We love Asian food here at Tea and the gang HQ, today’s recipe of Cold Soba Sesame Noodle Salad is brought to us by Monica Jiandani.

I believe that healthy food need not be bland nor boring because it can be packed with exciting flavours and exotic new ingredients, leaving one feeling just as satisfied.

This unassuming Asian-inspired bowl of cold soba noodles ticks all of these boxes, and it is my go-to when I need to rustle up a quick meal or packed lunch.  The noodles are coated in a mildly piquant, creamy sesame dressing made with tahini that echoes the subtle nutty flavour of the soba noodles topped with sesame seeds. Thin strips of crisp bell peppers enlaced with the noodles, along with fresh coriander, add a wonderful aromatic freshness to the dish.

While soba (buckwheat) noodles and tahini paste may not be a staple in everyone’s larder, this recipe will inspire you to have it on hand at all times.  If you can’t get hold of tahini, peanut butter is an equally terrific substitute. However, I would use a tablespoon less of honey, vinegar and soy sauce. Some shredded cooked chicken makes a nice addition and transforms this into a more substantial dish.

Prep time: 15 minutes | Assembly: 10 minutes | Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 300 grams soba noodles
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 green bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• sesame seeds, for garnish
• hand full of fresh coriander, chopped
• some coriander leaves, for garnish
• shredded cooked chicken (optional)

Dressing

• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 green chilli (optional)
• 5 tablespoons Tahini
• 6 tablespoons water
• 6 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS: 

1. In a food processor, add all the ingredients for the dressing, and blitz until well combined.  I believe that the type of honey, soy sauce, and vinegar varies from country to country, and between brands. So you may need to adjust and balance to taste.

2. Prepare your bell peppers and coriander, slicing the bell peppers into really thin strips, so they interlace well with the noodles.

3. To cook the soba noodles, boil soba noodles as you would pasta.  However, cook it al dente or 2 minutes less than the package instructions.  Usually, 4 minutes will do.  Drain and immediately transfer noodles into an ice bath.  Set aside for a couple of minutes.  Gently massage noodles in the ice bath to remove the slight film that sometimes coats the soba noodles.

4. Drain and toss noddles with the dressing, veggies, chopped cilantro, and chicken, if you are using any.  You can serve it as is, but I prefer to chill it in the fridge for 20 minutes.  Garnish with sesame seeds and chopped coriander before serving.

5. If you aren’t allergic to nuts, you can add half a cup of peanuts towards the end of preparing your dressing, giving it a bit of a whiz, so the dressing will have a slight a crunch.

6. Enjoy with a cup of Chinese Green Tea!

Cold Soba Sesame Noodle Salad article written by and all photos are copyright of monicajiandani