Fast, easy, and fantastically versatile, this dish is also uncommonly satisfying for something so blatantly healthful. Soba noodle salad, in one form or another, will always be in regular rotation on my table. This particular version includes chicken (leftover roasted chicken to be precise), red cabbage, carrots, scallions, and cilantro. But the beauty of a dish like this one is that you can incorporate whatever sort of protein and vegetables you prefer (or just happen to have on hand). And the dressing can easily be spiced up if you enjoy a little heat. In other words, this is sort of like the chameleon of salads...a perfectly kaleidoscopic vehicle for reflecting the current mood of your pantry and vegetable drawer.
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Ingredients for Soba Noodle Salad
- buckwheat soba noodles
- shoyu
- rice vinegar
- toasted sesame oil
- honey
- fresh ginger
- red cabbage
- carrots
- scallions
- cilantro
- cooked chicken
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for Soba Noodle Salad
For the dressing, combine the shoyu, rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and honey in a small bowl.
Peel the ginger and then grate it into the bowl with the other dressing ingredients. (A microplane grater is really helpful here for ensuring that the ginger gets well incorporated into the dressing and then evenly distributed throughout the salad.)
Whisk the dressing briefly until the honey is dissolved.
Next prepare the vegetables. Finely shred the cabbage, cut the carrots into matchsticks, thinly slice the scallions, and roughly chop the cilantro.
Cook the soba noodles according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse them immediately with cold water.
Then place the cooked soba noodles in a large bowl and pour over the dressing.
Stir to coat and then let the noodles sit for a few minutes to soak up the flavors.
Add the prepared vegetables and cooked chicken to the soba noodles.
Toss everything together to combine and then serve.
Hint: Buckwheat soba noodles need to be handled a bit differently than your ordinary pasta when it comes to cooking. It is important that you do not add any salt to the water, and you also need to be very careful not to overcook them. (Otherwise, they will become too soft and gummy.) When properly prepared, the soba noodles will remain rather firm and soak up the flavors of the dressing beautifully.
Substitutions
- For the Shoyu - Feel free to use soy sauce or tamari in place of the shoyu.
- For the Honey - You can also use maple syrup or white sugar instead of the honey.
Variations
The potential for variations on this soba noodle salad are practically endless (and can simply be guided by what may be conveniently at your fingertips), but here are a few ideas on additions for mixing and matching to create other delicious combinations...
- In the Dressing - freshly grated garlic, chili oil, and sesame seeds
- Vegetables - thinly sliced bell peppers (red, orange, or yellow), finely shredded Napa cabbage, thinly sliced English (or Persian) cucumber, thinly sliced radishes, and blanched broccolini or snap peas
- Herbs - chopped mint or Thai basil
- Proteins- cooked salmon, baked tofu (or tempeh), and leftover cooked turkey
Equipment
A microplane grater is really helpful for ensuring that the ginger gets well incorporated into the dressing and then evenly distributed throughout the salad. While you could certainly mince the ginger with a knife if you prefer to chop rather than grate, I highly recommend the latter strategy here.
Storage
Leftover soba noodle salad can be stored in the refrigerator for a day or two, but it usually doesn't last that long in my house.
📖 Recipe
Soba Noodle Salad
Equipment
- microplane grater
- medium saucepan
- colander
Ingredients
Dressing
- 2 tablespoons shoyu
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger peeled and grated
Salad
- 8 ounces buckwheat soba noodles
- small wedge red cabbage finely shredded
- 2 medium carrots peeled and cut into matchsticks
- 3 scallions thinly sliced
- small bunch cilantro roughly chopped
- 2 cups cooked chicken shredded into pieces (leftover roasted chicken works well here)
Instructions
- For the dressing, combine the shoyu, rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and honey in a small bowl. Add the freshly grated ginger. Whisk everything together briefly until the honey is dissolved.
- Prepare the vegetables by finely shredding the cabbage, cutting the carrots into matchsticks, thinly slicing the scallions, and roughly chopping the cilantro.
- Cook the soba noodles according to package instructions. Drain and rinse them immediately with cold water.
- Place the cooked soba noodles in a large bowl and pour over the dressing. Stir to coat and then let the noodles sit for a few minutes to soak up the flavors.
- Add the prepared vegetables and cooked chicken to the soba noodles. Toss everything together to combine and then serve.
Ruth Merriman
Delicious as is and looking forward to playing around with different vegetables!