arame soba
2 portions — 40 minutes
Recipe location: Montreal, QC. Canada
After Japan opened itself to the world, Japanese cooks began to adapt western dishes in their own style. For instance in the west, people use ketchup as a condiment, but the Japanese use it as a base for tomato sauces. Spaghetti naporitan was created just after World War II, after Shigetada (the head chef at the Hotel New Grand in Yokohama) saw occupying soldiers eating it. Nowadays, you can find spaghetti seasoned with soy sauce, and served with seaweed.
About arame: Arame is a species of kelp of a dark brown color, it has a mild, semi-sweet flavor and a firm texture. It can be reconstituted in about 5 minutes, and can be added to many kinds of dishes. It is high in calcium, iodine, iron, magnesium and vitamin A.
arame handful
buckwheat noodles 2 portions
carrots 1
garlic 2 cloves
tempeh 60 g
sichuan peppercorns To taste
main
- Put handful of dried arame in a bowl and cover with a cup of water. Let re-hydrate for at least 5 minutes, drain.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil, add 2 portions of soba (buckwheat noodles) and give them a quick stir so they go underwater. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Drain, rinse and transfer to a pot of cold water. Wash the noodles using your hands to remove the excess starch, drain and set aside.
- Julienne 1 carrot, chop 2 cloves of garlic and cut 60g of tempeh into small cubes. I used noble bean original tempeh.
- Heat a pan with a drizzle of oil at medium heat and sautee the garlic for a minute until fragrant. Add the tempeh as well as the julienned carrot and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour the sauce and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the tempeh and carrots are cooked.
- Remove from heat and add the noodles, as well as the arame. Stir well and divide into 2 plates, season with some sichuan pepper.