Yeah, this is a crazy dish because it contains two foods that aren't usually our family favorites. I have always hated peanuts, and Michael isn't a huge fan of tofu (although always open minded, bless his soul.) But this salad, from 101cookbooks.com, made us both grin as we snorked it down and lusted for more! Michael begged me to save some leftovers for lunch, when he caught me at 9:30 PM frantically shoving noodles from the mixing bowl into my mouth while mumbling exclamations of joy. Yeah, it'll be a repeat around here. It's quick and easy. And what I love about it is that I already had every single ingredient in my kitchen! (I refuse to go to the grocery store more than once a week. Yuck.) I even threw in some frozen stir fry veggies for color and it turned out fantastic.
Lazy Day Peanut Noodle Salad Recipe
1 8 ounce package soba noodles (I couldn't find any, so I just used whole-grain rotini)
1 bunch asparagus spears, ends trimmed then cut into 1/2-inch segements (I used carrots)
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
drizzle of toasted sesame oil
big pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1/4-1/2 cup hot water
1 small bunch of spring onions or scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup peanuts
12 ounces extra-firm tofu, cut into small cubes (feel free to heat the tofu in a skillet if you like, but cold is good too)
Big a large pot of water to a boil. Boil the soba noodles per package instructions.In the last minute or so of cooking toss in the asparagus. Drain noodles and asparagus, run under cold water for about a minute to stop cooking, and set aside.
Make the peanut dressing by combining the peanut butter, rice vinegar, garlic, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and a big pinch of salt in a medium bowl. Thin with hot water - the amount you'll need depends on the original consistency of your peanut butter. I like it the consistency of yogurt. Taste and season with a bit more salt if needed.
Gently toss the noodles, asparagus, spring onions, peanuts, and tofu with a big splash of the dressing. I reserve a bit of each ingredient to sprinkle on top of the serving platter to make it look nice. Add more dressing a bit at a time, until the salad is dressed to your liking, reserving any extra for another use. Taste, sprinkle with more salt if needed, and enjoy!
Serves 6 - 8.
10 comments:
It looks good! I am not so sure about tofu, but other than that! :)
I am going to make it! I LOVE this type of junk!!!!!
I sauteed the tofu in sesame oil and chili flakes, so it had a little more flavor. Since we don't eat much tofu, the plain flavor hasn't really won us over yet. But sesame crust on the outside is delish.
Looks So Good! :) Thanks for sharing!
Yummy,I think we'll love it! Z
This looks REALLY good! By the way, Sam and I eat your Yam Burritos constantly, though we are still fighting over whether to call them "yamrittos" or "yamborees."
who in the world has those ingrediants on hand.my gosh nessa you amaze me!
This is great - I've been craving soba noodles, and picked some up last week, but hadn't decided what to make with them. I'll give this a try this weekend when Rick is camping with the girlies, because when I make stuff like this he usually says "It would have been good if you'd added some sausage."
OK, didn't get to it on the weekend so made it tonight. Sorry, I thought it was just OK.
I did actually use soba noodles (because I LOVE them.) Maybe on the rotini it was a better texture ... the dressing kind of clung to the soba noodles. I added some julienned carrots for added color & crunch. It still it tasted too much like peanut butter to me, and not enough like peanut stay (which was what I had been imagining.)
Onto the Mujadarrah.
Well, I can certainly understand that if you were hoping for satay that this dish would be a let down. Satay is much richer, this is more of a creamy peanut/sesame dressing. Usually I use less peanut butter and more of the other ingredients, especially sesame oil and cilantro. I like topping it with sesame seeds.
Also, I agree, the soba noodles we tried this weekend and they got kind of mushy. I prefer the rotini, though Michael actually said he loves the soba so I guess it's a matter of preference. Maybe I cooked them too much. Anyway, too bad you didn't like it, it's been a big hit around here (because I make it.. um... every week? We love it that much.) I've taken it to ever dinner event we've been to so far this summer. :c) No point in being original when I can throw in a package of frozen asparagus stir fry mix and run out the door!
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