Japanese · Free recipe
Cold Soba with Dipping Sauce
Nutty buckwheat noodles are cooked, rinsed until squeaky and served ice cold on a tray, with a small cup of savory-sweet tsuyu for dipping. Grated daikon, wasabi and scallion are stirred into the sauce a little at a time, making this the most refreshing lunch of summer.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 2
- Level
- Easy
Method
-
Combine the water, soy sauce, mirin and kombu in a small saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer, then remove the kombu, add the bonito flakes, and simmer for 2 minutes.
-
Strain the dipping sauce, cool it, and chill in the refrigerator or over an ice bath until very cold.
-
Cook the soba in a large pot of unsalted boiling water according to the package, usually 4 to 5 minutes, adding a splash of cold water if it threatens to foam over.
-
Drain and rinse the noodles under cold running water, rubbing them gently between your hands to wash off the surface starch until they no longer feel slippery, then plunge them into ice water for 30 seconds and drain well.
-
Arrange the noodles in loose nests on plates or bamboo mats, top with nori strips and sesame seeds, and serve with small cups of dipping sauce plus the daikon, green onions and wasabi on the side for stirring in.
Zest note from the test kitchen
Rinse the soba more than you think is necessary; leftover starch makes the noodles gummy and dulls their clean buckwheat flavor.
