A couple of years back at the birthday party of my daughter’s friend, a special soba noodle dish graced the table. A huge platter was piled high with the beautiful, glistening noodles and studded with carrots. Alongside the chicken fingers and pizzas, it was the obvious stunner on the table, and when I tasted it, the flavor was complex.
It was one of those large New York affairs with a whole slew of pre-schoolers running around, most of them hopping around in the bouncy castle that had been hired for the occasion or angling to get their parents to allow just one more cookie from the sweets table.
When I quickly asked the (Big Person) hostess about the recipe in passing, she said something about maple syrup and sesame and a personal chef. Ahhh. The personal chef. Of course.
Luckily, I went back and had a little second serving for good measure, just to really taste what was there. Back in the laboratory, the recipe came together. I added tons of steamed veggies that Yummies routinely claim as favorites: broccoli, sugar snap peas, edamame, and the carrots that were in the original dish.
Along came my three-year old mini-chefs to test the recipe for us for real. We threw together the sesame-ginger sauce first, added all the veggies while the soba noodles were cooking, and then took turns tossing the whole thing together. Delicious.
**A few notes on this dish: Since there are gluten-intolerant children in two of my classes, we have experimented with ways to make all the dishes gluten-free. From now on, I will try and give a gluten-free option with my recipes. In this case, we used rice noodles for one class, and in an older class, we simply used the sesame-ginger sauce as a marinade for a skinless, boneless free range organic chicken breast and skipped the noodles altogether. Let the chicken breasts marinate for at least 4 hours before searing the breast on both sides and placing in the oven at 400 degrees F for a few minutes, or until the internal temperature registers 165-170 degrees F.
This dish is wonderful warm, served right away, or cooled to room temperature, or tucked into a lunchbox and served the next day. Suit yourself with your veggie selection. Red peppers, zucchini, winter squash, greens, etc. can also be steamed and added in another veggie’s stead.
Soba Noodles in a Sesame-Ginger Sauce with Steamed Veggies
*24 oz. soba noodles
*3/4 c. olive oil, or more if you’d like
*1/4 c. maple syrup (1/8 c. light honey + 1/2 c. buckwheat honey can be substituted)
*1 t. toasted sesame oil
*1 T. soy sauce
*2 T. rice vinegar
*3 scallions, chopped, the white, the light green and a tiny bit of the bright green parts
*2-3 cloves garlic, minced
*2 T. ginger juice*
*1 T. minced ginger
*2 clementines or a small navel orange, juiced
*a handful or two of black sesame seeds
*at least 4 cups of steamed veggies. Ideas:
-broccoli
-sugar snap peas
-edamame
-carrots
-parnips
-cubed sweet potatoes or winter squash
-chopped greens
-zucchini
*black pepper, to taste
*optional: chili oil to spice it all up
Big Person: Bring a very large pot of salted water to a boil while you are making the sauce. The noodles absorb a lot of water, so cook them in two batches or two pots if need be. Prep all of your other ingredients ahead so that you will have time to add the noodles and cook them according to the instructions on the package.
Together: Make the sauce. In the biggest bowl you have pour in the oils, maple syrup, soy sauce, scallions, garlic, ginger, ginger juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and the sesame seeds and whisk till completely combined. Talk about the way things look, the way they smell, and the way the sauce comes together.
Now add the veggies and have your mini-chef toss these with the sauce.
Big Person: When the noodles are ready, drain the water and add the noodles to your vegetables and sauce. Since the noodles will be very hot at this point, toss them for your mini-chef, let cool a bit, and then allow your mini-chef to do some serious tossing.
Sprinkle with more black sesame seeds and some chopped scallion for a garnish.
*To make the ginger juice peel a large piece of ginger, about 4 inches long. Finely grate the garlic. Then, using a tea strainer or a fine mesh sieve over a bowl, press the grated ginger with your finger. The juice should fall into the bowl below. Squeeze out every bit of the juice that you can. Mini-chefs will most likely love to help with the squeezing part.
