Cold Soba Noodle Salad With Shrimp

I just got through watching Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations in Japan. I will admit that lately I seem to be a bit fascinated with Japan, it’s culture, and it’s food.

Well, in this episode, Bourdain, being the food idol that he is, was joined by Masaharu Morimoto, being the food idol he is! The topic of soba noodles was the first one in this episode. I imagine that most of the noodles we eat are made in a factory, by machine. And maybe they have factories like that in Japan.

Bourdain says, “Soba is the Japanese word for buckwheat. And good Soba noodles are 80% buckwheat, 20% wheat flour.”

There are people in Japan who spend their whole lives making soba, with no machines involved. They work the dough, roll it out, and then precisely cut it into 1.6 millimeter noodles. And do know, that’s a guy, cutting through sheets of noodles folded onto themselves to form into thick squares of flat dough. Then he cuts them with a tool, guided by a piece of wood to get a straight edge. The only power is coming from the man’s muscles. It’s truly amazing. These noodles were not dried, but rather cooked fresh.

Bourdain and Morimoto ate their noodles in a traditional style, with a soya-based sauce called tsuyu. The tsuyu probably contained nori, wasabi, and Japanese leeks. They scooped-up the noodles plain, and dipped them into the sauce before loudly slurping them up – the proper way to eat the soba.

My noodles? Well, let’s compare. I have a package of them sitting in my pantry. Hmmm .... mine were made in Australia. It’s the Hakubaku brand organic soba. But the package says it’s number one in Japan. But it is 70% wheat flour and 30% buckwheat. Shouldn’t that be turned around? The last time I made soba the noodles were, in fact, much darker. So I imagine that they had a more traditional buckwheat to wheat flour ratio. Well, no matter, I guess. I think they taste pretty good.

In fact, I think this noodle dish tastes pretty good! And there are so many little add-ins you could do to change it up. I made a small batch of the sauce and used it for a pound of shrimp. It could just as easily be chicken, or tofu, or even beef. Also, I steamed some snow peas and shaved carrots. That’s what I like. But you know what? Even without all that stuff, the dish was pretty tasty.

While making the soba dish, I was excited because I got to use a new ingredient. About a month ago I ordered Yuzu juice online. It has a strong citrus flavor. I used is sparingly. It combined really well with the soy, vinegar, honey, and sesame oil.

Oh, one nice thing about this recipe is it doesn't have to be done at one time. I made my shrimp and veggies in the morning and cooked the pasta much later in the day when I was getting hungry.