Soba Noodle Salad

Soba make an excellent alternative to pasta in salads. They taste delicious and are particular healthy because they are made from buckwheat. There are 2 main kinds, a mixture of wheat and buckwheat or 100% buckwheat . The mixed flour noodle is easier to handle whereas the 100% buckwheat is gluten free, both are equally moreish. Buckwheat is a slow release carbohydrate and helps us eat a more bio-diverse diet good for our health and the planet. This salad is super simple, but very versatile and nutritious.

This recipe is now 2 decades old and first came onto the menu with the first launch of Feng in Chelsea including my beloved Yuzu Vinaigrette.

Serves 4 or a sharing dish as part of Izakaya style Japanese meal.

1 pack uncooked soba noodles (230-240 grams)

100 grams toasted almond skin on

80 gram pea shoot (or rocket leaves)

4 spring onions

1/2 a cucumber

100 ml. Yuzu Vinaigrette

First prepare the Yuzu Vinaigrette and decant into a container, surplus dressing will last for 2 weeks in the fridge.

Bring a large sauce pan of salted water to the boil, cook noodles for 6-7 minutes, until the noodles are al dente - tender with some bite. Drain the noodles and rinse them in cold water for a few minutes to give them a nice shine. Then leave to rest on a colander.

Trim the spring onions and cut them in thin slices, leave them to crisp up in cold water for 5 minutes and then drain in a sieve. Gently wash pea shoot and set aside to dry in a colander.

Toast the almonds in a dry frying pan over medium heat, giving them a shake occasionally, until they are golden. Transfer them to a chopping board and chop them on their length into smaller pieces.

In a large salad bowl combine the noodles, vinaigrette, almonds, pea shoot and spring onions and toss well before serving.