Cold Soba Noodle Salad for Two
A sensual combination of Asian flavors and aphrodisiac ingredients, this bowl of noodles makes an easy vegetarian dinner tor two.
Ingredients
For the soba:
- 2/3 cup soba noodles, packed cooked according to the package instructions then chilled
- roughly 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds black or white
- 1 tbsp peanuts (substitute with cashew or macadamias) – roasted and salted and roughly chopped
- 1 medium avocado – diced or sliced
- 1 medium mango – finely sliced
- 1 Persian cucumber
- small handful mint shredded
- small handful cilantro leaves
For the sauce
- 2 cloves garlic finely diced
- 1 tbsp ginger – finely gated
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 4 tsp sesame oil
- 4 tbsp Mirin
- 1 tbsp honey see notes for vegan substitution
Instructions
- Submerge soba in a pot of boiling water.
- Boil for about 4 minutes or until slightly al dente. (Keep a close watch as they are easy to overcook.)
- Drain and rinse thoroughly in cold water.
- Set aside to completely drain for a minute then spread the cooled noodles out on paper towels to dry. Top with a second towel and pat dry. (If you skip this step, the sauce will not take to the soba and you will find yourself facing a super sloppy and less flavorful bowl of soba.)
- While the soba is drying, make the sauce by whisking together the garlic through Mirin. Add the honey and, if too thick, add 1/2 tsp hot water to thin the honey.
- In a mixing bowl, toss the soba with the sauce and sesame seeds.
- Divide the soba between two plates and garnish with the cashew (or other nuts), avocado, mango, cucumber, mint and cilantro.
Notes
To make a vegan soba salad, use brown rice syrup in place of the honey.