Cold Soba Noodles with Peanut Sauce, Coconut Chicken Soup

[♥ms.pacman♥]

Just wanted to share a couple recipes. We were getting tired of the same-old, same-old for dinner every night so we turned to these Thai/Japanese inspired recipes. We had made these a few times before, but with 100+ temps here I was not really in the mood for soup, but I thought whatever and I would give it a shot. The Cold Soba noodle one though is perfect for summer bc it's COLD

Anyway, made these today and they were both so yummy, figured I'd share! I consider it kid-friendly too...both my toddlers downed the soup and ate up the noodles like nobody's business!

Cold Soba Noodles with Peanut Sauce
(serves 6)

6 TBS soy sauce or tamari
2 TBS brown sugar
1 TBS molasses
3 TBS toasted sesame oil
3 TBS natural creamy peanut butter
3 TBS peanut oil (can substitue some or all of this with chili oil to make it spicy if you want)
3 TBS balsamic vinegar
3 dashes salt
1 pkg of soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles)..about 10oz
6 scallions, thinly sliced
ice

Place soy sauce (or tamari) in a sauce pan over medium heat, add brown sugar and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low, stir in molassess, and return to simmer. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Add sesame oil, peanut butter, peanut oil and vinegar, and whisk to combine. Season it to taste with salt, if desired.

Bring a large pot of salted water to rapid boil. Add the soba noodles, bring back to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, until they just begin to soften (about 3 minutes). Be careful as soba noodles can quickly overcook!

Have ready a large bowl of iced water. Drain noodles, plunge in ice water, and drain again. Place in a colander and rinse well under cold running water. Combine noodles and sauce, and then toss well with scallions. Refrigerate and enjoy

Thai Coconut Chicken Soup
(serves 8)

1 quart chicken stock
1 6" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
8 lemon grass stalks, white part only, thinly sliced
4 kaffir lime leaves (if can't find use lime peel)
2 cans coconut milk (14 fl oz each)
4 TBS tamari sauce
2 TBS brown sugar
3 large chicken breasts, cooked & shredded
salt and pepper
sprigs of cilantro leaves (chopped)
6 limes, quartered (garnish)
2 green chiles, chopped (garnish)

Bring the stock to a boil over medium heat in a soup pot. Add the lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves (or slices of lime peel), ginger, chilies, and garlic. Lover the heat to medium-low, cover and gently simmer for 10 minutes to let the spices infuse the broth. Strain the broth to remove the solids, returning flavored stock to the pan.

Stir in the coconut milk, tamari, sugar, and shredded cooked chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes to heat the chicken through; season with salt and peper and stir in chopped cilantro. When serving, squeeze a quarter of lime over the soup and sprinkle with chopped green chiles (if desired).

[Smillow]

Yum! Thank you for posting. I did a made up version of peanut sauce last night but it was too thick. Will definitely try these out soon!

[okinawama]

Yum! Where do you buy lemongrass? I have a couple of recipes that look fantastic, but I've shyed away from them because I can never find lemon grass.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

Yum! Where do you buy lemongrass? I have a couple of recipes that look fantastic, but I've shied away from them because I can never find lemon grass.

actually my local Kroger had it! it was in the section with the fresh herbs, like with the basil and stuff.

[elbenn]

If you're looking for an even easier recipe, this Thai chicken broth is fantastic and so easy. Just add some vegetables, cilantro, rice or noodles and it's a meal.

http://www.amazon.com/College-Inn-Cu...i+chicken+soup

[twowhat?]

Yum, that sounds so good. Going to have to try it.