Cold Noodles With Zucchini

By Eric Kim

Published June 21, 2024

Cold Noodles With Zucchini — David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Total Time: 15 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Rating: 5(18)
Notes: Read community notes

Zucchini loves the kiss of heat but can easily turn to mush. Briefly salting and drying half-moons of zucchini before quickly stir-frying them, mostly on one side, maintains their texture while lending so much flavor. An impactful dressing of maple syrup, soy sauce and fish sauce — plus a pinch of concentrated savoriness in the form of garlic powder — seasons both stir-fry and noodle. Ice is the secret ingredient that helps to cool down the noodles for quick eating, as well as to melt down and open up the flavors of the dressing (as water is wont to do) while you eat. The final spritz of citrus is not optional: It finishes the dressing and makes this chill meal taste multidimensional. A tableside sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds, furikake or shichimi togarashi is welcome.

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Ingredients

Yield:1 serving

1large zucchini (about 8 ounces)
Coarse kosher salt or fine sea salt
3 to 4ounces dried ramen, somen or capellini (see Tip)
2teaspoons maple syrup, plus more to taste
1½teaspoons soy sauce, plus more to taste
1teaspoon fish sauce, plus more to taste
⅛teaspoon garlic powder
1tablespoon avocado, grapeseed or canola oil
½cup cubed ice
Lemon or lime wedges and thinly sliced scallions, for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Trim off the tips of the zucchini, then halve lengthwise and slice into ⅓-inch half moons. Directly on the cutting board, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt, toss to combine and let sit for at least 10 minutes (and up to 30 minutes) to draw out excess moisture.
Step 2
Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook the noodles according to package instructions. Drain, then rinse under cold water until cool to touch. Transfer to an individual serving bowl.
Step 3
In a medium bowl, stir together the maple syrup, soy sauce, fish sauce and garlic powder; set aside.
Step 4
Pat the zucchini dry. Heat a large skillet over high, then add the oil. When you see a wisp of smoke, carefully arrange the zucchini in an even layer in the skillet and season with salt. Cook undisturbed until the zucchini is browned on one side, 1 to 2 minutes, then flip the pieces and cook until tender-crisp, about 1 minute.
Step 5
Transfer the zucchini to the bowl with the sauce. Add the ice, then quickly toss a few times until the zucchini is cool. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt if needed. (The dressing should taste boldly salty at this stage, as the melting ice, and later the noodles, will dilute it.)
Step 6
To eat, pour the zucchini and its dressing over the noodles. Spritz with citrus, top with scallions and eat immediately. (As you eat, you can add more maple syrup, soy sauce or fish sauce, if you’d like.)

Tip

The world of Asian noodles is vast and varied. Readily available today in most supermarkets but especially in Asian grocery stores, dried noodles like somen (thin wheat noodles) and instant ramen (thicker, squigglier wheat noodles) often come packaged as convenient single-serving bundles.