Friday, May 20, 2011

Gingered Soba Noodles with Spicy Tofu...and friends!

In my previous post, I posted my Soba Noodle Salad photo and mentioned to you that I would post the recipe later.

Well, there's more to it than that. On the day I made my Noodle Salad...actually the reason it would be called a salad is because you can it it at room temperature as well. I made a lot of these noodles. Six ounces will serve 4, but if you double the amount it will serve at least up to 8-10 servings of portion with added broccoli, and the tofu, which I also doubled. Two 8ounces of water-packed extra firm tofu.
The recipe for my Soba Noodle Salad, or the proper name for this is Gingered Soba Noodles, because you just make the dressing for the noodles, or salad, and make double or triple amount and see how far it takes you to use it for something else, as a marinade for roasted chicken...or chickens...as in 3....and why?...because when you want to show your appreciation to a friend, not just what they have done for you, but because you appreciate and love them.

This is the least you can do to make them a home cooked meal knowing they too have a busy schedule and it will last a family of 4 for 2 meals at least, and lunch as well.
A triple portion of the Gingered Soba Dressing goes a long way...I used one portion for the noodles, and two extra portions, including for a third chicken which we kept for us. Leftover roasted chicken goes a long way for sandwiches, and delicious chicken salads, or for chicken soup.

Our dear friend, and neighbors to my daughter and hubby...Eric and Marisa, and their two beautiful children and their family are extended adopted family...by choice. Eric is our veterinarian as well and takes such good care of our pets as well. He also takes good care of my beautiful kitty, Prince and doing beyond what is his duty, by personally checking his progress, since he is old and his health is failing.

When you want to buy the best organic whole chicken, you can find it at Costco, or Sam's or BJ's food club whichever you are a member of. We have a membership at Costco and they have such a huge selection of the best of everything.

I'm going to show you a step-by-step direction and recipe for both the Soba noodles, and the roasted chicken...so hang on!
Gingered Soba Noodles
adapted from the Best of Gourmet Book, 1997


For Dressing:

6 ounces soba (buckwheat noodles
1 Tbsp grated fresh gingerroot
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 teaspoons Asian Sesame oil
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

Note: I used 2- 6 ounces of soba noodles, and tripled all the dressing ingredients, so I could use it on my roasted chickens as well.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the noodles. Cook till al dente, for about 6-8 minutes and rinse with cold water. Set aside.


Peel ginger, and grate it. In a medium bowl, stir together ginger, and remaining ingredients. Add part of the dressing to noodles, toss, and add broccoli florets, (opt.) spicy tofu, sliced scallions, (opt.) sliced radish chopped, or whole roasted cashews if you like, or you can roasted chopped peanuts. Single recipe serves 4.

The Spicy Tofu was adapted from Cooking Light magazine May, 2011


8 ounce water packed extra firm tofu ( I used 2)
Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place tofu slices in a single layer on double sheets of paper towel..repeat layers and paper towel. Cover with last layer of double paper towel.









Set a plate over it (as you can see this is at Lora's, her signature plate) mine are all different! Let it stand for 30 minutes, remove the paper towels, and on a cutting board, cut them into 3/4 - 1 inch cubes.









For the spicy Tofu sauce ingredients:

5 Tbsp. of vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. low-sodium Tamari, or soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons of Sriracha (hot chile sauce)
Cooking Spray
(again, I double the sauce)


In an oven proof dish, set tofu pieces, and pour half the sauce over all. Set the oven on 350 degree F. oven, and bake for 15 minutes, or till lightly golden.
With a slotted spatula, remove tofu and gently fold into the noodles. Save the remainder spicy sauce for extra sauce, or for saving it for another recipe, in the fridge.




Thinly sliced radishes are added to the noodles, along with the steamed broccoli florets...not pictured!







Last but not least, I got 3 whole chickens set up to roast...2 for our friends and one for us. You could see in the background the sauce set up. I even added some pieces of garlic in the sauce.

Generously sprinkled the chicken with Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and spooned some of the sauce on the chickens. Oven, on 425 degrees F. for the first 25 minutes, and after that turn oven down to 350 degrees F. for the next 1 hour. Do not cover, and check every 15 minutes to keep spooning the dripping over the chicken. the leftover sauce can be reheated till it reduces to half the amount, and use it on the side.

