Raw Coconut-Mango Zucchini Noodles with Cashews
Try this Raw Coconut-Mango Zucchini Noodles with Cashews recipe
Try this Raw Coconut-Mango Zucchini Noodles with Cashews recipe
- salt and pepper to taste
- for the noodles:
- 3 medium-to-large zucchinis blade c noodles trimmed
- 3/4 cup roughly chopped raw cashews
- 1 cup cubed mango
- 1.5 tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes (i used bob's red mill
- for the dressing:
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk refrigerated overnight or stored without shaking*
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- flesh from 1 avocado
- Carbohydrate 1.273525 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.0105875 g
- Fiber 0.0605000009015203 g
- Protein 0.063525 g
- Saturated Fat 0.00121 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (15g)
- Sodium 18.7226432291667 mg
- Sugar 1.21302499909848 g
- Trans Fat 0.00468875 g
- Calories 4 calories
Step-by-step
- Open the can of coconut milk and carefully scoop out a half of a cup of the creamy top portion of the coconut milk. Reserve the rest of the can for future use or discard.
- Add that half cup into a food processor, along with the rest of the ingredients for the dressing. Pulse until creamy. Taste and adjust to your preferences.
- In a large mixing bowl, toss together the zucchini noodles with the dressing until the noodles are completely coated in the dressing. Fold in the cashews and mangoes and toss again.
- Divide onto plates and garnish with about 2 teaspoons of coconut flakes per plate.
Unlike traditional wheat-based pasta dishes that rely on boiling water and starch gelatinization, raw vegetable noodles demand entirely different handling due to their high water content. Zucchini ribbons release moisture rapidly upon contact with salt, shifting from crisp to watery within minutes if held incorrectly. Thoroughly chilling the canned coconut milk overnight separates the dense fats from the translucent liquid, yielding the thick, solid cream required to stabilize an unheated emulsion without heat.
Maximizing texture longevity requires keeping the dressing strictly separate from the sliced vegetables until the exact moment of service. Raw zucchini strands dressed ahead of time will weep continuously, diluting the lime juice and avocado purée into a thin puddle. Storing the components in airtight glass containers for up to 24 hours prevents premature softening while preserving the bright green color of the squash.
Freezing is completely unsuitable for this preparation because frozen and thawed zucchini collapses into an unpalatable, spongy mush as the ice crystals rupture the plant cell walls. Raw cashews and coconut flakes maintain their crunch best when toasted briefly in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for four minutes, adding structural contrast to the creamy purée.
Scaling quantities upward or downward requires adjusting the lime juice incrementally, as acidity concentrates quickly in unheated fat bases. Doubling the batch necessitates processing the dressing in two separate batches to prevent motor burnout in standard food processors and ensure uniform blade contact with the avocado flesh.
