Cold Spiced Soba and Cucumber Noodles

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Are you all surviving this heatwave? My goodness it is HOT HOT HOT. I gravitate to bodies of water to cool down and want to spend as little time as possible in the kitchen when the outside temperature is 36 degrees. The recipe I wanted to share with you today is one I posted a few years ago but felt it was worth reposting again now as it is perfect for heatwaves.

If you have only ever eaten noodles hot before you are going to have to trust me when I say that cold noodles are seriously good. The whole meal takes 10 minutes max to prepare, so you don’t have to spend too long cooking in the kitchen.

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The crunch of the cucumber noodles and nuts (from the crunchy peanut butter) really complement this dish and the spring onion and garlic also add delicious notes throughout the dish. The star of the dressing, in my mind, is chinkiang black rice vinegar, which is also known as Chinese black vinegar. I adore the flavour, and would recommended it for your store cupboard if you don’t already have it. You can easily pick is up in any Asian food store.

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The sauce is salty, sour and sweet and mixed through the noodles it is absolutely heavenly. It’s a perfect meal to take to work as it is easily transportable and can be prepared the morning or night before and then stored in a fridge until lunch. Remember to take it out of the fridge around 30 minutes before eating so that it has reached room temperature.

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So tell me, what recipes do you tend to gravitate towards in heatwaves? Share your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to hear.

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Cold Spiced Soba and Cucumber Noodles

When it's hot and you want to spend as little time as possible in the kitchen and eat something cooling, quick and delicious
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Servings: 2
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 85 g soba noodles
  • 1/2 cucumber, made into noodles or thinly sliced use a spiralizer if you have one. Keep the skin on or remove, your choice
  • 2 spring onions, thinly sliced at an angle
  • 1 dried chillies, halved
  • 2 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tbsp chinkiang black rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp chilli oil
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp crunchy peanut butter
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • 1 tsp black sesame seeds
  • 1 tsp salt, optional

Method
 

  1. Place the soba noodles in boiling water and boil for 5 minutes or according to the packet. Drain and run under cold water so they become completely cold. Place to one side.
  2. Mix the chinkiang black rice vinegar, light soy sauce chilli and sesame oils, grated garlic, sugar and crunchy peanut butter iin a bowl and stir to form a dressing. Taste and add salt if required.
  3. Prepare the cucumber noodles or chop the cucumber into thick sticks
  4. Heat a small pan and when it its hot add the dried chilli and allow to darken slightly in colour. I tend to keep the seeds in but remove if you want less heat.
  5. Add 1/2 tsp of chilli oil and the spring onions for a minute and then take off the heat.
  6. In a mixing bowl, add the cold soba noodles, the cucumber noodles, the dressing and the dried chilli and spring onions. Gently fold in together and place in two bowls. Sprinkle some black sesame seeds on top.

Kale, Chicken and Dried Cranberry Salad with a Spiced Tahini Dressing

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It’s been a while I know. I continue to be very focused on marketing my cookbook ‘Chilli & Mint: Indian Home Cooking from a British Kitchen’  – have you got your copy yet ;o)? I’ll pop a branded tote in for free for those who order through me (whilst stocks last). If you are overseas then the best way is Book Depository which offers free shipping.

It’s on its second print run, which I am thrilled about and is now stocked in Selfridges and Harrods as of this January 2023, as well as Waterstones, Foyles, Hatchards, some Daunts stores and a number of independent bookshops and lifestyle stores. Physical copies are now being sold in bookshops in Australia and I was particular chuffed to see copies in Waterstones Amsterdam recently.

I’ve also been in India for part of February, researching more recipes that may find their way in book 2 in the future – watch this space.

For this post however, I thought I would tempt you with one of my go-to salads at the moment. I adore an interesting salad that is packed full of flavours and textures and is relatively quick to put together. This one is no exception and is perfect as a meal unto itself for lunch or supper. If you are vegetarian then obviously omit the chicken and add crispy tofu perhaps as an alternative.

You don’t even need to cook the kale. Instead it requires massaging with the dressing to soften it and break it down a little. Tahini is a staple in my house and you are always going to find a pot of chilli oil lurking in my fridge. For this recipe Lee Kum Kee’s – chi chow chilli oil – which you can find at most large grocery stores these days – works wonders with the tahini and rice wine vinegar. I urge you to pick up a pot next time you are doing the grocery shopping. The dressing was inspired by one I had seen in Nik Sharma’s fab new cookbook The Flavour Equation.

