soba soba

In our sophomore year of college, my bffl Ana and I developed certain food rituals. When we returned from Italy, it was Lavazza coffee with a prosciutto mozzarella panini for breakfast. Every. Single. Morning. When food stores were low and no one felt like walking up the windy hill to get groceries, it was random conglomerations of whatever we had (tomato soup mac and cheese). And after late nights of reading Plato's Symposium to each other in alternating accents (darth vader being the favorite), we would look at each other and with a knowing smile, start grabbing the ingredients to make soba noodles. We made it super simply, a little soy sauce, some garlic powder, and a dash of sesame oil. Now in my oh-so-grown-up life, I have discovered that soba is quite versatile and will gladly accommodate the ingredients you give it. Here is a basic soba recipe with some fun ways to accessorize. Enjoy!

Per serving:
1. Boil water and add one bundle dry soba noodles.
2. In a bowl, coarsely chop 1 clove garlic and add soy sauce, chinkiang vinegar, and sesame oil to taste.
3. The soba will take roughly five minutes. When it is done, douse it in cold water and drain.
4. Combine the soba with the ingredients in the bowl.
5. Addition options include adding toasted black sesame seeds, a fried egg, thai basil, and anything else you can think of!