Exotic Ingredient: Soba

I love soba noodles, and I'm not ashamed to admit it!

*gulp* *quick glance around*

Nope, not ashamed.

While soba is every day food in Japan, it is much more rare here. I can sometimes find soba noodles at my local ShopRite, but more often than not, I just head to the Asian Market in Cherry Hill, NJ. The noodles there are better quality and far less expensive. If you have trouble reading labels in foreign languages, just keep your eyes peeled for squared noodles with a darker, brownish gray color. They're usually about 8 inches long, and pre-bundled in serving size for convenience.

Soba noodles are a type of Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour as opposed to regular wheat flour. The buckwheat flour gives the noodles a brownish gray color when raw, and a soft yet subtly chewy texture when cooked. Unlike regular wheat flour noodles, soba has a slightly sweet flavor that is not masked by stronger flavors.

Soba can be served chilled or hot, and is especially good when tossed in a peanut or teriyaki sauce. Cold soba salad is often served with sesame flavored sauces, which really allow the flavor of the noodle to stand out.

 Here is one of my favorite recipes with soba. The thick salty-sweet sauce clings to the soba and really accentuates the noodles' flavor.

Teriyaki Chicken Thighs w/ Soba Noodles

Adapted from Ellie Krieger

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed with a garlic press or minced
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 2 pounds skinless chicken thighs
• 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
• Enough soba noodles for six people

Directions

Combine the soy sauce, sugar, sherry, vinegar, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes and stir until the sugar dissolves. Transfer to a resealable plastic bag and add the chicken. Seal the bag and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator, turning once, for 1 hour. The chicken can be marinated for up to 4 hours.

Meanwhile, cook soba as per directions on the package. Heat the broiler to high. Arrange the chicken on a broiler pan skin side down and broil until brown and crispy, 8 to 10 minutes. Flip the chicken and broil until almost cooked through, about 8 minutes longer. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and cook until the seeds turn golden brown and the chicken is done, 1 to 2 minutes longer.

While the chicken is cooking, pour the marinade into a small pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes to make sure all the raw chicken juices are cooked. Then toss the soba noodles with enough of this sauce to coat and enjoy!