Added extra’s that would work a treat would be avocado and grated carrot. I leave it to you to get as creative as you see fit.

Kale, Chicken and Dried Cranberry Salad with a Spiced Tahini Dressing

Serves 4

2 chicken breasts, skin removed (do not throw them away)

250g kale, stalks removed and washed

small handful of dried cranberries

small handful of crispy onions 

1 tbsp white sesame seeds

3 tbsp super seeds salad topper by Good4u

 

Spiced Tahini Dressing

50g tahini

40ml rice wine vinegar

1-2 tbsp Lee Kum Kee’s chiu chow chilli oil

1 tbsp boiling water, to loosen

fine sea salt to taste

 

  1. Remove the chicken skin from the chicken breasts and place to one side. Place the breasts in a pan and cover with boiling water and simmer gently for 12-15 minutes. Remove from pan and then shred using two forks.
  2. If you have chicken skin do not throw it away. Instead, stretch it out on some baking parchment and sprinkle with a little flakey salt, black pepper, chilli flakes and olive oil. Place in a pre-heated oven – 180 degrees fan (or 200 if not using a fan) for 10-15 mins until crispy. You can then break this up and onto the salad before serving.
  3. Next make  the dressing. You want the dressing to not be too thick so add a little more boiling water if it needs loosening. Taste test to check the balance of the vinegar/tahini/chilli oil works for you and adjust accordingly.
  4. Remove any large stalks from the kale and wash throughly and then dry with kitchen paper. Then place into a large mixing bowl.
  5. Next pour 2/3 of the dressing over the kale and massage in with your clean hands.
  6. Add the shredded chicken, dried cranberries, sesame and super seeds. By all means add shredded carrots and/or avocado at this stage  if you wish to add more ingredients.
  7. Divide into bowls and top with a few more super seeds, the crispy onions and the crispy chicken skin if you have included this step.
  8. Drizzle over the remaining dressing and enjoy.

Vietnamese Chicken and Cabbage Salad

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If you are after a salad that is healthy, zingy, super tasty, fresh AND will feed a crowd, then my Vietnamese chicken and cabbage salad with a nuoc cham dressing works a treat.

Much of the salad can be prepped in advance and it is far easier to prepare than you would think if you have a magi-mix as it can do all the slicing (other than the chicken) easily and efficiently.

The three herbs that I like to use to give it a delicious freshness is mint, coriander and Thai basil (you can easily pick this up in large supermarkets these days). The addition of peanuts and fried shallots (you can have these ready made too to save time) really adds to the textures and flavours.

 

Vietnamese Chicken Salad 

Serves 8-10

1/2 white cabbage, finely chopped

1/2 red cabbage, finely chopped

7 carrots, peeled and finely grated (you can do this in the magi-mix too on the grater setting)

6 chicken breasts, skin removed

3 large handfuls of coriander, finely chopped

2 handfuls of fresh mint, finely chopped

2 handfuls of fresh Thai basil, finely chopped

2 handfuls of unsalted peanuts

2 handfuls of crispy fried shallots (to save time buy these already made)

 

Nuoc Cham Dressing

3 tbsp  fish sauce

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1-2 limes, freshly squeezed

1 heaped tbsp caster sugar

1/2 red chilli, finely chopped (keep seeds in if you want more heat)

 

  1. If you have a magi-mix place your attachment, which has the thinnest slicer, and slice the red cabbage and white cabbage. If you do not, then you need to do this by hand.
  2. Next change the attachment to the grater and grate the carrots. If you do not have this you can do this with a regular grater.
  3. Place the chicken breasts whole into a deep pan and cover with water and bring to the boil and then simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts and allow to cool and then use two forks to shred finely. Place to one side in bowl.
  4. Next finely chop the coriander, mint and Thai basil.
  5. Heat a frying pan and when it is hot add the peanuts and allow to bronze slightly – this will take around 3 -4 minutes. Keep moving around the pan so that they don’t burn. Once lightly bronzed remove and place to one side.
  6. If you are preparing the shallots from scratch – instead of bought fried shallots – simply finely slice them and then shallow fry them in sunflower or vegetable oil until bronzed. Remove from the pan and place on kitchen paper.
  7. Next you want to make the ‘nuoc cham dressing’. The trick is to add all the ingredients to a pan and warm up so that the sugar has completely dissolved. It is important to taste test so that you have a good balance of salty, sweet, zingy and sweet. If it is too salty from the fish sauce add a little more caster sugar. If you find it too chilli hot, strain the dressing and therefore remove the chillies.
  8. You can prepare all of this a day in advance and keep in the fridge (minus the shallots, which can be kept in a sealed jar). IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO ADD THE DRESSING UNTIL JUST BEFORE SERVING.
  9. When you are ready to serve add a little of the dressing to the chicken and mix in to soften and flavour the chicken.
  10. Next use a mixing bowl and add a little of every ingredient and a little of the dressing and mix well before repeating the process. Make sure you keep back some of the shallots to scatter on the top along with a little of all the herbs.
  11. Serve on a large platter so guests/family can help themselves. It also looks rather lovely presented in this way.
  12. Best eaten at room temperature.

