Soba Noodle Soup in Shiitake Shoyu Broth with Asparagus, Leeks and Tofu - Recipe

Soba Noodle Soup in Shiitake Shoyu Broth with Asparagus, Leeks and Tofu

I get a little jealous of meat eaters with their delicious looking Asian noodle soups. I wanted to create a very full flavored broth with lots of umami intensity. I made it with dried shiitakes, kombu, and the best shoyu I have ever tasted.

If you haven't had soba before, they are a Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. They are often served cold with a dipping sauce, but are equally great in soup. The buckwheat flavor is distinctively nutty and earthy. It has a peculiar resonance for me because it reminds me of the kasha that my eastern European Jewish family served growing up. Funny how the same flavor can appear succesfully in such different contexts. The same dish could be made with ramen or udon noodles and still be delicious.

The toppings for this soup are a nice transition from winter to spring. We have the leeks and dried mushrooms that are a mainstay of the cold weather months, and asparagus and eggs which have always symbolized spring. A few green onions add a bright top note, and the soft tofu brings another texture and some protein. I'm not sure I can think of anything I'd rather eat on a rainy day. Of course you can vary the toppings to suit your mood and the contents of your vegetable drawer.

So I mentioned great shoyu. Shoyu is the Japanese name for soy sauce. This Ohsawa Organic Unpasteurized Nama Shoyu is to most other shoyu as parmigiano reggiano is to the stuff in the green can. The flavor is more complex and caramelized, less salty, and with no chemical edge. Because it is unpasteurized it is also (claimed to be) a source for healthy digestive probiotic bacteria. I plan to never be without it in my pantry.

The eggs are cooked using my favorite technique for soft or hard boiled eggs. They are placed in a pan of cold water, brought to a boil and then the heat is turned off and they are covered. For soft-boiled, you use about 4 minutes, and for hard-boiled, 12 is good. For this dish I used 8 minutes, which gives a terrific texture. The whites and yolk are both set, but the yolk is ever so slightly underdone, bright yellow and translucent. The whites remain tender and unrubbery. Try it, I think you'll like it.

I'm having you make more noodles than you will probably need because the next recipe I post will be for a crispy soba pancake made from the leftovers. Crispy I say.

Soba in Shoyu Broth with Asparagus, Leeks and Tofu
Vegetarian; vegan if you omit the eggs; not gluten-free
Serves 4

• 2 cups dried shiitake mushrooms
• 1 healthy piece of kombu seaweed (about 6" - 8" long)
• 1 small piece (1/2") fresh ginger, peeled
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely choppd
• 4 leeks, white parts only, halved lengthwise and carefully cleaned
• 4 eggs
• 12 oz. silken or soft tofu, cubed
• 1 large bunch of thick asparagus, tough parts removed and lightly peeled
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• salt
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• shoyu (Japanese soy sauce; see note above about best brand)
• 1 lb. dry soba noodles
• toasted sesame oil

1. Briefly rinse the dried shiitakes and bring them, along with the kombu, ginger and garlic to a simmer in 8 cups of water. Simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Add the leeks and simmer for 10 more minutes or until the leeks are tender. Remove the leeks with a slotted spoon and reserve. Discard the kombu. Strain the broth, squeezing out as much from the mushrooms as possible. Slice some of the shiitake caps thinly for service, and discard the rest.
3. Add 3 tablspoons of the shoyu to the broth. Taste and add more if needed.
4. Meanwhile, put the eggs in a small pot, covered with cold water by 1/2". Bring the pot to a boil over a high flame, then cover and remove from the heat. Let sit for exactly 8 minutes, then shock in cold water and peel. 
5. Brush the asparagus with oil and grill in a single layer (a grill pan works fine). If you can't grill, do them in a single layer in a large skillet. Cook until tender and charred spots are appearing on all sides.
6. Boil the soba noodles according to the package directions and strain. Bring the broth back to a simmer.
7. To serve, put about 1 cup of noodles in each of 4 heated bowls. Cut the eggs in half. Top the noodles with the leeks, eggs, asparagus, sliced shiitake caps, tofu and green onions. Take your time to make an attractive arrangement. Ladle in about 1.5 cups of the broth. Drizzle in a few drops of the sesame oil and serve it forth.

Best Vegetarian Chili Recipe - Delicious, Easy, Healthy and (Optionally) Vegan

Vegetarian chili with all the fixins'

Vegetarian chili is one of the first veggie entrees that pop into people's minds (along with vegetarian lasagna of course). It is a delicious, easy and very nutritious meal-in-a-bowl. Add some tortillas or brown-butter cornbread and a salad and you'll feel like a king. It also can be made ahead; it just gets better over the course of a couple of days, and it freezes well.

