Soba Noodles Stir Fry

Soba Noodles

Soba is the Japanese word for buckwheat. Soba noodles are thin noodles made from buckwheat flour.These noodles are a staple in my pantry. The possibilities to cook these noodles are endless and they can be served either hot or cold. Hot like in soups and cold like in salads, they taste delicious either way. I find them extremely convenient because they cook very fast , taste great and are healthy too.I toss these noodles with a bunch of vegetables in summer for a quick salad but it being winter right now I chose to make something apt for  the weather outside.

Soba Noodles Stir Fry

2 bunches Soba noodles
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup moong sprouts
1 small package Tofu
handful Snow peas
half  cup shelled edamame
Scallions
Cilantro
2 tbsp crushed peanuts

Sauce Ingredients

2 tbsp Peanut butter
1 tbsp Sriracha sauce
1 tbsp Honey
2 tbsp Soya sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 tbsp cooking water from noodles
1/2 tspn garlic puree

Method :

• Mix the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
• Cook noodles according to directions, drain and set aside in a large bowl.
• Saute the veggies on high flame till they are tender crisp.
• Add the sauce , mix well and pour the mixture on the noodles and toss.
• Garnish with finely chopped cilantro, crushed peanuts and serve hot.

You can make the soba noodles  more visually appealing by adding a lot of colorful vegetables. The day I made this for dinner, all the vegetables I had on hand were green and I thought why not just go green :) !

Elbow pasta With Pesto

Pesto Pasta With Roasted Veggies

On the days I  fix quick dinners I always throw in some vegetables in my oven to roast. By the time I finish my dish I  have some really delicious roasted vegetables with minimal supervision and cooking, on the side. Well, today was one of those days. I made a quick pasta dinner with  roasted  Peppers , Zucchini  on the side. I try to make fresh pesto time permitting, but this time, I just used the store bought one. I prefer the sweet smell and the amazing taste of  home made pesto to the store bought one any day. Here's  the recipe to pesto pasta. I used  Barilla whole wheat elbow pasta,they cooked really fast and held the pesto sauce  better than Penne .

Elbow Pesto Pasta

Ingredients
1 lb Elbow pasta
7 to 8 Table spoons Basil Pesto

Method :
Bring water to boil,add salt and pasta.
Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water.
Drain pasta ,transfer to a serving dish.
Add the pasta water to  pesto  and  mix it with the pasta.
Sprinkle some Parmesan cheese and serve.

Thai Green Curry

Thai Green Curry

The Holiday week has given me ample time to catch up on TV. Alternating between couple of food Channels last week I ended up watching Mo Rocca's program "My Grandmother's  Ravioli" on Cooking Channel. I have seen him on "Sunday Morning" on CBS, never knew he was hosting a cooking show. I took a liking to the program instantly and  watched  three different shows in a row . I kinda liked the concept of the show where Mo gets to work with Grandmothers and Grandfathers in their kitchens on their treasured recipes.Mo is really funny. The first episode I watched , had a Thai Grandma cook this delicious Green Curry. It looked so good I decided to try it the very next day. The original recipe used Duck,fish sauce,shrimp paste in it ,being a vegetarian I decided to use a lot of vegetables  instead. Earlier whenever I made green curry at home I was using store bought  Curry Paste.After trying Green Curry paste  recipe from the show I am now hooked to it. It really tasted fresh and authentic.

Here's a link to Manee Soohoo's Green Curry Duck Recipe.

Thai Green Curry With Brown Rice

 Here is the recipe for Green Curry Paste. I followed the exact recipe excluding the Duck,fish sauce and shrimp paste parts. Instead  I added a lot of tofu,mushrooms,red bell pepper,sprouts,bamboo shoots,water chestnuts and snap peas. It wasn't time consuming to make the recipe once I had all the ingredients on hand. A must try if you love Thai food !

Good Luck Peas

Black Eyed Peas Salad

Happy New Year to all ! Hope all of you had a great time welcoming 2013 just like us. Just in the morning ,I was wondering what was going to be my first meal of the New Year . I 'm  aware of the tradition of eating Black eyed peas on the first day of the New Year and try to follow it whenever I remember . A Southern tradition in the United States, believed to bring in luck and prosperity. I included these peas in my shopping list on my last grocery store trip and  today I made a delicious tasting what I call "Good Luck Peas" salad.

Black Eyed Peas Salad 
1 Can Black eyed peas
1 Medium Tomato
2 Red bell peppers
1 Medium Cucumber
1 Medium Orange bell pepper
Half small red onion
Cilantro and Parsley according to taste.

Drain the can of peas, rinse and add to a bowl.Chop all the vegetables and mix together.Finely chop Cilantro and Parsley,add dressing,toss and leave it for an hour before serving.

Lemon Dressing

 Lemon Dressing Recipe

1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup Olive Oil

Combine all the ingredients except oil in a bowl.Slowly add Oil whisking until combined.

Happy New Year !