Any leftovers will keep in the fridge easily for a few days. If you want to feed more then use the whole cabbage, add a few extra chicken breasts, add an extra handful of herbs and double up on the dressing.

 

 

 

 

Spiced Chickpea and Pineapple Salad

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As we have been treated to some bright sunny days recently I thought that it would be super helpful to share some tasty and easy ‘salads’ over the coming weeks so that you can be ready for when the sun shines and you want to throw open the back door and eat ‘al fresco’. I like interesting combinations that work and I think this one will tick that box in spades.

 

 

Spiced Chickpea and Pineapple Salad

Serves 6 

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp black mustard seeds

1 tsp chilli flakes

2 stems of curry leaves, leaves removed and finely sliced

1 large whole pineapple, skin removed and cut into small bite sized cubes

2x400g tins/jars of chickpeas, strained

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

2 limes, zest and juice

2 tbsp freshly grated coconut

generous pinch of chaat masala

handful of fresh coriander to scatter on top

 

  1. Place the fresh coconut in the freezer for 30-60 minutes before using. Reason for this is that the outer shell comes away easier if it has been placed somewhere cold. To remove the outer shell use a rolling pin and bash the shell and it will crack allowing the outer shell to be removed. It will then be far easier to grate.
  2. Prepare the pineapple into bite sized cubes and place to one side.
  3. In a large wide pan heat the oil on a medium heat and then add the black mustard seeds. They will begin to fizzle almost immediately.
  4. Add the chilli flakes and the finely sliced curry leaves. They will begin to splutter so you may need to remove it from the heat for a second.
  5. Move around the pan and then add the pineapple, chickpeas and salt and cover in the mustard seeds, curry leaves and chilli flakes.
  6. Pour into a large serving platter and sprinkle with the grated coconut, lime zest and juice and chaat masala.
  7. Before serving scatter with some fresh coriander.

 

I accompanied it with my Bang Bang Chicken Salad which you can find here.

 

 

 

 

 

Bang Bang Chicken Salad – the perfect family summer salad

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If you are after an easy chicken salad that is adored by the whole family, takes minimum fuss to throw together and is packed on flavour and texture, then look no further. Chinese inspired ‘Bang Bang chicken’ has it all and is perfect when the weather is hot and you want something light. My whole family absolutely love it.

I am a huge fan of Pip & Nut peanut, almond and cashew butters – have you tried them? I found their ‘crunchy maple peanut butter’ worked so well with the recipe. (I am not paid to say this ;o) You can find them in most supermarkets now as well as health food shops such as Holland & Barrett.

Don’t stress if you can’t get hold of any – regular crunchy peanut butter will also work well.

The only ingredient that I can imagine may receive a ‘sigh’  or ‘where can I find them’ is Sichuan peppercorns. They are now super easy to find online and I have provided a link below. They are definitely one of my store cupboard favourites as the taste is just heavenly, to put it mildly. If you really can’t be bothered with tracking them down then just use regular black peppercorns this time.

