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You are here: Home / Blog / Tahini Pasta Salad

Tahini Pasta Salad

August 5, 2016 By Garden Fresh Foodie

Sesame Pasta SaladGoing to a weekend summer party? This sesame pasta salad is awesome to take along, and best at room temp, freshly made. I have also reheated it, but served cold, doesn’t do it justice (gluten free pasta is weird that way). For this dish, and anytime I’m making gluten free pasta, I use the Jovial brand of noodles. I think they are FAR superior to any other gluten free noodles, and they’re organic and made with brown rice. While I wouldn’t call them healthy, I’d definitely say they are much better quality that other gluten free pastas that tend to be very processed and refined. You could skip the pasta all together and make this with spiralized zucchini noodles, or zoodles, as the dressing is AMAZING and is awesome on them! Zucchini is so low in calories and makes a great swap out for pasta. The reason it’s so low in calories, however, is that it’s mostly water. When you add this dressing to zoodles, it will make the zucchini noodles break down and release water, thinning out the sauce. I strain the zoodles before serving, and toss it with fresh herbs and scallions. I also added in some sunflower seeds for a little added texture.Tahini Zoodles With Fresh Basil

I LOVE my Paderno spiralizer, but I just found this one on Amazon that’s less money and has an extra blade.  Go raw with those zucchini noodles, to keep it light and crunchy, cooking will destroy this dish. Just be sure to cut them in half, so your eaters don’t have to slop dressing off their faces 🙂

Not sure how to spiralize? Check out how easy it is, even an 8 year old (now 10) can do it!

Tahini-what is it?

Tahini, if you’ve never used it before, is made from sesame seeds. It’s a great nut-free alternative for those who can’t eat nuts, and provides a rich, creamy texture similar to peanut butter. Tahini is the often found in Middle Eastern dishes like hummus, baba ganoush. I use it also in my nut-free ginger granola, which is an awesome breakfast or snack!Overhead Tahini Ginger Granola

This salad is SUPER easy to make and uses in season cucumbers and parsley (zucchini if you’re spiralizing!)! If you plan to reheat it, I’d add some fresh cucumbers into the reheated dish, as they can get watery when cooked, and the idea is that you want a light, crunchy addition to the salad. You won’t use up all of this sauce, so save some of it for a stir fry this week! This oil free sauce is also awesome as a dip for summer rolls, hand rolls, or fresh veggies!

Ingredients:

  • 2 boxes (24 total oz) of cooked gluten free pasta (or spiralized zucchini noodles “zoodles”-sliced to be able to eat easily)-or if using zoodles/zucchini noodles, I made half the dressing for 5 1/2 pounds of zucchini
  • 2 cups cubed cucumbers
  • 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds or sunflower
  • 1/2 cup minced parsley or basil
  • 1/2 cup scallions if desired

Tahini Sauce (Great for a stir fry sauce, summer roll dip, or fresh veggies!)-can make half if using zucchini noodles (it doesn’t use as much as regular pasta)

  • 3/4 cup tahini
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup rice vinegar
  • 3 tbsp hot sauce
  • 6 cloves garlic (about 3 tbsp)
  • 2-3 inch piece of peeled fresh ginger, about 3 tbspMise En Place Tahini Pasta Salad

Instructions:

  1. Boil water and cook pasta according to directions or spiralize a bunch of zucchini
  2. Place all tahini sauce ingredients into a blender, and blend
  3. When pasta is done, drain, rinse, and toss with 1 1/2 cups sauce, reserving some for another time.  Wait until cooled slightly and toss with cucs, parsley, and sesame seeds.Prepping Tahini Pasta SaladMixing Tahini Pasta Salad
  4. If using spiralized noodles, place zoodles in a bowl and massage dressing onto zoodles, using as much as looks right based on the amount of zoodles you’ve made. Then add in remaining ingredients or just top with scallions, basil, and sunflower seeds.Tahini Zoodles With Fresh Basil
  5. Serve as a side or main dish-we served our with some BBQ tofu and grilled veggies

Sesame Pasta Salad

 

Nutritional Benefits:

