems, garlic, ginger, and Thai chilies, then place them with the sugar, salt, lime juice, and soy sauce in a bowl and stir to mix.
Thai Glass Noodle Salat Recipe Step 1-2
  1. Place cooked cellophane noodles, cherry tomatoes, scallion, carrot, celery, peanuts, and chopped cilantro leaves in a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.
Thai Glass Noodle Salat Recipe Step 3-4

Variations

  • Protein-Packed: Boost the salad with some tofu or a vegan meat substitute of your choice!
  • Vegetables: Feel free to add a variety of crunchy vegetables like bell peppers, snap peas, or red cabbage for some variation.
  • Fruity: In the summer, I love to garnish the salad with some fresh, diced mango.

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Storage Instruction

Store glass noodle salad in an airtight container in the fridge. Keeps fresh for 2 days. You can prepare the salad up to a day in advance, allowing the flavors to meld even more.

More Asian Salads

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๐Ÿ“– Recipe

thai glass noodle salad on a plate

Thai Glass Noodle Salad

Discover the fresh and vibrant flavors of Thailand with our simple recipe for Thai glass noodle salad (Yum Woon Sen)!
Author : Aline Cueni
5 from 2 votes

Click on the stars to leave a vote!

Save This Recipe! ๐Ÿ’Œ

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Prep Time :12 minutes
Cook Time :3 minutes
Total Time :15 minutes
Servings : 2
Calories : 299kcal

Ingredients
 
 

Salad

  • 3.5 oz cellophane noodles
  • ยฝ cup cherry tomatoes or one tomato, sliced
  • 1 scallion or shallot, sliced
  • 1 carrot julienned
  • 1 stalk celery finely sliced, see notes
  • 2 tbsp peanuts crushed
  • ยฝ bunch cilantro chopped

Dressing

  • ยฝ bunch cilantro stems chopped
  • 1 clove garlic sliced
  • ยผ inch piece ginger sliced
  • 2 Thai chilies seeded & sliced
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • โ…› tsp salt
  • 3 tbsp lime juice
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce

Instructions
 

  • Cook cellophane noodles according to the package instructions. Rinse under cold water, drain, cut noodles 2-3 times with a pair of scissors, then squeeze out all excess liquid by hand.ย โ†’ This last step helps prevent your salad from being too watery, which would result in a diluted and less intense dressing.
  • Roughly chop the cilantro and set the stems aside for the dressing.
  • Place cooked cellophane noodles, cherry tomatoes, scallion, carrot, celery, peanuts, and chopped cilantro leaves in a large bowl.
  • Dressing: Place cilantro stems, garlic, ginger, and Thai chilies in a mortar and pound into a paste. Add sugar and salt, pound until dissolved. Add lime juice and soy sauce, stir to mix. โ†’ If you don't have a mortar, finely mince cilantro stems, garlic, ginger, and Thai chilies, then place them with the sugar, salt, lime juice, and soy sauce in a bowl and stir to mix.
  • Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.

Notes

  • Use Chinese celery if you have the chance to (only available in large Asian Shops). Otherwise, the inner stalks and leaves of celery will do fine.
  • Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 299kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 1204mg | Potassium: 427mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 5609IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 66mg | Iron: 3mg

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5 from 2 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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