 

 

Bang Bang Chicken

Part 1

450g skinless chicken breasts, chopped in two

500ml chicken stock (fresh or Knorr chicken stock pot works well)

2 star anise

1 tsp of Sichuan peppercorns

1 tsp salt

25g fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated

 

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Part 2

1 large carrot, peeled and thickly grated

1 cucumber, sliced lengthways and then chopped into small bite size chunks

1 large handful of fresh coriander, leaves and stalks

2 limes

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Part 3

130g crunchy peanut butter – I think the best is ‘Pip & Nut and they do one which is ‘crunchy maple peanut butter’ which I like to use here

1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, finely grated

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

1 tbsp maple syrup

 

Optional

1 fresh red chilli, finely diced

 

 

  1. Place all the ingredients in ‘part 1’ into a pan and leave to simmer for 15 minutes, so that the chicken is cooked.
  2. Slice and dice all the ingredients, apart from the lime, in ‘part 2’ and place in a large mixing bowl. Squeeze 1 lime onto the salad ingredients.
  3. Once the chicken is cooked, remove from the pan and place to one side. Keep the cooking stock, but strain it and place in a small jug.
  4. Using a fork shred the chicken and then place into the large mixing bowl with the ingredients from ‘part 2’.
  5. Place all the ingredients in ‘part 3’ together and then add an additional 100ml of the cooking stock from the chicken. Gradually add to the the sauce so that it is less thick and more the consistency of cream.
  6. Add half the sauce to the mixing bowl and gently mix the ingredients together.
  7. Plate up and then add an extra spoonful of sauce over each serving as desired.
  8. Top with chilli, for those who like chilli, and place a lime quarter on each plate for added zing.

 

Freeze the rest of the stock for use another time as it tastes so good. 

Roasted Zaatar Beetroot, Goats Cheese and Quinoa Salad

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Whether you work in an office, from home, or not at all, having an enjoyable lunch gives the body both sustenance and also a boost to be productive for the rest of the day. Before the birth of my second daughter I worked for twelve years in the City (London’s financial district). Lunch times, whilst often eaten at my desk, were without doubt a highlight. Not that the work that I was doing was dull, far from it, but more that it was a nice interlude, even if it was for a very short period. Typically I would aim to seek out that latest lunch time hot spot, which seemed to sprout up in the city by the week, but occasionally I would bring in something from home. Curry’s were a no-no as the smell was too ‘in your face’ for an open plan office, so something a little more subtle needed to be created.

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Transporting food needs to be easy and fuss free. Whilst bowls of Vietnamese pho are wonderful, transporting liquid like that is certainly never going to fly if you travelling by London transport. Imaginative salads on the other hand do work well. Adding a dressing must be done when you are about to eat, otherwise everything gets a little limp and moist.

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This salad is versatile in that it can be transported for an office lunch at your desk or at home, eating on your own or in the company of a friend. I love everything about beetroot – from the vibrancy of the flesh, to the sweetness of the taste and the fact that they are fairly easy to source here in the UK. This salad requires very few ingredients – beetroot, zaatar, smooth lemony soft goats cheese, fresh mint, dry roasted pine nuts , preserved lemons and a little olive oil.

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For those who are unfamiliar with zaatar, it is the Arabic word for a wild thyme spice mix that is used in Levant cooking. Traditionally zaatar is made from a wild herb (with the same name), very similar to the thyme you find in the UK, that can be found in Lebanon.  However many of the zaatar blends that you can buy or make yourself are a mix of fresh oregano, marjoram and British thyme. My Lebanese friend has it for breakfast sprinkled on some pitta bread with some olive oil. It is very easy to get hold of either at specialist Middle Eastern shops or the large supermarkets here in the UK.

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The flavours and textures coming from all these ingredients complement each other well. Roasting beetroot takes a little time – just shy of an hour, but will last refrigerated for up to a week so you can make a batch and use them as required over the week.

Roasted Zaatar Beetroot, Goats Cheese and Quinoa Salad 

serves 2 portions

2 medium sized fresh beetroot

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2-3 tsp zaatar

120g quinoa

360ml cold water

40-60g soft goats cheese

handful of fresh mint, roughly chopped

20g pine nuts

2 slices of preserved lemons (or one small whole lemons)

salt and pepper to taste

  1. Preheat an oven to 180 degrees fan.
  2. Remove the stems close to the base of the beetroot.
  3. Wash thoroughly and then rub the beetroot in the olive oil and cover with the half the quantity of zaatar above.
  4. Place in their own individual foil parcel and then roast in the oven for up to an hour. Check at intervals to see that they are softening. If they look a little dry add a tsp of water to the parcel.
  5. Place cold water into a pan with the quinoa and gently cook for 20 minutes, by which time the water will have been absorbed and the quinoa will be soft and ready to eat. Allow to cool.
  6. Heat a pan and when it is hot add the pine nuts and move around the pan for a couple of minutes, by which time they will have bronzed slightly. Place to one side.
  7. Once the beetroots have cooked allow to cool and then chop into rough cubes.
  8. Chop the preserved lemons into even smaller cubes than the beetroot.
  9. In a large mixing bowl, add the quinoa, pine nuts, fresh mint, beetroot cubes, lemon cubes and the remaining zaatar and mix gently.
  10. Finally break the goats cheese up with your hands and combine and then serve/store in a container to take to the office.

