I’ve been a fan of Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks for awhile. She’s definitely one of the “mega” food bloggers out there and she focuses on vegetarian, vegan and natural cooking. The photograpy is awesome and the recipes are neat.
One of my friends is currently on a soba noodle kick. She’s obsessed, an intervention might just be necessary. For some reason her obsession triggered a strong desire in me to consume soba noodles. After some searching I came upon this recipe on Heidi’s site. I loved the simple and bright flavours the ingredient list alluded to. It sound easy and delicious.
I followed this recipe for the most part but omitted the cucumbers (I don’t love them) and forgot green onions. Nonetheless it turned out great. I ended up eating this for dinner one night and then for two consecutive lunches and did not get tired of it, in face, I wanted to eat more. Now that’s a good sign.
I have a feeling this recipe will be in heavy rotation over the next few weeks!
Otsu
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Fresh ginger, cut into a 1-inch cube, peeled, and grated
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup unseasoned brown-rice vinegar
1/3 cup shoyu sauce (wheat-free soy sauce)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil12 ounces dried soba noodles
12 ounces extra-firm nigari tofu
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced
1 small handful of cilantro sprigs, for garnish
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
Make the dressing by combining the zest, ginger, honey, cayenne, and salt in a food processor (or use a hand blender) and process until smooth. Add the lemon juice, rice vinegar, and shoyu, and pulse to combine. With the machine running, drizzle in the oils.
Cook the soba in plenty of rapidly boiling salted water just until tender, then drain and rinse under cold running water.
While the pasta is cooking, drain the tofu, pat it dry, and cut it into rectangles roughly the size of your thumb (½ inch thick and 1 inch long). Cook the tofu in a dry nonstick (or well-seasoned) skillet over medium-high heat for a few minutes, until the pieces are browned on one side. Toss gently once or twice, then continue cooking for another minute or so, until the tofu is firm, golden, and bouncy.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the soba, the ¼ cup cilantro, the green onions, cucumber, and about ? cup of the dressing. Toss until well combined. Add the tofu and toss again gently. Serve on a platter, garnished with the cilantro sprigs and the toasted sesame seeds.
Serves 4-6.
(Recipe from Heidi Swanson at 101 Cookbooks)
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Asian flavor! I like asian flavors. It is so distinct and very unique.