Dr. Eric...our veterinarian friend, whose family I cooked the dinner for at his house, feeding a baby squirrel that he saved as the mother squirrel was run over by a car. The squirrel was just a baby and Eric was feeding him from a bottle, now a few months old, and does not want to leave Eric. The squirrel hangs out in Eric's pocket, and follows him around the house...totally domesticated.
The little squirrel was only a couple weeks old here, and clinging on to Eric's daughter's arm...and now, about 3 months old, a family member, staying in her cage at night, and happily climbing the trees in the yard, but does not want to leave the family. So unusual...never heard of such a thing!




I have a sad announcement to make!


Unfortunately, Pebbles, the baby squirrel who now is 2 months old has just passed away this morning. Dr. Eric's 10 yr old indoor-outdoor cat that has been on the "prowl"...ever since Eric saved the life of the squirrel that was with her mom squirrel when she was hit by a car, and Eric brought the squirrel home to feed and raise her. She has only been outside climbing trees, and would come back inside.

Well, this morning, her little outdoor trip ended...Michetta somehow got a hold of squirrel Pebbles, and killed her, just as he has been killing garden snakes, lizards, birds, and any little creatures for his "hunt". He is so intelligent, he knows when I go there, recognizes my car, and he is right there waiting for me, and comes to the patio to hang out.

Good bye Pebbles...you will truly be missed.









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36 comments:

Angie's Recipes said...

wow SQUIRREL!!! So cute!
Soba with tofu and veggies...that's my type of healthy and comforting treat!

Priya Sreeram said...

omg- the antics of baby squirrel got a smile , soooooo adorable ! nice looking noodles and the spicy tofu sauce is a good recipe

Nami @ Just One Cookbook said...

Whoa! Baby squuirrel!! I have never seen a baby one THAT close. SO cute!!!!! What a great post (already!)... just kidding... I love your soba noodles too! I only cook traditional soba (Japanese way) but it's really fun to see how non-Japnaese eat soba. Super creative!

The Mistress of Spices said...

Oh my that baby squirrel is such a cutie! Love it! Hopefully she will stay that way :-) I love your recipe too...love preparing tofu this way, and soba noodles are fabulous. I'll have to try your recipe!

ping said...

OMG!!! That squirrel is sooo adorable!!! I love stories like that, animals-saved-and-now-having-it-good types. And I love the addition of the cashews in the soba. Great flavor, those things :D

ping said...

I meant the cashews ....

Melynda said...

That salad is stunning! Sad squirrel ending, I love the ones in my back yard.

Gina said...

I feel bad for the poor squirrel, but your noodles are amazing. I wouldn't haven even thought it possible to domesticate a squirrel. Hope you have a great weekend.
-Gina-

Little Brick Ranch said...

Love the noodles...hate the poor baby squirrel dying. Os sad! I am always on the lookout for baby animals I want to domesticate but they usually wind up dying...why can I never keep a baby bird alive?! I can only imagine what my husband would do if I came home with a squirre!l!

Priya said...

Wonderful platter, simply stunning and delicious..

Foodafok said...

Kedves Elisabeth
A gyömbéres Soba tészta fűszeres Tofuval nagyon jó lett. Csodás foto. Bravó!
Had köszönjem meg újból a Díjat amit kaptam Tőled. Végre volt egy kis szabad időm és megírtam a bejegyzést. Kérlek tekintsd meg.
Kezeidet csókolom, Laci
http://usubufood.blogspot.com/2011/05/szezamos-bundaban-sult-sparga-remoulade.html

KonstantKraver said...

Awww poor baby squirrel, but the noodles look great!

Swathi said...

Sorry to hear about the squirrel. gingered soba noodles looks awesome perfect. Love you all pictures as they are dleicious foods.

The Country Cook said...

Those chickens look awesome. And I think you're the only person who could make me want to eat tofu. Looks so good!! sorry about the squirrel :(

Jay said...

looks very tasty and scrumptious..
Tasty Appetite
Event: Letz Relishh Ice Creams

Junia said...

awww i'm so sorry to hear about the baby squirrel. :T hug for you and the family.

nice recipe with the tofu! rooster sauce makes everything come ALIVE. i went thru a phase where i put it on everything hahahaha, even pesto pasta. hahahahah. :)

scrambledhenfruit said...

