pot·luck:
1: the regular meal available to a guest for whom no special preparations have been made; 2: a communal meal to which people bring food to share—usually used attributively, ie, a potluck supper
Around my office, the potluck is king … and folks are always looking at me to bring something tasty. For a recent potluck, I whipped up a cold oriental noodle salad, and I thought I would share the recipe with you.
Kimberly’s Oriental Noodle Salad
Ingredients:
15 ounces dried soba noodles
1 1/2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup soy sauce
Juice from one lime
Zest of one lime
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes or to taste
1 medium carrot, sliced into long, thin ribbons
1 medium cucumber, sliced into long, thin ribbons
Sesame seeds to top
Directions:
In a large pot, cook soba noodles according to package directions. Once cooked, drain and rinse noodles with cold water then set aside. In a large bowl, combine the sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and lime juice, then mix in the lime zest, brown sugar, garlic, and red pepper flakes and stir until the sugar dissolves. Ad the carrot and cucumber ribbons to the dressing then add the noodles. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour. Toss salad before serving and if dry, splash with additional soy sauce and rice vinegar. Serve cold with assorted sesame seeds on the side.
I am a huge fan of the sesame seed … regular sesame seeds, black sesame seeds, and the flavored ones; in my pantry right now, I have a jar of each of Roland’s flavored sesame seeds (Bamboo Charcoal, Garlic, Plum, Soy Sauce, and Wasabi).
Bring this salad to your next potluck along with a few varieties of sesame seeds for a fun dish your friends or colleagues can customize!
