1⁄4 cup soy sauce, preferably a Japanese bottling
1⁄4 cup mirin
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon Asian red chili paste, such as sambal oelek
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1⁄2 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
14 ounces dried somen noodles
1 cup julienned green pepper
1 cup julienned carrot
1 cup shredded green cabbage Thinly sliced scallions, for garnish
Whisk the soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, chili paste, garlic, and ginger in a large bowl.
Cook the somen noodles in a large saucepan of water according to the package directions.
Drain in a colander set in the sink and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking.
Drain well, add to the soy sauce mixture, and toss gently.
Bring about 1⁄4 cup water to a boil in the same saucepan that had cooked the noodles.
Add the green peppers, carrots, and cabbage; cover, reduce to low heat, and cook until soft, about 3 minutes.
Drain in that colander; rinse with cool tap water to chill.
Drain well, shaking the colander over the sink a few times.
Add the vegetables to the noodles and sauce; toss well.
Serve at once or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours.
Garnish with sliced scallions before serving.
Mirin is a sweet, Japanese rice wine that is often used in cooking. It is available in the international aisle of almost all North American supermarkets. But if you can’t find it, substitute 1⁄4 cup dry white wine and 2 teaspoons sugar. If you prefer no alcohol in the dish, substitute unsweetened grape juice (without adding any sugar).
The Blue Zones Kitchen fuses scientific reporting, National Geographic photography and 100 recipes that may help you live to 100. The Blue Zones’ food tradition is going the way of the dodo bird, thanks to the encroachment of the American Food Culture.
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