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Indian Inspired Cucumber, Apple and Red Onion Salad

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I’ve just returned from 10 glorious days in the Schwarzwald – or German Black Forest to you and me.

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Days were spent hiking through dense forests where gentle streams turned into ferocious waterfalls.

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 We climbed many a hill and marvelled at all the spruce and pine trees peppering the landscape. Dramatic scenery at every turn.

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Picnic lunch stops afforded us spectacular vistas, stretching for miles and the best thing was that we were completely alone – over the time we were there we passed only a couple of other walkers, one of which was a nun from the local nunnery. We live in such a frenetic, fast paced world that taking time out and spending time with nature away from the crowds is wonderfully cleansing for the mind and soul.

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Upon returning to our gasthof we would often treat ourselves to the local speciality…….Black Forest Gateaux,  because when in Rome…..

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After resting our weary limbs we prepared for serious dining in the evening. The food was exquisite, refined and yet hearty – the lemongrass creme brule and the wild garlic soup being highlights.

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Upon returning back in the UK however, I was ready to have a vegetarian spell. I began to crave green vegetables (I eat a lot of spinach) and fruit with a spice injection and simple Asian food. In fact the first thing I cooked for myself when we returned to Blighty was this.

With the bambinos having just returned to school and the sun giving us a lovely, welcome dose of vitamin c – check out the blossom and blue skies

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I wanted to eat a lovely salad that I was given recently when I was in Kerala. It’s lovely on it’s own or eaten to accompany all manner of Indian, meat, fish or veg curries – see my recipe library. The crunch from all the different textures and the flavours sing sweet notes as you dive into this salad. Give it a whirl and let me know if you agree.

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Indian Inspired Cucumber, Apple and Red Onion Salad

Serves 4 with another dish or 2 on it’s own

2 crunchy green apples, cored, skin removed, quartered and chopped into 3

1 cucumber, skin removed, halved and chopped into half moons

1 red onion, finely sliced

1 handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp agave nectar/honey

  1. Skin, slice and cut the ingredients as specified above and mix altogether along with the honey and salt. Simple and utterly delicious.

This salad would also be perfect with meat, fish or vegetables off the BBQ.

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Sweet Potato, Albacore Tuna, White Bean, Avocado and Rocket Salad

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Salads in winter are a revelation. Whilst I adore and encourage wonderful winter warming stews and curries, I also love to have light salads on occasion. I crave fresh spinach and rocket and am also rather partial to consuming an avocado. This salad I literally threw together one lunch time last week and had not planned to create a blog post around it – hence the one photo I took on my iPhone quickly before devouring  the meal.

This salad I literally used up things that needed eating in my fridge and the result was heavenly. It got a number of instagram likes so thought I would share it here too. It’s more a case of assembling than anything else, but I hope I can encourage you to try it. I often tend to roast extra sweet potatoes so that I can use the leftovers in a salad a day or two later – hence the ones I used here.

Sweet Potato, Albacore Tuna, White Bean, Avocado and Rocket Salad 

serves 2

2 roasted sweet potato, cut into bite sized pieces

1 avocado, cubed

4 tbsp white beans

1/2 jar of Albacore tuna in olive oil

2 large handfuls of fresh rocket

salt and pepper, to taste

*****

Lemon and Basil Oil Dressing

juice of half a lemon

2 tbsp basil infused olive oil

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  1. Assemble all of the ingredients into a mixing bowl, gently mix and then plate up.
  2. Scatter each salad with a little basil infused olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

Enjoy.

Cold Spiced Soba and Cucumber Noodles

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When it’s HOT I like nothing more than a bowl of spiced cold noodles to cool me down. If you have only ever eaten them hot before you are going to have to trust me when I say that cold noodles are seriously good. The whole meal takes 10 minutes max to prepare, which is even better when the sun is shining and you don’t really fancy spending too long over the stove.