  • If using zucchini noodles-nothing refined or processed and low in calories
  • Low in fat, vegan and gluten free-helps fight inflammation in the body
  • Tahini is a good source of calcium and plant-based protein
  • Ginger and garlic are anti-inflammatory and help with circulation
  • Good source of fiber-both from tahini as well as pasta or zucchini
  • Zucchini-great source of vitamin C, maganese, magnesium and fiber, as well as other micronutrients-helps fight inflammation
Sesame Pasta Salad
 
Print
Prep time
10 mins
Cook time
10 mins
Total time
20 mins
 
Tahini Pasta Salad-light and easy for a summertime BBQ or easy weeknight meal. Great on pasta or zucchini noodles for a lower calorie, lighter meal!
Author: www.gardenfreshfoodie.com
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Vegan
Serves: 10
Ingredients
  • 2 boxes (24 total oz) of cooked gluten free pasta (or spiralized zucchini noodles "zoodles"-sliced to be able to eat easily)-or if using zoodles/zucchini noodles, I made half the dressing for 5½ pounds of zucchini
  • 2 cups cubed cucumbers
  • ¼ cup toasted sesame seeds or sunflower
  • ½ cup minced parsley or basil
  • ½ cup scallions if desired
Tahini Sauce (Great for a stir fry sauce, summer roll dip, or fresh veggies!)-can make half if using zucchini noodles (it doesn't use as much as regular pasta)
  • ¾ cup tahini
  • ½ cup soy sauce
  • ½ cup rice vinegar
  • 3 tbsp hot sauce
  • 6 cloves garlic (about 3 tbsp)
  • 2-3 inch piece of peeled fresh ginger, about 3 tbsp
Instructions
  1. Boil water and cook pasta according to directions or spiralize a bunch of zucchini
  2. Place all tahini sauce ingredients into a blender, and blend
  3. When pasta is done, drain, rinse, and toss with 1½ cups sauce, reserving some for another time. Wait until cooled slightly and toss with cucs, parsley, and sesame seeds.
  4. If using spiralized noodles, place zoodles in a bowl and massage dressing onto zoodles, using as much as looks right based on the amount of zoodles you've made. Then add in remaining ingredients or just top with scallions, basil, and sunflower seeds.
  5. Serve as a side or main dish-we served our with some BBQ tofu and grilled veggies
3.5.3208

Filed Under: Blog, Main Dishes, Salads, Side Dishes, Summer Foods Tagged With: oil free dressing, oil free pasta salad, pasta salad, sesame noodles, spiralized noodles, summer recipes, tahini sauce, zoodles, zucchini

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Comments

  1. Kelly Goorevich says

    August 6, 2016 at 10:58 am

    Making this tonight… With zoodles. Can’t wait to try.

    • Garden Fresh Foodie says

      August 12, 2016 at 12:06 pm

      Hope you loved it Kelly!

Trackbacks

  1. 24 Recetas saludables Tahini (que no son todas Hummus!) - Ot Toulouse says:
    July 22, 2018 at 7:59 am

    […] Ensalada de pasta de sésamo Pasta – Esta pasta de sésamo con sabor delicioso y es perfecto como una ensalada para una barbacoa de verano o de tertulia. El blogger sugiere el uso de pasta sin gluten o fideos de calabacín, lo cual es una gran opción si usted está recortando en carbohidratos. Pepinos, semillas de sésamo, albahaca y cebollín se añaden a la pasta, y luego la salsa está hecho de pasta de sésamo, salsa de soja, vinagre de arroz, salsa picante, ajo y jengibre. […]

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Hi! I'm Jessica, the author, creator, and photographer of Garden Fresh Foodie! I'm a certified plant-based chef, hold a MEd and MPH, and have a certification in plant-based nutrition. I am a passionate educator, and have taught wellness, science, community gardening, and food education for the last 20 years. I now combine my passion for health and cooking, with my passion for teaching through employee wellness and healthy cooking classes in Buffalo, NY. Read More…

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Hi! I'm Jessica, the author, creator, and photographer of Garden Fresh Foodie! I'm a certified plant-based chef, and have a certification in plant-based nutrition. I am a passionate educator, and have taught science, community gardening, and food education for the last 17 years. I now combine my passion for cooking & gardening with my passion for teaching healthy cooking classes in Buffalo, NY. Read More…

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