Bite Of Minnesota: Peanut Lime Noodle Bowl
Throughout the years I've both developed my own recipes and altered already existing recipes. It's rare that I make a recipe exactly as written, and it's a fun creative outlet to play around in the kitchen and make something that tastes great.
Sure there have been some major flops like the carrot cake muffins that tasted like raw flour and didn't rise, or the curdled soup that I heated too quickly and had to toss. But overall I've been lucky to have more successes than failures in the kitchen.
Last week I was tinkering around with a peanut sauce to put on top of zucchini noodles that I cut with my brand new julienne peeler ($5 at the Asian grocery). Even as I plated everything I asked myself, "Is this even going to be good?" There were so many vegetables and I felt like it needed a tad more substance, so at the last minute I added buckwheat soba noodles for some protein and carbs.
The result? So absolutely amazing that I wished I had made enough for leftovers all week. I shared snapshots of the dish on Instagram and Twitter and now I'll share the recipe here on Bite of Minnesota. Try it; I hope you'll like it as much as I do.
Peanut Lime Zucchini Noodles with Broccoli, Soba and Kale
(serves 4)
Note: If you don't have a julienne peeler, use a regular peeler to cut zucchini into long ribbons or slice thinly into long strands
2 medium sized zucchini, julienned
2-3 handfuls of chopped kale (lacinato/dinosaur is great)
1 bunch of broccoli, cut into florets
1 bundle of buckwheat soba noodles
½ cup chopped cilantro
½ cup roasted cashews, chopped
3 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
Salt and pepper, to taste
sauce:
1-inch fresh ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes
1 lime, juice and zest
3 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp hot chile paste (to taste, if using sriracha)
2 tsp agave nectar
¼ cup olive oil
In a food processor, combine sauce ingredients and blend until combined. Adjust heat and sweetness by adding hot chile paste or agave nectar as desired.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook soba noodles according to package directions. Drain hot noodles over chopped kale in a large colander to lightly steam.
Using the same large pot and a steamer basket, steam broccoli for three minutes. Add zucchini noodles, recover, and steam for 30 seconds.
Divide soba noodles and kale among four bowls and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with peanut lime sauce. Add zucchini noodles and broccoli and drizzle with remaining sauce.
Garnish with cilantro, chopped cashews, sesame seeds, and additional chile paste if desired.
