Paleo Asian Side Dishes
by Paleo Asian Side Dishes – 3 simple and quick Asian-inspired Paleo vegetable sides that will become your favorite side dish recipes!
If you love Asian-style side dishes, you’ll also love my very best Asian sauces for grilled chicken!
This week I’m sharing with you three very popular everyday Paleo Asian Side Dishes –
Cold Garlicky Cucumbers – 涼拌黃瓜 (Liángbàn huángguā)
Chilled Sesame Spinach – 芝麻菠菜 (Zhīma bōcài)
Crunchy Celery-Carrot Slaw – 涼拌芹菜 (Liángbàn qíncài)
These vegetable sides are great for winter and summer. Easy and quick, and they go perfectly with any protein-rich main dish, like my Paleo Mongolian Beef, Paleo Tender Pork Roast, or Thai Red Curry Chicken.
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They will become your favorite after one bite !
Cold Garlicky Cucumbers – Paleo Asian Side Dishes #1
This is probably one of the most iconic side dishes in Taiwan. Almost every noodle shop along the streets of Taiwan serves this cold garlicky cucumber dish.
There are 3 key things to know so the cucumbers will be crunchy and refreshing.
1. Use mini Persian cucumbers or English cucumbers.
These cucumbers have thinner skin and there’s no need to remove the outer skin. My first choice would be to use the mini cucumbers.
2. Remove the seeds of the cucumbers.
After slicing them in half, use a small teaspoon to scoop out the seeds so that the cucumbers will be less watery and remain crunchy.
3. Smash them.
Oh yeah. You’ve heard me right. Smash them in a ziplock bag with a meat pounder or a small bottle. Why smash ? The smashed cucumbers will grab the dressing sauce better and hence they will be more yum!
Chilled Sesame Spinach – Paleo Asian Side Dishes #2
There are quite a few different dressings for this dish but my favorite is the Sesame paste dressing.
My Paleo Sesame paste dressing is very versatile. You can use it not only for this dish but also for salad dressing or even for grilled chicken breasts.
Follow the recipe instructions below and taste and make adjustments to your desired consistency.
It’s creamy, savory, and with a hint of toasted sesame fragrance and slightly sweet.
I’m mouthwatering just thinking about this Chilled Sesame Spinach.
Crunchy Celery-Carrot Slaw – Paleo Asian Side Dishes #3
Similar to the cold garlicky cucumber, the crunchy celery and carrot salad taste even better the day after.
Cut the front and tip-end of the celery and use a peeler to peel off the outer tough fibrous skin. Slice them to matchstick thin (about 3-inch length as instructed below).
Give them a quick toss in hot boiling water and rinse in cold tap water. Add some simple seasonings and voila! Another wonderful Paleo Asian Side Dish is ready to go!
Paleo Asian Side Dishes
Video
Ingredients
- 5-6 stalks celery
- 2 medium carrots
Asian Carrot-Celery Slaw Seasonings:
- ¼ to ½ tsp coarse sea salt
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- Small pinch white pepper
- Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to boil. Season the water with a pinch of salt.
- In the meantime, prepare celery and carrots.
- For celery, cut off the base and leaves, then wash the stalks under running water. Use a peeler to remove any fibrous and tough strings. Dice them to about 2.5 to 3-inch length sections then slice lengthwise to matchstick shape.
- For carrots, slice them diagonally into thin slices (a little thicker than 1/8-inch thick). Stack 2-3 slices a time on top of each other, then cut through the layers to create matchsticks.
- Blanch celery and carrot matchsticks in hot boiling water for about 1 minute.
- Quickly rinse them under cold or ice cold water to stop cooking and preserve the vibrant color.
- Drain and shake excess water from the vegetables before adding them to a large bowl.
- Stir to coat seasonings from salt to white pepper.
- Toss well and set aside for 30 minutes to develop the flavor or best marinate overnight. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds before serving. Best serve chilled.
I can’t find the actual recipe for the spinach dish? How much of the ingredients do I use for the sauce?
Hi Lainey, please check out this recipe with details. Thank you so much. https://iheartumami.com/gomaae-japanese-spinach/
What is the purpose of blanching the veg for a cold salad?
Great question! If you are referring to the carrots and celery, lightly blanching the veggies will bring out natural sweet flavor and remove the “raw” taste. This is also the same method used in Taiwanese and Chinese side dishes.
If it’s the spinach, well, that’s how this side dish is done in Japan. 🙂
Ahhhh, I understand!! Thank you! I am making a lot of your dishes this week! We can’t wait! 🙂
That sesame spinach sounds absolutely amazing! I love it
I love how simple and flavorful these are! I feel like simple is really key in side dishes so there’s more veggies on the table in less time!
All of these look so nourishing and delicious! Can’t pick just one–I want all three.
I love all 3 of these salads – they’re so nutritious and full of my favourite seasonings! I’ll definitely be trying these at some point – thank you!
All of these sound so good! My youngest would go crazy for the cucumber and spinach one. I wish I had all of these to snack on right now. YUM!
These look so delicious and vibrant in color. Great job, hun!
I might need to try these soon!
These sides look so deeply delicious and nutritious.Thanks for sharing your creativity.
I love it when you provide us with a glimpse into your culture and how you turn it Paleo
These sides look very interesting and deeply flavorful! Thanks for sharing.
All three of these look so good! That slaw is really catching my eye with the bright colors!
Thank you !
Love these healthy Asian side dishes. Made the Garlicky Cucumbers and they are divine!
That’s so great to hear, Stacey !
These look so fab, I want to make all three at once! They would make great fillings for spring rolls, too 🙂
What an awesome idea !
that sesame spinach is calling my name!
Me too ! Sesame spinach is definitely one of my favorite !
Oh cool! These all look so refreshing and healthy. I could see each of them with any of your main dishes but also with a grilled steak or roast chicken too. So versatile!
Thank you, Michele !
All 3 of these look amazing. Just made the garlicky cucumbers. So good!!
That’s so awesome, Katja ! Thank you for sharing. :))
Oooo I want to try that carrot slaw! My kids would love that too! Thank you!
That’s so wonderful, Renee.
Wow, three recipes for the price of one! The garlicky cucumbers look so good! Great recipes :)!
Thanks, Mark !