Looking at the sunshine-y weather today, you wouldn’t believe that just a couple of days back, I was bundled on my couch surrounded by a huge, fluffy comforter, dreading walking out. Friday brought along stormy, gloomy and dark weather in Austin. A day made for some serious soul-searching and writing. Since I did plenty of the former last year (the results of all that soul-searching are still pending), I spent my time writing …

This spicy soba recipe would be great on such rainy days. The dish has a soul satisfying feeling to it without any of the fat and calories; and it is quick to boot! The real star of this dish is the shiitake mushroom. The earthiness and chewy texture of the mushroom complements the dish extremely well. And the hot pepper paste adds a subtle spiciness that won’t sting your tongue :)

While eating this, I was taken to back to my vacation in Japan, where I ate soba or udon noodle soup almost every morning. Soup was served at tiny restaurants with vending machines – you put money into the machine, press the button associated with the picture of the food you want, and it prints out a ticket. Take a seat at the bar like table and within five minutes you’ll have a bowl of hot, steaming noodle soup in front of you; usually served by a guy who is server, chef and owner all-in-one!

Soba noodles are made of buckwheat; they cook up like spagetti and have loads of flavor. For those unfamiliar with Asian cuisine, finding ingredients like Soba noodles, shiitake mushrooms and Korean hot pepper paste might seem daunting. But, these have become popular enough to be stocked at most grocery stores (you can definitely find them in the Asian aisle at HEB) or any Asian supermarket. If you live in Austin, you can find these at MT supermarket.

Enjoy!

Spicy Soba Noodles with Shiitakes and Cabbage
Gourmet, August 2007

For sauce
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 to 3 teaspoons Korean hot-pepper paste (sometimes labeled “gochujang”)
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

For noodles
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled ginger
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
10 oz fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced
1 1/4 pound Napa cabbage, thinly sliced (8 cups)
6 scallions, thinly sliced
8 to 9 ounces soba (buckwheat noodles)
1 cup frozen shelled edamame (soybeans)

Stir together all sauce ingredients until brown sugar is dissolved, then set aside.

Toast sesame seeds in a dry 12-inch heavy skillet (not nonstick) over medium heat, stirring, until pale golden, then transfer to a small bowl.

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then sauté ginger and garlic, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add shiitakes and sauté, stirring frequently, until tender and starting to brown, about 6 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, then add cabbage and most of scallions (reserve about a tablespoon for garnish) and cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is crisp-tender, about 6 minutes. Add sauce and simmer 2 minutes.

While cabbage is cooking, cook soba and edamame together in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until noodles are just tender, about 6 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cool water to stop cooking and remove excess starch, then drain well again. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with sesame seeds and vegetable mixture. Serve sprinkled with reserved scallions.

Serves 4

Advertisement