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The crunch of the cucumber noodles and nuts (from the crunchy peanut butter) really complement this dish and the spring onion and garlic also add delicious notes throughout the dish. The star of the dressing, in my mind, is chinkiang black rice vinegar, which is also known as Chinese black vinegar. I adore the stuff and if you love Chinese cooking it is an absolute must for your store cupboard. You can easily pick is up in any Asian food store.

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The sauce is salty, sour and sweet and mixed through the noodles it is absolutely heavenly. It’s a perfect meal to take to work as it is easily transportable and can be prepared the morning or night before and then stored in a fridge until lunch. Remember to take it out of the fridge around 30 minutes before eating so that it has reached room temperature.

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What recipes do you tend to gravitate towards in heatwaves? Shall your thoughts in the comments below.

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Cold Spiced Soba and Cucumber Noodles

When it's hot and you want to spend as little time as possible in the kitchen and eat something cooling, quick and delicious
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Servings: 2
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 85 g soba noodles
  • 1/2 cucumber, made into noodles or thinly sliced use a spiralizer if you have one. Keep the skin on or remove, your choice
  • 2 spring onions, thinly sliced at an angle
  • 1 dried chillies, halved
  • 2 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tbsp chinkiang black rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp chilli oil
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp crunchy peanut butter
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • 1 tsp black sesame seeds
  • 1 tsp salt, optional

Method
 

  1. Place the soba noodles in boiling water and boil for 5 minutes or according to the packet. Drain and run under cold water so they become completely cold. Place to one side.
  2. Mix the chinkiang black rice vinegar, light soy sauce chilli and sesame oils, grated garlic, sugar and crunchy peanut butter iin a bowl and stir to form a dressing. Taste and add salt if required.
  3. Prepare the cucumber noodles or chop the cucumber into thick sticks
  4. Heat a small pan and when it its hot add the dried chilli and allow to darken slightly in colour. I tend to keep the seeds in but remove if you want less heat.
  5. Add 1/2 tsp of chilli oil and the spring onions for a minute and then take off the heat.
  6. In a mixing bowl, add the cold soba noodles, the cucumber noodles, the dressing and the dried chilli and spring onions. Gently fold in together and place in two bowls. Sprinkle some black sesame seeds on top.

Strawberry, Black Pepper and Spinach Salad with a Red Onion Balsamic Dressing

4 Comments

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I’ve been meaning to post this glorious recipe for ages. It is seriously good and takes no time to whip together. If the truth be told I’ve been eating it all summer, but each time I forget to photograph the food until it’s too late. Today I was ready with my camera to take a few snaps before gorging on this delicious lunch.

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It’s perfect if you want to impress friends as it’s probably a flavour combination they’ve not eaten before so it will take them by surprise…..in a good way.

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It would also work really well for BBQ gatherings or as a starter for a dinner with friends. The flavour combinations of freshly ground black pepper and strawberries is a surprising winner. The dish in itself is sweet, salty and full of umami – read my article here to learn more about umami.

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If you are not able to get hold of fresh spinach, rocket also works really well.

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I originally came across a similar recipe in fellow  food blogger Heidi Swanson’s book ‘Super Natural Everyday‘, which I adore to dip into from time to time.

 

Here is my version of the recipe. Let me know how you get on by leaving a comment below. I love to hear from my readers.

 

Strawberry, Black Pepper and Spinach Salad with a Red Onion Balsamic Dressing

Serves 4

3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 small red onion or shallot, finely chopped

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

90g fresh spinach or rocket

300g fresh strawberries, hulled and finely sliced

30g slivered almonds, toasted

15g parmesan, shaved in curls

1. In a small bowl add the balsamic vinegar, red onion/shallot, salt and pepper. Leave to stand for 10 minutes before adding the oil and whisking gently together. Leave to one side.

2. Place the slivered almonds into a large frying pan to toast. They brown really quickly so do not leave the pan. Use a spatula to move the almonds around the heat to help them bronze evenly. This will not take more than a couple of minutes.

3. In a large bowl add the spinach or rocket, strawberries, slivered almonds and parmesan shavings. To make the curls I use a regular vegetable peeler.  Then add the dressing and gently toss so that the dressing is evenly distributed.

Serve immediately.

If you are preparing ahead of time do not add the dressing until your guests have arrived. The dressing can easily be made in advance.