Soba Noodle Salad

SOBA NOODLE SALAD
Serves 4 as a meal, 8 as a salad appetizer
Earthy robust soba noodles stand up well to the full flavours of this soy-based dressing. While I usually eat this as a satisfying vegetarian or vegan lunch, try adding an egg or some poached salmon or chicken to the top of this salad to make a more hearty meal.

Dressing
½ cup sugar
6 Tb soy sauce (for GF, use GF soy sauce)
¼ cup water or dashi
4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
3 Tb rice vinegar
1 tsp sambal oelek (or more, to taste)
1 to 3 tsp toasted sesame oil (to taste)
1 Tb packed grated fresh ginger

Noodles
200 gm Japanese or Korean soba noodles*
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp sesame oil

Vegetables
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 cup snowpeas, cut in half lengthwise
4 red radishes, cut into matchsticks or thin slices
½ long English cucumber, seeded and sliced into half-rings
2 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 bunch watercress, stemmed, or 3 cups arugula or mizuna
Optional – 2 Tb pickled ginger (sushi ginger) sliced into shreds
Optional – 1 avocado (optional), quartered and sliced
Optional – 4 eggs, poached
4 tsp toasted sesame seeds

*Buy soba noodles that have yam or yam starch as one of the listed ingredients. These have a much better texture and flavour. A great brand is Hana. For gluten-free, look for King Soba.

Dressing: Combine all the ingredients except the sesame oil and ginger in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Let cool until no longer hot. Stir in sesame oil and grated ginger. Taste the dressing and see if needs more vinegar, soy, or spice for your liking.

Noodles:
Bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add the 1 tsp salt and the soba noodles. Return to a boil, stirring the noodles to separate them. Boil for 5 to 7 minutes, until just cooked. Drain and run under cold water until noodles are cool. Drain well. Place in a bowl or container and toss with the oils. (Noodles can be made two days in advance).

Vegetables:
Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add carrots and snowpeas and cook for 30 seconds. Drain and spread veggies out on a plate or tray to cool and dry off. The remaining vegetables just need to be cut as specified.

Salad assembly:
You can assemble this salad in a big bowl, but I prefer to portion it into individual bowls, one for each person. It looks nicer that way.

For a big bowl, toss the noodles, ¾ of the dressing, and the vegetables (except avocado) until well mixed. Top with sliced avocado, drizzling with more dressing and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
For individual portions, toss the noodles with ½ the dressing, and divide them evenly between 4 or 8 bowls. Divide the vegetables evenly between all the bowls, arranging them nicely on top of the noodles. Drizzle with some more dressing. Top each bowl with sliced pickled ginger, sliced avocado and toasted sesame seeds. top each with a warm poached egg, if using.