Soba Salad With Miso Dressing

Superfast veggie dinner or side dish. Courtesy of Mark Bittman, the Minimalist, from the October 1 2009 NY Times. He's not sure whether to call this a warm salad or a room-temperature noodle dish. I love edamame beans, and buying them frozen is fine for this dish. Pick up a bag of pre-washed spinach for this too. Tossing the spinach with the warm noodles and veggies should wilt the spinach, or stir fry them together in a little water to wilt a bit more. Soba noodles are a staple of Japan. They have a slightly firm texture and nutty flavor.

• Ready In: 20 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 3 -4  ounces  soba noodles
• 1  carrot, peeled and finely chopped
• 2  cups edamame (frozen are fine)
• 3 -4  tablespoons soy sauce
• 1  lime, juice of
• 2  tablespoons miso (white or light)
• 1  tablespoon mirin or 1  teaspoon sugar, to taste
• 1 (10 ounce) package spinach, fresh washed and trimmed
• 1⁄4 cup scallion, chopped
•  salt and pepper, to taste
• 1  tablespoon ginger, freshly grated

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Drop in the noodles and carrot and cook until tender, 2 to 4 minutes; add the edamame for about 30 seconds to 1 minute just to warm, then drain everything in a colander. Set aside.
2. In a large salad bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, lime juice, miso and mirin or sugar. Add spinach, noodles, carrot, edamame, scallion and toss; then taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with grated ginger at the table.