Soba: The noodle that warms wintry Tokyo

In Japan, it’s a New Year’s Eve tradition to eat soba “for good fortune and long life,” said Tadashi Ono and Harris Salat in Japanese Soul Cooking (Ten Speed Press). The “toothsome, nutty” buckwheat noodle has been around for at least two centuries, and, “like lots of foods in Japan,” it is “often elevated to high art.” But it’s also popular as a fast food, served at counters where commuters stand slurping their noodles before catching their trains. And home cooks use dried soba noodles, a delicious broth, and an array of variations to keep their families “warm and satisfied all winter long.”

A few of the ingredients for a warm, simple kake soba can be purchased premade. Shichimi togarashi is a mix of seven spices, including sesame seeds and ground chili; dashi is a stock made from kelp and dried bonito that, if not produced from scratch, can be made from an all-natural powder. A third building block—the flavoring base kaeshi—can easily be made at home and improves with a bit of aging. Once you’ve mastered the basics, you can experiment with “comforting, delicious” variations, including soba topped with duck breast or shrimp tempura.

Recipe of the week

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Kake soba

• 6 cups dashi (recipe follows)
• ½ cup plus 2 tbsp kaeshi (recipe follows)
• 6 tbsp mirin
• Four 3½-oz servings of soba
• 4 tsp finely sliced scallion
• Shichimi togarashi, for sprinkling

To prepare the hot soba broth, add the dashi, kaeshi, and mirin to a saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low to keep the broth warm.

Fill a large pot with at least 3 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Add soba; stir to separate the strands. Cook following the package instructions until cooked through, not mushy. Drain in a colander. Divide soba among 4 bowls. Pour broth over noodles. Top each bowl with 1 tsp of the scallions and sprinkle with shichimi togarashi, to taste. Serves 4.

Dashi

• Two 6-in pieces kombu seaweed
• 1½ oz dried, shaved bonito (about 3 packed cups)

In large stockpot, steep kombu in 8 cups of water for 30 minutes. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Remove kombu. Stir in 2 tbsp water and bonito. As soon as liquid returns to boil, reduce heat to low; simmer for 5 minutes. Remove any scum that appears on surface. Turn off heat and let steep for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve.

Kaeshi (makes about 2½ cups)

• 2 cups soy sauce
• ½ cup mirin
• 3 tbsp sugar

In a saucepan, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 3 days before using. The kaeshi will keep for up to 1 month.