Awww...so sad about the baby squirrel. Those noodles though, look delicious!

Mari said...

Poor squirrel :(

Lovely food, great way to prepare tofu.

Hugs

Janna Renee said...

My hubby loves soba noodles!!

Lizzy said...

Aw, poor little squirrel! I love how much TLC he got in his short life~

And now on to your yummy Asian noodles. I love that you use the dressing as a marinade, too...perfect shortcut to a delicious meal. I think you may have pushed me to try tofu. I have had it in restaurants, but any time I've bought it, it sits in the fridge too long for it to be considered edible! I love a noodle salad, and those beautiful, flavorful bites of tofu look like a great ingredient.

Have a wonderful weekend, Lizzie!!! xo

SKIP TO MALOU said...

awww i feel sad for pebbles... and what a squirrel he is!
i love your take on the soba, i never had it this way. im used to a having it in a soup but this sounds so goood, esp on a hot day!
have a good sunday!
malou

Lilla said...

I tuoi amici sono fortunati se cucini per loro piatti come questo... bellissima ricetta!

Veronica's Kitchen said...

It's so sad Pebbles is gone, but he will be with his mum again.
That's a great idea to have soba, with the vegetable, tofu and nuts. Delicious!

Anna C said...

Elisabeth, the soba noodle salad looks yummy. Makes for a refreshing main dish..perfect for the hot weather. It's so sad about the squirrel.

Annie's Dish said...

I just recently have discovered soba noodles and am in love! Yours look so good!

laurie said...

Oh Elisabeth, this is lovely,, what a great recipe.I think this could be used in so many ways, just as you said,, yum.I've never eaten soba noodles before, maybe I'll try this. .Such a wonderful gift for your friends.

Victor said...

I love soba noodles and tofu. Yours look so yummy.

Suhaina said...

I had raised 3 squirrels in my life time. One was very much attached just like Pebbles. He would come with me to school in my pocket. It loved cashew nut very much. It would go out in the morning and come back before night. I hung a cloth bag just above my bag which was its home. One evening I went for a walk in my backyard with my squirrel. I just let it down for it to run and play. Suddenly a cat appeared from no where and snatched it. I ran behind it but of no use...I feel very sad for Pebbles.

The soba noodle salad looks very yummy...I like the roasted chicken too. Looks very professional.

Mary said...

What a gorgeous bowl of noodles. I adore noodles and am always on the outlook for new ways in which to cook them. I think I've just found one. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

Bianka said...

Nagyon jó és az a mókus féle vagy nem tudom mi nagyon aranyos :)

Parsley Sage said...

Ooooh! This looks so tasty! Well done :) I'm so intrigued by tofu. I've only cooked with it once before and I loved it. Thanks for sharing and for the kind well wishes for my mom :)

Patty said...

OMG...I am all over the place emotionally with this one...heart break for the baby squirrel and admiration for the kind vet and hunger for the noodles and the chicken...why can't I live next door to an amazing chef like you?

kitchenmorph said...

lovely Elisabeth!! such a feast...i love tht plate! you really eat healthy...

sorry for Pebbles...such a sweet name...

Sandra said...

Ohh I am sorry about Pebbles, he was so cute, and what a great person Dr. Eric is to take her in to his home..
Your noodles ohh wow, so delicious, and look fantastic..and that chicken is calling my name, I will dream until I make roasted chicken hahaha..
Have a great day!!!!

Magic of Spice said...

Oh no...so sad about Pebbles, I am sure the children really too this hard.
Your meal is just wonderful and love the soba noodle salad, you sure know how to show your love :)

Cookin' Canuck said...

That soba noodle looks fantastic and I love that it can be a full meal with the addition of the tofu.

It is vegetarian week at our online Get Grillin’ event and we would love if you submitted up to any 3 recipes (they don’t have to be grilled) to our link up. This one would be perfect!
This week we have a ManPans giveaway. http://bit.ly/k1tKeY