Japanese cold soba 日式凉面

Soba noodles are Japanese thin noodles made with buckwheat flour. They are high in protein and low in calories. Cold soba noodles are especially refreshing in summer, but people eat it year-round.

Generally there are two ways to eat the cold soba. If the noodles are served in a bowl, simply pour the soba-tsuyu (soya based sauce) over it and eat it like a noodle soup. If the soba is served on a sieve-like bamboo mat, pick up a small amount of soba and dip them into the soba-tsuyu before eating them.

Grated wasabi, thinly sliced scallions, and grated ginger are often mixed into the soba-tsuyu. What I have made during the weekend was just a simple cold soba dish with plain soba-tsuyu.

Ingredients
Dried soba noodles (with yam powder)
Thin slices of Nori seaweed
Soba-tsuyu


Method
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the soba for about 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. When the soba is ready, strain and rinse with cold water to get rid of the starchy remains. Immerse in ice water and drain well.

Prepare soba-tsuyu by adding 1 part sauce and 4 parts water to a small bowl. You can adjust the proportions to your taste. I added 3 tablespoon of sauce to 12 tablespoon of cold water.

Sprinkle pieces of nori or dried seaweeds on the soba. Served the soba with soba-tsuyu.