soba noodle salad

{photo credit: me}

you have noodles and you have cucumbers. you mix them together with, like, oils and stuff. would you believe this was hard for me? like really hard. not the assembly part. that was easy. i'm talking about pre-assembly. the part that isn't generally aired on cooking shows. the part where you drive to seven different stores picking up this ingredient here and that ingredient there. who knew plain soba noodles would be so hard to find? and a julienne peeler? i now know where they don't sell those. {i'm talking to you crate and barrel}.

soba noodle salad

ingredients

4-6 oz. soba noodles

1-2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

2 medium cucumbers or 1 large seedless cucumber

1/4 cup chopped scallions (i did not add these to my salad)

1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1-2 tablespoons ponzu sauce (or extra tamari and rice vinegar with a squeeze of lime)

avocado slices (i did not use these)

sesame seeds

optinal additions: tofu, protein of your choice, shredded carrots, sriracha, chile flakes

preparation

1. boil the noodles in salty water until al dente. blanch them for 30 seconds in a bowl of ice water, then drain. return them to the (empty) bowl and gently toss with a splash of sesame oil so they won't stick together while you finish everything else. 

2. thinly slice the cucumbers with a julienne peeler. discard the first peel (it will be all skin) and carefully make your slices around the seeded part in the middle. 

3. toss the cucumber slices and scallions with the noodles. add tamari, rice vinegar, and ponzu and toss again. taste and adjust seasonings. top with sliced avocado and sesame seeds. serve cold.

{photo credit: me}

this stuff is good and worth my traipsing all over kingdom come to find the necessary ingredients/tools. 

for full recipe and prettier pictures, go here.