Overnight Chinese Pasta Salad

This is a make-ahead pasta salad that actually gets better after a night in the fridge. The rice vermicelli soaks up the sesame-ginger dressing while the snow peas, cucumber and bell pepper hold onto their snap, so what you spoon out the next day tastes brighter, not soggy.

Blanching the snow peas in boiling water for 10 minutes off-heat is a gentler approach than a hard boil. It locks in their color and that crisp-tender bite without turning them limp.

A quick rinse with cold water after draining the noodles is what stops them clumping together once chilled. Skip it and you’ll be picking apart a single pink-and-green block in the morning.

The combination of shrimp and lump crab keeps it firmly on the seafood side of Chinese cold-noodle salads. Use the best you can find: imitation crab will not hold its own against the toasted sesame oil.

Chef Tips

• Toast the sesame oil gently in a dry pan for 30 seconds before adding to the dressing to amplify the nutty aroma.
• Slice the cucumber thinly and seed it if watery, so the salad doesn’t go diluted overnight.
• For the best texture, dress the salad and chill at least 4 hours, but no more than 24. Past that, the noodles lose their bounce.
• Taste before serving and brighten with an extra squeeze of lemon if the dressing has mellowed too much in the fridge.

Variations

• Swap the rice vermicelli for thin soba or udon noodles for a chewier base.
• Add ½ cup of shredded carrot and a small handful of cilantro for extra color and brightness.
• For a vegetarian version, replace the shrimp and crab with cubed pressed tofu and a tablespoon of soy sauce stirred into the dressing.