Discover the delectable flavors of Japanese cold noodles, an exquisite dish that offers a refreshing and satisfying culinary experience. As the name suggests, these noodles are served chilled, making them a perfect choice for warm summer days or as a light and invigorating meal. With their springy texture and subtle flavors, Japanese cold noodles are a delightful treat that can be enjoyed in various ways. Let's delve into the world of Japanese cold noodles and explore the diverse selection of regional specialties and variations that this dish has to offer.
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COLD SOBA NOODLES WITH DIPPING SAUCE
In Japan, where it gets plenty hot in the summer, cold soba noodles, served with a dipping sauce, are a common snack or light meal. Soba are brown noodles, made from wheat and buckwheat, and the sauce is based on dashi, the omnipresent Japanese stock. You would recognize the smell of dashi in an instant, even if you have never knowingly eaten it. It's a brilliant concoction based on kelp, a seaweed and dried bonito flakes. It is also among the fastest and easiest stocks you can make, and its two main ingredients - which you can buy in any store specializing in Asian foods - keep indefinitely in your pantry. I would encourage you to try making it, though you can also use chicken stock (or instant dashi, which is sold in the same stores).
Provided by Mark Bittman
Categories dinner, easy, lunch, quick, noodles, main course, side dish
Time 30m
Yield 2 to 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and salt it. Cook noodles until tender but not mushy. Drain, and quickly rinse under cold running water until cold. Drain well.
- Combine dashi or stock, soy sauce and mirin. Taste, and add a little more soy if the flavor is not strong enough. Serve noodles with garnishes, with sauce on side for dipping (or spooning over).
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 233, UnsaturatedFat 1 gram, Carbohydrate 46 grams, Fat 1 gram, Fiber 0 grams, Protein 11 grams, SaturatedFat 0 grams, Sodium 1411 milligrams, Sugar 1 gram
JAPANESE SOBA NOODLE SALAD
Traditionally, this soba noodle salad is served cold. Mirin is a sweet wine that can be found in most Asian grocery stores. I do not know of any substitute.
Provided by JOSIE
Categories Salad 100+ Pasta Salad Recipes Vegetarian Pasta Salad Recipes
Time 30m
Yield 4
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Bring lightly salted water to a boil in a large pot. Add soba noodles; cook, stirring occasionally until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir ginger and garlic until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Mix ginger, garlic, miso paste, lime juice, and mirin together in a small bowl. Pour salad dressing mixture over soba noodles. Top with green onions, sesame seeds, and cilantro. Chill until serving.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 456.2 calories, Carbohydrate 91.3 g, Fat 5.3 g, Fiber 1.4 g, Protein 18.5 g, SaturatedFat 0.8 g, Sodium 1225.2 mg, Sugar 2.2 g
COLD THIN NOODLES IN CHILLED WATER (HIYASHI SōMEN)
Somen (or sōmen) is a very thin noodles served cold which makes it a perfect summer dish. Noodles are served in chilled water and the dipping sauce is also chilled. It is a very simple dish but wonderful to pop in between heavy meals to give your stomach a little bit of a rest.If you use dashi stock made from konbu (kelp), the dish will become a vegetarian dish.
Provided by Yumiko
Categories Main
Time 15m
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Add all the Dipping Sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and bring it to a boil.
- Remove from the heat and cool it down quickly by leaving the pan in the cold water for a while, then place it in the fridge to chill.
- Boil water in a large saucepan. Remove the tape around each bunch of sōmen noodles and place the noodles in the boiling water by spreading the strands.
- Using chopsticks or a thin wooden spatula, stir the pot so that noodles are separated.
- Boil for about 2 minutes (note 3). Drain using a sieve and rinse well.
- Place noodles in a serving bowl, add chilled water (or water + ice cubes), just enough to cover the noodles.
- Using chopsticks or tongs with soft edges, take a small number of noodles at a time and gently lay them in the same direction so that the noodles line up nicely (optional).
- Decorate the noodle bowl with leaves or cucumber slices, if using. Serve with dipping sauce and condiments.
JAPANESE COLD SOMEN NOODLES
Steps:
- Gather the ingredients.
- Prepare the toppings and place in separate serving bowls. Set aside.
- Bring a large pot of unsalted water to a boil.
- Meanwhile, add the mirin to a medium saucepan over low heat and cook until just heated through, about 30 seconds.
- Raise the heat to high, add the soy sauce and dashi soup stock . Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat and cool completely, at least 20 minutes. Refrigerate if not using right away.
- Meanwhile, make the somen noodles. Add the dried somen noodles to the large pot of boiling water, gently stirring until the noodles are al dente, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.
- Drain the somen in a colander and cool under running water or in an ice bath.
- Continue to wash the noodles, tossing with your hands until completely cold. Drain well.
- Serve the drained cold somen in a large serving bowl or divided between individual bowls with the dipping sauces in individual small bowls and toppings on the side.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 555 kcal, Carbohydrate 77 g, Cholesterol 1 mg, Fiber 4 g, Protein 14 g, SaturatedFat 9 g, Sodium 3071 mg, Sugar 9 g, Fat 21 g, ServingSize 4 servings, UnsaturatedFat 0 g
JAPANESE COLD NOODLES (HIYASHI CHUKA)
Steps:
- Gather the ingredients.
- Add sugar to beaten egg and mix well.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and pour about one-quarter of the egg mixture in the skillet. Spread egg thinly and fry until done. Repeat, making a total of four thin, round omelets, like crepes .
- Slice omelets into thin strips.
