Soba Noodles with Various Veggies and a Poached Egg

I’ve been waiting to post this go-to recipe until Miles was whole-heartedly into this entrée. He continues to love everything about it. So I will post it, even though I’m not sure how traditionally kid friendly this recipe is. In beginning this post, I realized that 99% of my posts have weighed heavily on various Asian flavor profiles, this is obviously due to Chaz’s influence on my cooking. This recipe will be no different.

On a kid friendly note, we don’t give him his own entrée as the advanced level mechanics of this meal would be difficult for him- i.e. how to break up a poached egg and the long noodles. So we give Miles a piece of poached egg, lots-o-veggies and chopped up noodles on his bright pink IKEA plate and let him go to town.

This is a refrigerator-clearing recipe. You can use whatever veggies you have on hand- I make this bi-weekly and I have always put a rule down regarding this recipe- no special grocery trips!

This recipe also gives me a format to introduce what I do to substitute for a soy sauce/marinade/dressing. I have tinkered with it over the past 5 months and I think I have the right combo. I don’t measure, as I think any reasonable mixture would do- just use your judgment for the taste you & your family would want. For example, if you want the sesame flavor to shine, add more toasted sesame oil. Finally, I should note that if I am going more in a Vietnamese direction I will change this up- I will not use the sesame oil. I will use more fish sauce and add lime juice and crushed cilantro.

Chris Davis’ Soy Sauce Substitution Mixture

(I use this as a poultry marinade and salad dressing too)

Umi Plum Vinegar – 2 TBSP

Fish Sauce – 2 TBSP

Toasted Sesame Oil-  1 TBSP

Canola Oil-  1/4 cup

Mirin-  a dash

Toasted Sesame Seeds- I add them for a salad dressing application.

Sesame Soba Noodles with Vegetables & Poached Egg

adapted from Cathy Erway’s Soy-Sesame Soba Noodles & Fried Eggs

(makes 2 servings)

2 individual serving-sized bundle dried soba noodles
2 eggs

about 1/2 lb any vegetables, cut to small pieces roughly 1/2-inch thick (this week I used 1 small head of bok choy, a few garlic scapes, 4 scallions, 1 leaf of kale and 2 barely kickin’ carrots)

4 (around) TBSP of my mixture (or a combo of Soy Sauce 3 TBSP, 1 TBSP Rice Vinegar & splash of Toasted Sesame Oil)

2-3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil (to toss with cooked noodles)
1/2 teaspoon any type of vinegar (for the poaching of the eggs)
sesame seeds (toasted is optional)
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, combine the vegetables with the soy sauce, rice vinegar and about 1 teaspoon of the sesame oil. Heat a heavy-bottomed pan or skillet over medium-high, and place down the vegetables. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss after after one side has lightly browned, and stir occasionally until lightly browned all over. Remove from pan and return to bowl with soy sauce (or Chris Davis’) mixture.

Meanwhile, boil the soba noodles following the directions on the package. Drain. Also meanwhile: poach the egg by bringing a small pot of water with a splash of vinegar to a boil. Remove from heat, and carefully slip in a cracked egg. Cover, and let cool for 3-5 minutes.

Transfer the drained noodles to the pan that the vegetables were removed from, and stir in sesame seeds, and about 2-3 teaspoons of the sesame oil, or to taste. Transfer to a serving plate or bowl. Top with the sautéed vegetables, the remaining liquid mixture, and the egg.