Author Notes
When I was in college, I spent a lot of time at a place called the Book Mill. It's a used bookstore housed in an old gristmill, with dark musty corners and vintage armchairs everywhere. The attached cafe served wonderful lunches--fruit and cheese boards, peanut-ginger udon noodles, grilled cheese sandwiches. My friends and would order lunch, claim one of the big black tables near the windows, and work on our schoolwork while the river splashed by underneath us. This is my attempt to turn a recipe from The Kitchn into one of my favorite Book Mill lunch dishes--the peanut-ginger udon noodles. It's not quite the same, of course, but it's still delicious. —ieatthepeach
Ingredients
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1
small head of broccoli, cut into florets
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1 pound
(16 oz) frozen udon noodles
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2 tablespoons
natural peanut butter
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2 tablespoons
unseasoned rice vinegar
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2 tablespoons
toasted sesame oil
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2 tablespoons
soy sauce
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1 tablespoon
brown sugar
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1-inch piece of ginger, finely grated
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1
small carrot, shredded
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2
scallions, thinly sliced
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Salt to taste
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Toasted sesame seeds for sprinkling
Directions
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Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the broccoli florets and blanch for 1 minute, or until bright green and just barely tender. Remove from the pot with a skimmer or slotted spoon, leaving the blanching water behind. Lay the florets out in a single layer on a clean towel to dry. Set aside.
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Return the water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook for 1 minute, or until just tender. Drain the noodles, then rinse them gently under cold running water until the water runs clear. Pat or shake the noodles dry, and set aside.
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In a large mixing bowl, whisk together peanut butter, rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, and ginger. Add broccoli, noodles, carrots and scallions, and toss to coat everything with the dressing. Taste and adjust the salt as needed (you probably won’t need any, since the peanut butter and soy sauce are already plenty salty).
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Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds, and serve at room temperature. Leftovers are also great cold, straight from the fridge; they'll keep, tightly covered, for up to 3 days.
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