URBN Market Foodie Blog: Sunday Soba and Brews

Happy Sunday friends!

Left for work at 4am today so thought I would award myself for waking up that early with a couple cold ones and a nice cold soba dish after getting home.

I found a GAME OF THRONES (!!!!) SAISON at my local Costco and got an IPA from my good friend Jeremy, thanks bruh! I love saisons because they have a smooth and spicy complex flavor. The Game of Thrones beer in particular wasn't my favorite I am sorry to report. The flavor starts pretty well almost reminiscent of a quad which has sweet and spicy notes then takes a bad, bitter turn at the finish losing all that great flavor. If you like saisons, give it a try and let me know what you think. To me, different perspectives are an important ingredient in the creative process so I'd love to hear different opinions. The other beer that was so kindly shared with me, (and by shared I mean I pretty much drank the entire bottle) was an IPA. Now every time someone asks me if I like India Pale Ales I always say that I have to be in the mood because they tend to have a very strong, hoppy, and bitter flavor, especially the stone IPA's which are known for their strong hop flavor. So apparently this was a special batch brew that was made to have the perfect maturation on July 4th and although we were a bit late, I rather enjoyed this beer. The bitter flavor of the hops was pleasantly restrained which really made an enjoyable flavor all the way through. Solid beer, good job Stone Brewing.

So what goes good with beer on a hot day? I know you were thinking cold soba, right?! The dish is pictured below in front of my authentic bonsai tree, so appropriate.

One thing I have always had trouble with when it comes to cooking is pleasing the wonderful wife. The favorites of Mel's taste which I have dubbed, "Cafeteria Palate," consists of meatloaf, chicken fried steak, and chicken pot pie which I'm 99% sure are her 3 favorite foods. So I thought something like cold soba was a long shot for her but I just made it regardless.

Anyways this dish happened to be one of my favorites. The soba has a very fresh, slightly bitter flavor which I like to pair with a sweet sesame dressing. For some protein, I added a fluffy sweet japanese style tamago (or egg) and finished it off with some furikake. Very simple and best of all my baby boy Jacob and Mel loved it!

Cold Soba Noodles

Ingredients:
Dried soba noodles
Sesame oil
Ponzu
Brown sugar
Pineapple juice
Black pepper
Kosher salt
Vegetable oil
Whole eggs
Granulated sugar
Furikake rice seasoning
Scallion

Bring a pot of water to boil with salt and some vegetable oil. Cook soba noodles until desired doneness and stop the cooking process with an ice bath to protect the texture and avoid overcooking. In a mixing bowl, crack the eggs, add a pinch of sugar, and whip vigorously to create a fluffy texture. In a hot oven-safe sautee pan, pour the egg mixture and finish in the oven on low heat (about 6 minutes). Transfer to the refrigerator and serve cold.

Combine the rest of the liquid ingredients with a pinch of salt and generous amount of black pepper in a blender minus the oil. While blending on high, slowly add vegetable oil to emulsify the mixture so it coats the noodles well. In a bowl, mix the soba with a little of the dressing and finish with the egg, furikake seasoning, and chopped scallion.

Great recipe for the summer. Hope you guys enjoy the dish. Have a blessed Sunday!