There are many types of vegetarian chili, some loaded up with a meat-substitute, like TVP or vegetarian ground "beef" or even bulghar wheat, and others full of vegetables. I'm not a fan. I like to highlight the beans, cooking two or three varieties with a simple and flavorful tomato-chili sauce and just a few aromatic vegetables to build the flavor base. Multiple-choice garnishes give each diner the opportunity to customize to their own palate.

This is my "weekend" version of the vegetarian chili recipe, where I boil my own beans and make a tomato-chili sauce from relative scratch. Sometime soon I'll post a "weeknight" formula using more prepared ingredients. But remember, you can make this on the weekend and eat it all week.

Let's talk about heat level for a minute. This sauce is flavored primarily with whole dried chili peppers. You can control the spice by how many you put in, and how hot they are. I like to build a moderately spicy base, and then add canned chipotle pepper to the nearly finished product as needed. Don't omit them completely even if you don't like much heat, because they provide a lot of fruity flavor and thicken the sauce. Just go for milder varieties like ancho. Aim for the lowest common denominator that your dining companions can handle, and then offer hot sauces on the side, like Tapatio or Tabasco, or more adventurous brews. Don't try to use fresh chilis, they are for completely different types of dishes.

I use a mixture of pinto, black and kidney beans in this recipe, and soak them overnight. You can get away without soaking them, or do a quick soak for a couple of hours starting with hot water. But honestly, it isn't the same. Overnight soaked beans just plain come out more tender and delicious, and much better than from a can.

Vegetarian Chili From Scratch
Yields around 10 cups, easily serving 5 (and doubles or triples beautifully)
Vegetarian, gluten-free, and vegan (if you modify the garnishes)

• 1.5 cups dry pinto beans
• 1 cup dry black beans
• 1/2 cup dry kidney beans
• 3 to 6 dried chili pods (any combination of ancho, guajillo, pasilla, cascabel, de arbol, ... [see above])
• 1 small can chipotle pepper in adobo
• 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 medium carrot, finely diced
• 1 white or yellow onion, finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1/4 cup canola or other neutral vegetable oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• salt

For garnish:

• green onion (sliced thin, mostly white parts only), or white onion (minced)
• cilantro leaves
• grated cheddar or queso anejo or cotija
• sour cream or queso fresco
• lime wedges

1. Carefully sort through the beans removing any extraneous material. Rinse well. Put in the pot you will eventually cook in, add 2 quarts of water, and soak overnight.
2. The next day, drain the beans, add water to cover by an inch or so, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the beans are very tender, which could take 1 to 2 hours depending on their age. Add water occasionally, and stir to prevent any scorching. When nearly done, add 2 teaspoons of salt.
3. Meanwhile, toast the chilis in a hot, dry skillet until darkened on both sides. Ventilate the room well while you do this, it produces a rather intense smoke that some people find painful. Allow to cool.
4. (Hint: use dispoable gloves for this step to avoid having spicy hands!). Break apart the chilis and dispose of the seeds and stems. Add the chilis, tomato sauce, half of the adobo sauce from the can of chipotle, and 1 teaspoon of salt to a blender and puree until very smooth. This sauce should be pretty spicy, because it is going in that huge pot of beans soon!
5. Saute the carrot, onion and celery with 1 teaspoon of salt in the oil for about 10 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and saute for 1 more minute.
6. Drain most of the liquid from the beans, reserving a cup for later dilution if needed.
7. Add the chili sauce, vegetables and lemon juice to the beans. Bring back to a simmer and let cook for 10 minutes or so, allowing the flavors to begin to marry.
8. Now taste. If it needs more heat or a smoke, add the rest of the adobo sauce. If it needs a lot more heat, you can puree the chipotle peppers and add them. Add salt as needed. You shouldn't be tasting a lemon flavor, but there should be a subtle hint of acidity that wakes up the sauce. If the whole thing is too thick, you can dilute it with some of the reserved bean-cooking liquid.
9. Serve your vegetarian chili forth with the garnishes listed above.

What to do with an Inside-Out Egg?

Inside-out Egg

I found these at our Farmer's Market last weekend. What a trip! The farmer said it is an heirloom breed of chicken that he's in the process of re-establishing as a breeding flock, but had just a few eggs to sell. So far I've eaten a couple just soft-boiled like this, on toast. The taste is perfectly normal, except, well, inside out. Anyone have any better ideas of how to really showcase this unique find?

Ok, I admit it... here's the truth!

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