Sesame and Zucchini Noodle Salad

Developed by chef Kim Floresca, this “salad” is not only beautiful…it’s totally addictive. And it’s so much more complex than a typical salad.

Sesame and Zucchini Noodle Salad is a recipe straight out of goop’s The Annual New Year Detox: 2023 Edition. Developed by chef Kim Floresca, this “salad” is not only beautiful…it’s totally addictive. And it’s so much more complex than a typical salad.

On goop’s website, Floresca says, “We like texture, we like acidity, we want to have some things spicy and some things a little bit sweet. We pull all those notes together, and we make sure that the final dish is something craveable and beautiful.” 

Sesame and Zucchini Noodle Salad is all that. Crunchy, creamy, a little bit sweet. We added a little bit of spice with some jalapeño chopped in (we are in Texas, after all). Nothing boring or detox-ish about it. Still, it’s super-clean, fitting right into our last-week-of-January resolutions.

Oh? Did we ditch the resolutions back there around January 9? Even better. Add some shredded rotisserie chicken to this and you’ll be entirely satisfied, clean eating or not. And if “not” is the case, wash it all down with a chocolate chip cookie, recipe coming next week.

Sesame and Zucchini Noodle Salad
Slightly adapted from Kim Floresca’s recipe for goop’s The Annual New Year Detox: 2023 Edition

2 cups zucchini noodles (buy these in a box in the produce section, or make your own if you have a spiraler)
1 cup shaved red and green cabbage (you can buy a bag of “angel hair cabbage” pre-cut in the produce section)
1 large carrot, finely julienned
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
½ cup cilantro leaves, chopped
¼ cup fresh mint leaves, roughly torn
¼ cup tahini 
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon tamari, coconut aminos, or soy sauce
1 tablespoon almond butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
¼ cup roughly chopped toasted cashews
2 green onions, chopped
Toasted sesame seeds
Lime wedges

In a large bowl, toss together the zucchini, cabbage, carrot, jalapeño, cilantro, and mint. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the tahini, water, tamari (or coconut aminos or soy sauce), and almond butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Top the zoodle salad with the cashews and green onions. Just before serving, toss the salad with the tahini dressing and sprinkle sesame seeds over. Serve with lime wedges on the side.