The heatwave that hit Europe was something that I hadn’t ever experienced. The 5-degree difference in heat is a lot. It is very hard when our apartment has East facing windows that are super large and bring in all this wonderful light. The light that is burning us alive. Even with the blinds closed to a maximum and the windows open to make a breeze, and the ventilator on, it is unbearable. So unbearable that I constantly walk around the house with a frozen towel on me. And when it hits noon, I give up and drive somewhere. Anywhere really because the car has an AC and so do most stores. Living here no one really gets air conditioning because it is a waste of space and money when we usually don’t get summers as hot. The only thing you can eat is cold stuff, like this cold soba noodle salad with steak.
For summer I usually tend to choose the veggies that are in season. My favorites forever and always will be crispy cucumbers, young carrots, spring onions, and radishes. These are vegetables that get most of their flavor from the sun and soil and taste completely different when in season. To give this sesame noodle salad some sweetness I added nectarines. They are juicy, sweet, and go nicely with many savory dishes.
Are soba noodle gluten free?
Depending on the brand, but ultimately – YES. Soba noodles are made using buckwheat flour which gives them their characteristic flavor and chewiness.
This soba noodle cold salad has one little addition that is absolutely optional. Charred spring onions. You can easily skip this part but I like the added level of flavor it gives. Those are simply whole green onions, okay, mine was red actually, but that doesn’t matter. I simply threw them on a blistering hot pan, as I would on a grill, and charred them from all sides. How much you cook them is completely up to you. If you are using a grill for the steak part, then feel free to grill the scallions too.
This recipe soba noodle salad comes together in less than 10 minutes. And is definitely a crowd-pleaser. While the ingredients are simple enough, the whole presentation and the colors of the veggies make it a dinner-worthy meal. I am a huge fan of soba noodles for hot weather meals. I’ve seen people enjoying them from glass tumblers with pieces of ice too.
This cold soba noodle salad with steak was just what we needed after a long and hard day of sweating our asses off. I will be daring and add this to my ongoing list of pasta salads because I believe that it falls under the category.
You can easily just throw all the ingredients in a bowl and toss, and serve. I like to serve my meals family-style, even though they are mostly for two hungry adults.
Cold soba noodle salad with steak
Ingredients
- 150 g soba noodles
- 6 spring onions
- 1 thinly sliced cucumber
- 2 thinly sliced radishes
- 1 carrot cut into matchsticks
- 2 thinly sliced nectarines
- Green salad leaves
- 1 steak
- 1 clove of garlic
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp butter
Sauce
- 1 thinly sliced scallion
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar or mirin
Instructions
- Prepare your soba noodles according to package instructions. That usually mean boiling for 2-3 minutes
- Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking
- To make the charred spring onions, heat a skillet with a splash of oil and throw them in
- Cook for about 4 minutes turning every once in a while
- Season your steak with salt
- Melt the butter in the pan, throw in the garlic and add the steak
- I usually cook for 1 ½ minute per side, then wrap in foil and let rest for 3-5 minutes, but you can prepare it any way you want
- Make the sauce by mixing the ingredients in a bowl
- On a large serving plate add all of the ingredients and serve with the sauce