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Sesame ginger soba noodles

I have nothing against those recipes featuring instructions galore, or the ones with ingredient lists spreading across pages, but I am definitely not trying one of those on a cold and dark autumn evening. The extra hour of darkness we earned for our evenings ever since last Sunday, resulted in an increased affection for favorite quick fix meals, and a comfort ginger sesame soba noodles is back in the everyday food radar. Soba noodle is made of buckwheat flour, and as far as I gather it is a wonder flour, low in gluten, contains rutin, and the calorie value per cup is closer to that of whole wheat flour. Along with all these formidable qualities this flour also has a unique earthy and nutty taste, which is mildly reflected in soba noodles. Tossing these noodles with a simple sesame-ginger dressing with a dash of mirin is all you need to complement the inherent flavor. To make things even better, this is a versatile recipe. On a hot summer day, if you are upset by an overwhelming abundance of sunshine(!), fix it up as a cold noodle salad or on the turn of the plate if you are sulking on a chilly wintry evening, perplexed about what to cook, toss some hot freshly cooked noodles with a warm dressing made with the same set of ingredients, and you will never be disappointed. One of these days, I will find my sunny self again and might disappear into the kitchen to try out something special, but for now we are very pleased with our hot noodle bowls !

6 ounces dried buckwheat (soba) noodles
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon peanut sauce
2 tbsp finely grated ginger
½ tsp grated garlic
1 cup finely shredded green onions
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp sesame paste
½ tsp mirin (optional)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 tsp chilly paste or oil (adjust according to your heat tolerance)
Vegetable oil – ½ tsp


Dry roast sesame seeds, keep aside. Cook Soba noodles in excess of water. Drain and keep it covered. Heat ½ tsp vegetable oil in a pan; add finely minced garlic, stir fry for half a minute. Lower the heat to minimum, add grated ginger and ¼ cup of chopped scallions, stir well. Turn of the heat. Add sesame paste, peanut sauce, mirin, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and chilly oil ( or paste). Whisk all the ingredients together. While the noodles are still hot, toss with the sauce mixture and add toasted sesame seeds and the remaining green onions. Top with your choice of meat, seafood, eggs or vegetables, stir fried or grilled. For a summer salad, make a dressing by simply whisking all the ingredients together, mix with cold cooked noodles just before serving.

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