Soba noodles are great just about any day of the week. I’ve been a sucker for some cold salads since the heat has been ramping up in WA. It’s a perfect summer day salad that’s filling and so flavorful. If you ever catch yourself saying “I feel like eating something fresh”, look no further than this soba salad!
This salad is such a perfect introduction to one of the easiest yet most tasty ways to cook tofu. If you have never been a fan please try cooking it the way I do in this recipe. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by how flavorful and simple it is just simply baked with soy sauce and agave.
There are many many soba brands but Hakubaku seems to always be a winner for me. Cooking all three bundles will EASILY feed 4-6 people. When I’m just cooking for my partner and myself I typically just cook 2 expecting some leftovers. I would highly recommend using them for your soba ventures.
Romanesco Broccoli. It’s literally the most beautiful vegetable nature has to offer. It tastes like a cauliflower broccoli hybrid. It cooks very similarly to broccoli and cauliflower as well. Using it adds such a pretty texture and look to the dish.
If you do not have a BBQ but still want to use fresh corn you can place the corn in the husk in an oven at 400°F (205°C) for about 20 minutes. This method has worked very well for me in the past.
I was pleasantly surprised when I was testing dressings and thought of this tangy combo. Adding dijon and worcestershire to a tamari based dressing was a a shot in the dark and all the flavors complimented each other perfectly.
Spicy Soba Noodles With Mango, Corn, and Romanesco Broccoli
Ingredients:
- 1 pack of soba noodles (9.5oz)
- 1 head romanesco broccoli chopped into small chunks
- 2 corn on the cob grilled (or 1 cup frozen corn sautéed)
- 3/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 1 cup thai basil chopped
- 3 green onions thinly sliced
- 1 ripe mango cubed
- 1 serrano pepper sliced (omit if you don’t want spice)
- 1 brick extra firm tofu chopped into bite size pieces
- 1/4 cup tamari
- 2 tbsp agave
- 1/4 cup tamari
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- juice of 1 lime
- 1/2 tsp worcestershire
- 1 tsp dijon or stone ground mustard
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- 2 cloves of garlic finely minced
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions:
- Start by preheating your oven to 400°F (205°C). Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook your soba following instructions on the package. To speed up the cooking process of the broccoli just toss that in the same boiling water for the last 3-4 minutes cooking the soba noodles. Once done, strain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and place in a bowl.
- Chop your brick of tofu into bite size chunks and place in a glass oven safe baking dish. Pour the tamari and agave over the tofu and toss to get each piece coated in the mixture. Place in oven for 20 minutes.
- While your tofu is baking, put your corn on the grill. Alternatively, you can use frozen corn and pan fry with a little oil until the kernels get golden. Add that to your bowl of noodles and broccoli along with your cilantro, basil, mango, green onion, and chili.
- Once tofu is done, set aside and let cool then add to bowl.
- To make the dressing, add all the dressing ingredients to a mason jar, pop a lid on and give it a good shake.
- Pour dressing onto salad and stir to incorporate everything evenly. Serve immediately.