This Asian Salad in a Jar is a vibrant, flavor-packed powerhouse of layered crisp veggies, hearty brown rice, and edamame in a zesty Vegan Peanut Sauce. It's the perfect meal prep, grab-and-go healthy salad. Peanut allergy? Use this Sunflower Butter Sauce instead.

side view close up of Asian salad in a jar with a bowl of mixed salad greens blurred in the background.

This Asian salad in a jar is a sister to the meal prep OG, Southwestern Salad in a Jar.

Jump to:

What You'll Need to Make This Salad in a Jar Recipe
How to Make Salad in a Jar
How to Assemble Salad in a Jar Containers
How to Serve
Related Salad Recipes to Check Out
Asian Salad in a Jar

What You'll Need to Make This Salad in a Jar Recipe

Peanut Sauce (or Sweet and Tangy Sunflower Butter Sauce)
Red onion
Carrot
Cucumber
Red cabbage
Edamame, shelled
Brown (or black) rice
Nori seaweed, sheet
Kale (or collard greens)
Mixed baby salad greens (or chopped Romaine or arugula), for serving

You'll also need three 32-ounce quart-size (946 ml) mason jars with lids.

You can also add a sprinkle of sesame seeds (optional).

top view close up of the 10 key ingredients to make Asian Salad in a Jar. — The 10 key ingredients for Asian Salad in a Jar

This combination is reminiscent of the Asian Noodle Salad and Spectacular Sushi Salad but in a meal prep form.

How to Make Salad in a Jar

Start by preparing the brown or black rice, and shelled edamame.

Cook the brown (or black) rice and shelled edamame according to package instructions. To speed up the cooling process, spread cooked rice onto a shallow baking sheet or large plate and put it in the refrigerator while you prepare the remaining ingredients. To cool edamame, simply put it into a strainer and run under cold water for a few seconds.

Prepare the Vegan Peanut Sauce according to recipe instructions and set aside.

Prepare other vegetables and nori. See Pro Tip below.

Assemble the salad in a jar using three 32-ounce or quart-size (946 ml) mason jars. Line up the jars and start by pouring ⅓ cup of Peanut Sauce. Then layer the red onion, carrot, cucumber, purple cabbage, edamame, nori, brown rice, and kale. Adding the kale at the top keeps it from getting soggy. Sprinkle optional sesame seeds, if using. See How to Assemble the Salad Jar Below for further step-by-step instructions.

Pro Tip for preparing nori

An easy way to ensure you get an even distribution of nori seaweed in your salad is to use kitchen scissors to cut into thin strips.

Grab a clean (and dry) pair of kitchen scissors.
Cut the nori sheet into four or five long strips.
Stack the long strips and cut them into smaller bite-size strips as shown below.

cutting nori sheet with kitchen scissors — cutting nori sheet using kitchen scissors

SAVE THIS RECIPE!

We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!

We'll also send you other yummy recipes. No worries! You can unsubscribe at any time. 💙

How to Assemble Salad in a Jar Containers

There are different ways to assemble the salad in the jar, but two key considerations for having a salad that stays fresh for the 4 to 5 days you may have it in your refrigerator. First, the Vegan Peanut Sauce always goes on the bottom. Second, the kale or collard greens are always at the top with any seeds you decide to add.

Be sure to consider the second layer that goes on top of the sauce. Often, it's the chopped onion, carrot, or cucumber because these veggies have a high water content. If you add the brown rice as the second layer, it may absorb some of the moisture from the sauce, so choose it intentionally.

three 32 ounce glass mason jars lined up on a kitchen counter with ⅓ cup peanut sauce at the bottom — Add ⅓ cup of Peanut Sauce to the bottom of each jar.

three mason jars with chopped red onion being added — Evenly distribute the chopped red onion to each jar.

three mason jars with shredded carrot being added — Add in ⅓ cup of shredded carrot to each container.

three mason jars with sliced cucumbers being added — Evenly distribute the thinly sliced cucumber to each jar.

three mason jars with thinly sliced purple cabbage being added — Add ⅓ cup of thinly sliced purple cabbage to each jar.

three mason jars with ½ cup edamame being added — Add ½ cup of cooked and cooled shelled edamame to each jar.

three mason jars with chopped nori being added — Evenly distribute the chopped nori sheet between each jar.

three mason jars with ½ cup cooked brown rice being added to each jar — Add ½ cup of cooked and cooled brown (or black rice) to each jar.

three mason jars with finely chopped kale being added — Add ½ cup of chopped kale (or collard greens) to each jar.

If using, sprinkle sesame seeds on top of the chopped kale. Secure the lids and store them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

side view close up of 3 Asian salads in a jar lined up on a white marble surface

How to Serve

When ready to eat, shake the jar to combine the ingredients and add to a large bed (about 3 to 4 cups) of mixed salad greens, chopped romaine lettuce, or arugula. Enjoy!

We hope you love this Asian Salad in a Jar, and that it becomes a meal prep favorite for you too. Please rate and leave a comment below. Be sure to share a picture on Instagram and tag us @danielsplaterecipes so we can see your creation!