You can whip up these fast and easy noodles in 15 minutes. They’re a typical lunchtime dish in Japan, and the hot soba and broth are especially comforting on a frigid winter day. If you have any leftover chicken, pork, shrimp, or grilled fish in the refrigerator, you can easily add them to this dish, if you’d like. Be sure to shred the chicken or pork. You can also try this soba with cubed firm tofu, which complements the garnishes nicely.

　　

Ingredients

serves 4

　　

Hot Soba Broth

5 cups Dashi (page 40)

　　1/2 cup Japanese soy sauce

　　1/2 cup mirin

　　1/2 cup stemmed and halved enoki mushrooms

　　

Assembly

12 pea pods, trimmed

　　14 ounces dried soba noodles

　　2 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced on an angle

　　2 sprigs of mitsuba leaves, chopped

　　Pinch of ichimi togarashi (Japanese red pepper flakes; optional)

　　Pinch of salt

　　

Step 1

To make the broth, combine the dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Add the enoki, cover, and turn off the heat. Keep warm until ready to serve.

　　

Step 2

To assemble the dish, prepare an ice bath and place a large pot of salted water over high heat. When the water comes to a boil, add the pea pods and cook for 1 minute. Remove the pea pods and submerge in the ice water. Drain.

　　

Step 3

Place a large pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the soba noodles, stirring with a fork or chopsticks to make sure the noodles don’t stick together. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until the noodles are cooked through but al dente. Drain.

　　

Step 4

To serve, divide the noodles among 4 bowls. Top each with 1 1/4 cups broth, one-fourth of the enoki mushrooms, scallions, pea pods, and mitsuba leaves, and a pinch each of ichimi togarashi and salt.

　　Takashi's Noodles