Buckwheat Soba Noodles recipe

Here's what I made for supper tonight: Otsu. New to me! I love so many Asian dishes. This sauce is savory and spicy with crispy fresh cucumbers and herbs over buckwheat soba noodles. Make sure you buy a fresh mango to eat along side of it if you can. I flipped a tortilla-shaped skillet of scrambled eggs to go with it rather than the tofu it calls for. I don't really go for tofu since it's a processed soybean food... eggs are a whole food that taste great in place of tofu. Thank you to my friend Miriam who decided to buy me the gift (a pkg. of 100% buckwheat soba noodles) which inspired me to look for this recipe and make it. It's great to have friends who support your endeavors to eat healthy. She knew that this would really bless me since I'm fasting from grains and starches and sugars right now. Buckwheat is technically a fruit seed; not a grain. Oh yeah! And it was great!

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 oil

12 ounces dried soba noodles


12 ounces extra-firm nigari tofu
(or egg cake or chicken)

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 ⅔ 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.

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