These cold sesame noodle meal prep bowls are the perfect vegan prep ahead lunch: spiralized vegetables tossed with chickpeas and whole wheat spaghetti in a spicy almond butter sauce.
Having a delicious meal prep lunch waiting for you is a great way to eat healthier and to save money. Favorites of ours include cauliflower cashew lunch bowls, as well as southwestern sweet potato lentil jar salads. These cold sesame noodle meal prep bowls are another personal and reader favorite!
With whole wheat pasta and spiralized vegetables tossed in a creamy almond butter sauce, there's a whole lot to love here. It's a great one if you don't have access to a microwave, as it tastes great served cold.
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Reasons you'll ♡ this recipe
- it's vegan, yet filling with 19 g protein per serving
- you can have the bowls prepped in under 30 minutes
- they keep well and taste great, even on day 4!
Recipe video
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped these Cold Sesame Noodle Meal Prep Bowls. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.
Ingredient notes
- almond butter- use all natural almond butter (the only ingredients should be almonds and maybe salt). You can swap for peanut butter; alternative nut and seed butters have not been tested.
- pasta- whole wheat pasta keeps well and provides a little extra nutrition than regular pasta; gluten-free or other alternatives have not been tested and I cannot say how they will hold up for 4 days.
- chickpeas- add protein to this meal; feel free to swap for tofu or edamame
- spiralized veggies- stir into the noodles nicely; we've used a combination of zucchini and carrots. Feel free to change it up; if you use other types of veggies such as squash you may need to cook them first.
Step by step directions
1. Cook pasta- start by cooking the pasta first, as it will take the longest to prepare. Follow package directions. When cooked through, rinse under cold water and set aside to cool completely.
2. Prepare sauce- In a jar or salad dressing shaker, stir together almond butter, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, maple syrup, lime juice and red pepper flakes.
3. Portion- Divide the almond butter sauce into condiment containers; divide chickpeas, spiralized vegetables and cooled pasta between four meal prep containers.
Cover and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
4. Serve- Remove the sauce and let it stand at room temperature for several minutes. Pour the sauce over the noodles, stir everything up, and enjoy cold!
FAQ
You don't need to! They add a nice crunchy texture when mixed in with the noodles. If you'd prefer a softer texture, you could sauté for 3-5 minutes with a little bit of olive oil.
Since nut butter varies considerably in thickness with different brands and batches, you may need to thin it out. Add water by the half tablespoon, and stir until you get the consistency you are looking for.
After refrigeration, the sauce will be thick and difficult to spread; let it stand at room temperature for several minutes- up to 1 hour before drizzling on your noodles.
You might be able to freeze it without the zucchini, but I don't recommend freezing the zucchini noodles.
Variations
- zucchini & carrots- swap for thinly sliced bell pepper, cabbage, or your favorite bagged slaw,
- chickpeas- swap for chicken or edamame
- pasta- swap for quinoa, rice, farro or extra vegetable noodles
- almond butter sauce- swap for this turmeric tahini sauce
More meal prep bowls
- Grilled Veggie & Black Bean Meal Prep Bowls
- 33 Vegan Meal Prep Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
- Healthy Greek Chicken Pasta Salad Recipe
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Cold Sesame Noodles with Spiralized Vegetables
Ingredients
- 4 oz whole wheat spaghetti uncooked
- 1 zucchini medium-sized; spiralized
- 2 carrots spiralized or shredded
- 2 cups chickpeas 15 or 19 oz can, drained & rinsed; note 2
- green onions to garnish
- sesame seeds to garnish
Almond Butter Sauce:
- ¼ cup almond butter all natural; note 1
- 1 teaspoon ginger finely grated
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce I use reduced sodium
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional; omit for non-spicy version
Instructions
- Cook pasta- start by cooking the pasta first, as it will take the longest to prepare. Follow package directions. When cooked through, rinse under cold water and set aside to cool completely.
- Prepare sauce- In a jar or salad dressing shaker, stir together almond butter, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, maple syrup, lime juice and red pepper flakes.
- Portion- Divide the almond butter sauce into condiment containers; divide chickpeas, spiralized vegetables and cooled pasta between four meal prep containers.
- To serve- Let sauce stand at room temperature for 10 minutes- 1 hour. Drizzle sauce over noodles, toss everything up, and enjoy cold.
Tips:
Video
Nutrition Information
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Molly says
Super yummy and easy to make. Didn't have almond butter and used JIF peanutbutter instead and dressing still tasted great. Love the little kick in it with the pepper flakes. Easy to prep for the week!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Molly, really glad to hear that you enjoyed it! Agreed - red pepper flakes are so delish for that extra kick of flavor! Thanks so much for leaving a rating and review 🙂
Jenn says
This recipe is sooo good!
I used protein pasta, the chickpeas, and bagged coleslaw mix.
For the sauce, I used regular Jiffy peanut butter and it was really good. I was worried I wouldn’t like the sauce but that’s not the case after all!
Thanks for the meal prep recipe, I look forward to making it again for lunches or dinner!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Jenn, that sounds amazing! Thank you for your kind words, we're so grateful for your rating and review!
Heidi says
Super easy and yummy! Put all dressing ingredients in my mini bullet to combine everything really well. Used red peppers and cucumber as well as edamame because that’s what I had on hand. Lunches for the week are done!!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Heidi, that sounds so delicious, nice work! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back to leave a rating and review, we so appreciate it.
