It had been a long time since I’d done a proper grocery run. Between work and life, nearly six weeks passed since my last big shop. Thankfully, a well-stocked pantry and freezer kept dinner interesting, and a few happy accidents led to this quick, satisfying meal.
I pulled a bag from the freezer thinking it was peas to use in a tuna casserole. The next day, when I opened the bag, I discovered it was edamame. Not ideal for my idea of a classic tuna noodle casserole, so I scrapped that plan and improvised.
Plan Nebulous, as I like to call it, is a flexible approach: pick a flavor profile, gather compatible ingredients, and assemble a simple meal. For this dish I aimed for Asian-inspired flavors. I gathered soba noodles, chile garlic sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, pickled ginger, fried garlic bits, and a can of albacore tuna. Those elements cover the essentials—starch, vegetable, protein, and flavor boosters—so there was no need to overcomplicate things.
The edamame were already thawed and only needed a quick cook. I added them to the pot with the noodles so both cooked together, saving time and dishes. While the noodles boiled, I whisked together a sesame-spiked sauce. After draining and rinsing the noodles, I tossed them with the sauce, plated them, then topped everything with edamame, flaked tuna, and fried garlic. With extra chile garlic sauce, sesame oil and pickled ginger on the side, dinner came together faster than ordering takeout.
Cold soba lightly coated in a mildly spicy sesame dressing, studded with edamame and flakes of albacore, and finished with crunchy fried garlic is a real treat. It takes under ten minutes to prepare, making it a perfect, cooling main for warm evenings.
A quick note about soba: they can become mushy, sticky and gummy if cooked according to some package directions. The trick is to undercook slightly and stop the cooking immediately with cold water. Follow these steps whether you serve the noodles hot or cold:
- Boil for about two minutes less than the time printed on the package. Test a strand: it should be cooked but still have some bite. Adjust the time to find what works for your brand of soba.
- Drain and immediately rinse the noodles thoroughly with cold water. Use your hands to separate and rinse the strands so the water cools and halts the cooking.
- If serving cold, toss with the dressing and chill covered in the refrigerator before serving.
- If serving hot, reheat the noodles briefly in boiling water until warmed through, then toss with sauce or add to a hot soup.
Cold Tuna and Edamame Soba | Frugal Dinners
Rebecca Lindamood
Pin Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 portions of dry soba buckwheat noodles
- 1 pound frozen shelled edamame thawed
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chile garlic sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- a splash fish sauce about 1/2 teaspoon, more or less
- 1 can albacore tuna drained
Optional for serving:
- fried garlic bits *see notes
- pickled ginger
- additional chile garlic sauce
Instructions
To Cook the Noodles and Edamame:
- Bring a gallon of water to a boil in a large pot over high heat.
- Add 2 teaspoons of salt and the edamame.
- Boil for one minute, then add the soba.
- Stir frequently and boil for about two minutes less than the package recommends.
- Test a noodle: if it’s cooked through with a bit of body left, drain immediately.
- Rinse the noodles and edamame thoroughly with cold water to stop the cooking. The edamame will mostly fall to the bottom of the colander.
- Let the noodles drain while you make the sauce.
To Make the Sauce and Dress the Noodles:
- Combine sesame oil, chile garlic sauce, soy sauce and fish sauce in a large mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.
- Use your hands to lift the drained noodles into the bowl, leaving most of the edamame in the colander.
- Toss the noodles in the sauce until evenly coated.
- Transfer the dressed noodles to a platter or bowl and chill, covered, for at least 30 minutes.
To serve:
- Scatter the edamame over the chilled noodles, then top with flaked tuna.
- Serve with bowls of fried garlic, pickled ginger and extra chile garlic sauce for garnish.
Notes
Nutritional information is an estimate. Calculate nutrition using the exact ingredients you use with your preferred calculator.
