Sesame and Peanut Soba Noodles

 

 

The upside to writing a food blog is that there is always a variety of food I want to try. My palate has grown enormously in the last couple of years. Every now and then, I try to include new foods into our daily intake, experiment with them and add those that are a hit with both of us into our meal repertoire. Soba noodles is one of those foods that I totally loved the first time I had it and since then I made it a few more times and can’t get enough of it.

The noodles variety I used are a mix of buckwheat and wheat in a not so comparable ratio. Although, I’m still on the look for a brand that has a significantly higher proportion of buckwheat. The Asian flavors of sesame and peanuts pair perfectly with the nutty taste of soba. To keep it simple I usually only add onions and green peppers. To up the veggies, at times I also add
carrots and cabbage. Soy sauce and sriracha continue the Asian tones to make these noodles nice and spicy. Finish it off with some toasted peanuts or sesame seeds and you have a beautiful bowl of noodles ready to be gulped down.

The good thing about these noodles is that you can enjoy it warm or cold. Personally, I prefer it warm. I also prefer toasting the sesame and peanuts before grinding them into fine powder to bring out it’s flavor and remove it’s rawness.

Make these noodles and savor it on your couch with your feet under a blanket – a perfectly pleasing meal for these chilly days!

Prep time: 20 to 25 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Serves: 2 or 3

Recipe

8 oz soba noodles
1 medium red onion (chopped length-wise)
1 medium green pepper/capsicum (chopped length-wise)
4 tsps oil (sesame/peanut oil for added flavor)
1 Tbsp toasted sesame powder
1 Tbsp toasted peanut powder
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp sriracha
1n1/2 tsp salt
handful of toasted peanuts

1. In a deep sauce pan, bring water to a boil and add the noodles. Cook as per package instructions. Drain immediately. When all of the water is drained, add a tsp of oil and toss the noodles around and set aside.
2. In a wide skillet or a wok, heat about 3 tsps of oil. Add chopped onions and green pepper. Saute until the the onions are translucent and the green peppers are nice and tender.
3. In the meanwhile, toast sesame seeds and peanuts separately in a small pan and grind them into fine powder. Add to the skillet.
4. Now, add 3/4th tsp of salt, soy sauce and sriracha. Saute everything together for a couple of minutes.
5. Add the noodles to the skillet and slowly toss them around for 3 to 4 minutes until well coated with the base mixture.

Garnish with crushed toasted peanuts, toasted sesame seeds and/or pepper flakes and serve warm or cold.