- Boil water in a large pot and add chukamen noodles. Boil, following the package instructions. Drain and cool noodles in cold water. Drain well.
- Combine all dressing ingredients together and stir well.
- Put chilled noodles onto individual plates. Arrange cucumber, ham, and egg strips on the noodles.
- Garnish with beni shoga. Pour dressing over noodles just before serving. Sprinkle with nori and sesame seeds.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 285 kcal, Carbohydrate 34 g, Cholesterol 117 mg, Fiber 2 g, Protein 18 g, SaturatedFat 2 g, Sodium 512 mg, Sugar 12 g, Fat 9 g, ServingSize 4 servings, UnsaturatedFat 0 g
JAPANESE COLD NOODLES
Steps:
- Make dipping sauce:
- Heat all dipping sauce ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Cool sauce, then chill, covered, until cold, about 1 hour.
- Cook somen:
- Bring 2 1/2 quarts water to a rolling boil in a 4-quart saucepan over moderately high heat. Add noodles and 1 cup more water. When water returns to a boil, add 1 cup cold water and bring back to a boil. Simmer noodles until just tender and slightly translucent, about 2 minutes. Test noodles for doneness by dipping 1 strand in cold water and sampling. If noodles are not tender, add 1 cup more water and return water to a boil. Drain noodles in a colander and rinse well under cold water.
- To serve somen:
- Divide noodles among 6 bowls filled with ice and cold water. Divide dipping sauce among 6 small bowls and serve with accompaniments for flavoring it, then dip each mouthful of noodles in sauce.
THE BEST SESAME SOBA NOODLES
This noodle side dish is delicious alongside meats and seafood, but it makes a great noodle bowl or light lunch with shredded cabbage, carrots, bean sprouts and more.And even better, you can serve it hot or cold.
Provided by Heidi
Categories Side Dish
Time 20m
Number Of Ingredients 10
Steps:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the soba noodles for 4-5 minutes or just until tender, stirring occasionally so the noodles don't clump. Drain in a colander and rinse well under cold water, tossing to remove the starch.
- While the noodles are cooking, in a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, sugar, and black pepper. Set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the canola oil and heat until shimmering then add the chopped green onions. Cook, stirring, for 15 to 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Add the soy and sesame mixture and cook for 30 seconds, Add the noodles and toss until the noodles are heated through. Add the remaining minced green onion and half of the sesame seeds. Garnish with the remaining seeds and serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition Facts : ServingSize 1 cup, Calories 294 kcal, Carbohydrate 42 g, Protein 9 g, Fat 11 g, SaturatedFat 1 g, Sodium 1101 mg, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 3 g
ZARU SOBA (CHILLED SOBA NOODLES)
Chilled Soba Noodles, or Zaru Soba, is a classic summertime meal in Japan accompanied by a savory dipping sauce called tsuyu, and a plethora of condiments called yakumi.
Provided by Marc Matsumoto
Categories Entree
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- To make the dipping sauce, add the dashi, soy sauce, sake and sugar to a saucepan, and bring the mixture to a boil. Continue boiling for 1 minute to vaporize the alcohol in the sake and soy sauce. Set this aside to cool.
- To boil the soba noodles, bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add the soba noodles and stir for about a minute to ensure the noodles don't stick together. Continue boiling the noodles for the amount of time specified on the package.
- Transfer the noodles to a strainer using chopsticks or tongs (leaving the boiling liquid in the pot).
- Wash the soba under cold running water to cool it to room temperature while removing any excess starch on the noodles' surface.
- Transfer the soba to a bowl of ice water and let the noodles chill for a moment.
- Serve the noodles by scooping small amounts of soba out of the ice water and bundling them up into small mounds on a zaru or large flat basket.
- Serve immediately with the dipping sauce and condiments.
- Once you've finished eating the cold soba, reheat the boiling liquid and serve it in a teapot to add to the remaining dipping sauce to make a broth.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 253 kcal, Carbohydrate 49 g, Protein 14 g, Fat 1 g, SaturatedFat 1 g, Sodium 2347 mg, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 4 g, UnsaturatedFat 2 g, ServingSize 1 serving
Tips for Making Japanese Cold Noodles:
- Choose the Right Noodles: Use fresh, high-quality noodles made from buckwheat, wheat, or a combination of both. Soba noodles (buckwheat) and udon noodles (wheat) are popular choices for cold noodle dishes.
- Cook the Noodles Correctly: Follow the package instructions for cooking the noodles. Cook them until they are al dente (slightly firm to the bite) and immediately rinse them under cold running water to stop the cooking process.
- Chill the Noodles: After rinsing, place the noodles in a bowl of ice water for at least 15 minutes to chill them thoroughly. This will make them more refreshing and prevent them from sticking together.
- Prepare the Dipping Sauce: The dipping sauce is an essential component of Japanese cold noodles. There are many different types of dipping sauces, but some common ones include soy sauce-based, vinegar-based, and sesame-based sauces. Experiment with different recipes to find one that you like.
- Add Your Favorite Toppings: Cold noodles can be served with a variety of toppings, such as sliced cucumbers, hard-boiled eggs, shredded chicken, roasted sesame seeds, and nori (dried seaweed). Feel free to mix and match toppings to create your own unique dish.
Conclusion:
Japanese cold noodles are a refreshing and delicious meal perfect for hot summer days. They are easy to make and can be customized with a variety of toppings and sauces. So next time you're looking for a light and flavorful meal, give Japanese cold noodles a try!
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