Soba (Japanese noodle) salad

Serves 5

Ingredients

2 tbsp brown sugar
0.1 unit cucumbers
1 unit garlic
0.25 unit green onions
1 tsp honey
0.1 unit lemon
0.5 lb rice or buckwheat noodles
3.2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oil
0.1 head cabbage, shredded

Directions

For the noodles:

Cook soba noodles according to package directions. Make sure it's al dente and don't salt the water.
After it is cooked, drain, and quickly rinse in a colander with cold water then drain it again. Make sure the noodles are completely dry.

While the noodles are cooking, julienne the cucumber. This means to cut it into narrow strips.

Place soba in a large bowl, with some olive oil to prevent sticking. Toss in the sesame seeds and cucumber.

Chop broccoli and tomatoes. Add chopped vegetables to pasta and toss well.

For the dressing:

Combine oil, sesame oil and crushed red peppers in a small bowl and microwave for 3 minutes. Set aside to let it cool a bit.

Grate the garlic and ginger using the food processor.

Place the following in a medium bowl and mix: grated garlic and ginger, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, lemon juice.

Add the oil mixture from the previous step in the bowl and whisk all together until honey is completely dissolved. Voila! The dressing is done.

Serve in 3 separate bowls: a big one for the noodles, a medium-sized one containing the dressing, and a smallish one containing a mix of chopped green onion and cilantro for garnish.