Meatless Monday: Asian soba noodle salad

Asian soba noodles with purple cabbage and peanuts makes large salad for a potluck picnic.

While visiting my sister in Edmonton last week I had the pleasure of making a version of this salad. She is now the proud owner of one of my favorite cookbooks, "Whitewater Cooks At Home," by Shelley Adams. She wanted to try some recipes together and hadn’t had much of a chance to make anything out of it. This salad was a delightful surprise and one that will grace our table over and over. In fact we’re taking the leftovers with us for a healthy picnic on our way over to Tofino to go whale watching this weekend.

I’ve now made it two more times (in less than 10 days!), but I made some changes both times. Don’t get me wrong, the original recipe was delicious, but the salad dressing has a lot of oil and makes almost 2 cups of dressing! We used just over a 1/4 cup leaving us with a lot  leftover. I decreased the oil and substituted this for that, and came up with a recipe that makes just enough dressing for the salad with none left over. I also added the veggies since it was basically just noodles.

I've got to have my veggies!

I love the crush of summer veggies all mixed in with the soba noodles. So satisfying. But who the heck cares if the food we eat is good for the body if it doesn’t taste very good?

You can try to force yourself to eat something you don’t enjoy for awhile but inevitably its not a long lasting solution.

Of course I would not be sharing it with you if I didn’t think it was delicious, so I hope you’ll give it a try. It makes a huge salad which is perfect for any summer barbeque or potluck.

Asian Soba Noodle Salad
Serves 4-6 people as a meal

1 package of buckwheat soba noodles (apprx. 320 grams)
2 green onions
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
6 inch segment of cucumber
4 cups chopped purple cabbage or cabbage of choice
2 cups grated carrot
1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts (cashews or almonds would be nice too)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Make the noodles according to the package directions. Rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process and set aside to drain completely. Finely slice the green onions and cilantro. Cut the cucumber in half and, using a spoon, remove the seeds and discard. Dice the seeded cucumber. In a large bowl add the noodles, onions, cilantro, cucumber, cabbage and carrots. Add the salad dressing and toss until the ingredients and dressing are well incorporated. Garnish with peanuts and sesame seeds.

Dressing

2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons Tamari sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon miso paste
1 tablespoon honey
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated or finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon chili sauce or more to taste

Whisk the ingredients together until miso and honey have dissolved. Add to the Soba Noodle Salad.

Related post on Beyond The Peel: Asian Purple Cabbage Salad