This recipe is something I like to cook up during the week — after all my leftovers have been utilized. It’s really quick, simple and healthy with some great flavors. I call it Super Soba — It’s yakisoba noodles cooked with vegetables and some Asian sauce. mmmm. With this recipe I generally just grab whatever vegetables I have in the fridge — it’s a great way to use up those extras. For this specific recipe we will use broccoli and carrots.

Super Soba

Ingredients:

• 2 Carrots, peeled and cut into rounds
• 1 Broccoli crown, cut into pieces
• 1/4 Medium sized yellow onion, rough cut
• 2 Yakisoba noodle packages (5-6 oz ea)
• 3/4 Cup water
• 1/2 Cup teriyaki sauce
• 2 Heaping spoonfuls cornstarch
• Teaspoon sesame oil
• Tablespoon chili paste or other Asian spicy sauce

Our strategy is to have perfectly cooked noodles with crunchy, colorful, and tasty vegetables. To do that we will cook the veges and noodles separately and combine at the end.

Blanching will work well for the vegetables because it’s a quick and easy method — and preserves the color of the vegetables. If you need help blanching check this out — Blanching from Wikipedia. Go ahead and blanch the carrots and broccoli and set aside when complete. This is critical, don’t overcook. It’s actually better to slightly under cook as we will be adding them to the hot noodles for the final few minutes of cooking.

Combine the water, teriyaki sauce and corn starch in a bowl. Mix until corn starch is disolved in the liquid and there are no lumps.

The next step is to cook the noodles. Yakisoba noodles can be found in almost any grocery store — although they might not be the easiest thing to find at the store. I usually find them in a cooler near the produce isle. I normally throw away the seasoning packets that come with the noodles as they are just filled with sodium and some other stuff that I’m not sure about. Add the 2 packages of noodles to your fry pan for a minute or two and start to break up the noodles with a wooden spoon. Add the water, teriyaki and corn starch mixture. Also, the chopped onion can be added. Stir, cover, and cook on medium for another 2-4 minutes — until the liquid has been mostly absorbed by the noodles and the onion is starting to soften.

Time to combine everything. The noodles are just about ready and your veggies are already cooked and ready to go. Add the blanched veggies to the noodles, stir, cover and cook for 2-3 more minutes.

When cooking is complete add sesame oil and chili paste, stir to evenly coat.

Ready to eat ! Makes about 3-4 servings.