Japanese soba noodles Soup recipe & nutrition

People can’t forget to mention Japanese noodles when they talk about Japanese cuisine. Japanese noodles are an important part in the Japanese cooking, especially as an alternative to rice-centric meal. Japanese noodles are basically of three types – soba, udon and ramen. Soba noodle is thin and made up of buckwheat and wheat. They are brown in color and have about the size of spaghetti. It is believed that soba are traditional Japanese noodles. There are several ways of preparing and serving Japanese soba noodles.

Japanese soba noodles can be served either chilled with a dipping sauces and toppings or in hot soups or in hot broth. A nuttier texture and flavor to Japanese soba noodles is given by the buckwheat. In traditional Japanese supermarkets, soba is available dried same as pasta but taste best made fresh. In Japan, eating soba noodles on New Year’s Eve is a tradition. A long and prosperous life is represented by the long noodle.

Nutrition facts of Japanese soba noodles Soup:

Buckwheat flour and water are the basic ingredients of soba noodles. Gluten is not present in buckwheat and is safe to consume for people with celiac disease or gluten allergies according to the University of Chicago’s Celiac Disease Center. Whole groat buckwheat is a good source of minerals like magnesium and manganese. Also, it contains lots of fiber and protein without any saturated fat or cholesterol.

Japanese soba noodles Soup recipes:

The Zaru Soba Recipe:

Zaru Soba Recipe is one of the most favorite soba dishes.

Ingredients:

• Soba (either fresh home-made or dried) – 12 ounces
• Rice vinegar – 1 tbsp
• Wasabi (root vegetable grated into a green paste or in powder form) – 2 tbsp
• Nori seaweed (thin dried nori seaweed) – 1 sheet
• Grated daikon – 2 tbsp
• Soba tsuyu sauce – 4 cups
• Scallions – 2
• Leek – 2
• Instant dashi – 1 cup
• Grated ginger – 2 tbsp

Preparation:

• Boil water in a large pot. Add soba noodles in the boiling water and boil it for about 6-8 minutes.
• Drain the remaining water (don’t throw away water since it can be consumed as soup).
• By running cold water over them, cool down the noodles.
• Take cold or chilled boiled soba is served in a bamboo tray (zaru).
• Then, serve it with toppings of shredded nori seaweeds and with a soya-based sauce for dipping, called soba tsuyu on the side.
• After this, mix dashi, wasabi, graded ginge, rice vinegar and leek in tsuyu sauce for their good flavor and taste.
• Finally, garnish it with scallions and daikons while serving.

Soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles) Recipe:

Ingredients:

• Soba noodles (2 rolls)
• 1 box buna shimeji mushrooms (lightly boiled and set aside)
• 8 pieces of sliced Naruto or Japanese fishcakes
• 1 bunch spinach (lightly boiled, squeezed dry of water, and cut into 2-inch length)
• 1 scallion (cut on the bias)
• For dashi:
  • 3″ piece of dried dashi kombu
  • 1/4 C loosely packed kezurikatsuo (shaved bonito)
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon mirin
  • Salt to taste
  • 4 1/2 C water
  • 2 teaspoon sugar

Preparation:

• For the dashi:
  • Bring the water to a boil in a pot. When water boiled, turn the heat down to maintain a gentle simmer (boiling makes the stock cloudy).
  • Then, put the dry bonito flakes into a disposable soup bag and tie the top.
  • Fall the satchel in the water along with the kombu.
  • After that, steep it for about 30 minutes and discard the soup bag. To make the soup base, add the seasonings.
• For noodles:
  • Boil a large pot of water.
  • Add soba noodles in the boiling water and boil it for the length of time specified on the package. Cool it by running cold water over them and set aside.
  • Then, shift the soba into bowl and top them with spinach, naruto, buna shimeji mushrooms.
  • Pour the dashi broth over everything and serve immediately.
  • Also, you can serve the soba with shichimi togarashi (Japanese 7 spice chili flakes) if you like an extra color and kick.

Japanese Soba Noodles in Shitake Broth:

Ingredients:

• Dried Shitake mushrooms
• Soba noodles
• Toasted sesame seeds
• 4 green onions chopped
• Sliced nori (seaweed) – optional
• 2 cups warm water
• 1 TBSP soy sauce
• 1 TBSP dashi powder
• 1 TBSP sugar
• 1 TBSP rice vinegar
• 1 TSP mirin

Preparation:

• In warm water, soak mushrooms for about 20 minutes.
• Drain water from mushrooms and reserve liquid.
• Then, cut off stems and slice down the mushrooms.
• Heat mushrooms in a medium sized sauce pan with other ingredients after the straining of liquids from mushrooms.
• Boil soba noodles in salted water for about 8 minutes (maybe less).
• Then, take broth into a large bowl and place soba noodles in it.
• Finally, top it with green onions, sesame seeds and seaweed.