Cold Soba with Edamame & Sesame

📝 Ingredients

• 180 g dried soba (buckwheat noodles)
• 200 g frozen shelled edamame
• 2 eggs
• 1 small cucumber (about 250 g)
• 1 carrot
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp sesame paste (tahini)
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds

🍴 Utensils

• Large saucepan
• Small saucepan
• Colander
• Peeler
• Mixing bowl
• Bowl and whisk

📖 Steps

1. Bring the small pan of water to the boil, gently lower in the eggs and cook for 7 minutes for a yolk that is just set and still soft. Cool them under cold water, then peel and halve them.
2. Make the sauce in a bowl: whisk together the sesame paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey and sesame oil, then loosen with 2 to 3 tbsp cold water until you have a smooth sauce that coats the back of a spoon, like pouring cream.
3. Peel the carrot and shave it into thin ribbons with a vegetable peeler. Halve the cucumber lengthways, scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon, then slice it into thin half-moons.
4. Bring the large pan of water to the boil, without salt (soba often already contain some). Add the frozen edamame for 3 minutes, then add the soba and cook according to the packet, usually 4 to 5 minutes, stirring at the start so they don't stick.
5. Drain the soba and edamame in the colander, then rinse them well under very cold water, rubbing them gently between your hands: this removes the starch and stops them going sticky. Drain thoroughly.
6. In the salad bowl, toss the soba and edamame with three quarters of the sauce, then add the carrot and cucumber. Divide between two bowls, top with the egg halves, drizzle over the rest of the sauce and sprinkle with spring onions and sesame seeds.