Rice Noodle Salad with Hoisin Glazed Tofu

Bowl of Rice Noodle Salad topped with hoisin glazed tofu and chopped peanuts.

5 from 4 votes

Rice Noodle Salad with Hoisin Glazed Tofu

Say goodbye to boring salads! This Vietnamese-inspired rice noodle salad is loaded with crisp veggies, a zippy soy-ginger dressing, and savory-sweet hoisin glazed tofu. It’s naturally vegan and optionally gluten-free, so everyone can dig in!

Prep Time15

Cook Time20

Total Time35

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American, Vietnamese

Servings:

Calories: 563kcal

Author: Alissa

Ingredients

For the Hoisin Glazed Tofu

1 ½ teaspoons vegetable oil
8 ounces super-firm tofu, cut into ½ inch cubes
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce

For the Dressing

¼ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons organic granulated sugar
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1 garlic clove, minced

For the Salad

4 ounces dried rice noodle vermicelli
3 cups shredded Napa cabbage
2 medium carrots, julienned
½ medium cucumber, halved and sliced
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
¼ cup chopped fresh mint leaves
2 scallions, chopped
1-2 jalapeño peppers, thinly sliced (optional)
¼ cup roasted peanuts

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the Hoisin Glazed Tofu

Coat the bottom of a large, flat-bottomed skillet with the oil and place it over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the tofu cubes in a single layer. Cook the tofu for about 10 minutes, flipping the pieces once or twice to achieve browning on multiple sides.
Pour the hoisin sauce over the tofu and flip a few times to coat. Cook another minute or two, until the sauce thickens up just a bit.
Remove the tofu from heat and transfer it to a plate.

Make the Dressing

Whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl or container.

Make the Noodle Salad

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Remove it from heat, add the noodles and submerge them. Soak the noodles until tender, about 3 minutes (or refer to the package directions). Drain the noodles into a colander and rinse them well with cold water. Leave the noodles in the colander to drain while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
Place the noodles into a bowl and add the cabbage, carrots, cucumber, cilantro, mint, scallions, and jalapeño peppers, if using. Pour the dressing over the noodles and toss to coat.
Divide the noodle salad onto plates or into bowls. Top with tofu and peanuts. Serve.

Notes

This recipe was updated in July of 2025. After several comments from readers saying that they'd like more dressing, I doubled the amount. Feel free to cut the amount in half if you loved the original version as written, or just prefer less dressing.
The nutrition information is based on 3 servings, but you could get up to 6 side dish servings out of the recipe, or even make 2 giant meals out of it.

Nutrition