Crystal says
This is so delicious. I made it once a couple months back and while at the store today decided to buy ingredients to make it this week. I forgot it was a zucchini in the ingredients though and bought a cucumber instead. Do you think if I just slice the cucumber instead of spiral it, it would still work with this recipe? Thanks!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Crystal, absolutely the cucumber could work in place of zucchini since these bowls are served cold - sounds delish! You could also spiralize the cucumber (if you have a spiralizer). Cheers, and we hope you enjoy!
Raigen says
What veggie spiralizer do you use?
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Raigen, you can shop Denise's favorites (including her veggie spiralizer) on our shop page linked here! Enjoy!
Katherine says
Such a quick and easy recipe!! And sooo yummy
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Katherin, glad you enjoyed these meal prep bowls! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review 🙂
Nickie Lee says
Hi Denise. I was wondering how long the sauce will keep in the fridge? We love this meal and especially the sauce Yum
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Nickie, this sauce should keep in the fridge in an air tight container for up to 1 week. We're so glad to hear that you love this recipe! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a review.
Amanda says
What size of container did you use?
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Amanda, this recipe uses 2 cup meal prep containers! I hope you enjoy, if you try it please be sure to come back and leave a rating and review, we'd love to know how these noodle bowls turn out for you. Cheers!
Jenny Wiley says
Yes, I tried the Cold Sesame Noodles today and absolutely loved them! I used Quinoa noodles and low sodium tamari sauce. My 11 year old did not care for it, but said it was edible. LOL. She wants to try other sauces, so she hasn't given up yet!!! Do you have any other sauces for picky eaters? She tends to use only Catalina dressing for her salads, so she likes things sweet.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Jenny, We're so glad to hear that you loved this recipe, thanks so much for takin the time to come back and leave a review! haha It sounds like your daughter may enjoy some of these vinaigrette dressings for salads - they are lightly sweetened with honey or maple syrup. I hope that helps, let us know if you try any of them! Enjoy!
Kat says
Delish! Will be adding this to my lunch meal prep rotation. Love the raw zucchini! Switched the noodles for soba and the flavour was perfect. Thanks!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Kat, we're so glad that this recipe is going to be in regular rotation in your meal prep routine! Great idea to use soba noodles as well. Thanks so much for taking time to come back and leave a review!
Paul says
This is probably a really dumb question but did you cook the zucchini noodles / carrots or are those just raw in this recipe?
Denise Bustard says
Hi Paul, huge apologies for my late reply! For this recipe, I've left the zucchini and carrots raw, and they add a nice crunchy texture to the bowls. If you wanted to cook them slightly, that would probably be nice as well. Hope you enjoy!
MLM says
We have made this recipe at least a dozen times for meal prep lunches. The entire family loves it and we use a variety of different veggies (almost always adding snow peas) and sometimes swap chicken for chickpeas.
Thanks for a great one!
Denise Bustard says
Wow! I'm so happy to hear you've enjoyed this recipe! Thanks so much for reporting back and leaving a review, that's super helpful to me and others!
Alex says
This is like the best cold meal I've ever had..... Thank you!!!
Beth says
I've made this multiple times. It's so good! The sauce is a little thick for me. Any suggestions on thinning it out without losing the flavor? Thanks!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Beth! I'm so happy to hear you enjoy this recipe! In terms of thinning it out, if your almond butter is thicker, you could reduce it by 1 tablespoon and add 1 tablespoon of water? Hope this helps!
Cathy says
Oh my goodness! I made this today and It is sooooo goood!! I didn’t have chickpeas but I don’t need it to be vegan so I divided a chicken breast into quarters. I used the box grater and it took forever... so I immediately bought a spiralizer. This is a keeper, definitely!.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Cathy! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for coming back to leave a review!
Nessa says
Just wanted to say I've made this several times and it is always consistently delicious. It was my first time ever eating chickpeas, but they are very tasty in this sauce. I do throw in a handful of rotisserie chicken to bulk out the meal, which also goes great in this sauce. To me, this is the perfect summer meal prep because it requires no heating elements at all, and it holds up fantastically in the fridge, even when I ate it six days in a row.
Thank you for sharing this tasty meal 🙂
Denise Bustard says
Hi Nessa! I am so happy to hear this, and thanks for the tip with chicken! I really appreciate you taking the time to come back and leave a review, thank you!
Heather says
My daughter will love this for school lunch and she can have tahini but not nut butters. The spirals are very pretty but could I use shreds or slices from my food processor instead? I only have a small handheld spiralizer that will work on zucchini but not carrots.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Heather! I think shredded carrots + zucchini would work fine. You might want to squeeze any moisture out of the zucchini (I find it gets wetter when shredded than it does spiralled). Hope you enjoy!
Ruth says
Just made this! Very good! I mixed all the sauce in right away and stored it in one big container instead of meal prepping portions, and this worked fine. Nothing got mushy. Super tasty, very good with avocado.
Denise says
Hi Ruth! That's so great to hear, I appreciate you letting us know that the texture was not affected by adding the sauce right away. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
Joanne says
This dressing is amazing!!!!
Jess says
This is delicious and so easy. We will be putting this one on repeat. Thanks!
Denise says
Yay! So happy to hear this, Jess! Thank you for taking time out of your day to leave a review <3
Sarah says
I'm so looking forward to trying this! I had two questions: (1) Is this freezable? (If so, how?) (2) If I buy pre-spiralized zucchini or carrot noodles, how much would you say that each serving needs?
Denise says
Hi Sarah! Sorry for my late reply. 1) this is not freezable 2) I don't know how exactly many you would need, but I would aim for about 1 cup of vegetables per meal prep bowl. Hope this helps!