Garlic & Cashew Noodle Salad

Spring is here! Soon I’ll be overdosing on asparagus and peas and all those spring vegetables that I’ve been missing for months. It’s finally starting to warm up. And warm weather means salads. Green salads, vegetable salads, grain salads and, my favorite, cold noodle salads.

This particular salad is something I could eat every week. The noodles are slick with sesame oil, soy sauce and rice vinegar – toasty and tangy. Baby bok choy is sauteed with garlic, cashews and tofu (chicken or steak if you prefer). Everything is tossed together with fresh garlic chives and mint leaves. It’s a delightfully refreshing salad that you can eat again and again. It just tastes like warm weather and sunshine to me. Hello, Spring!

Garlic & Cashew Noodle Salad

For the dressing:
1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
3 tbsp. shoyu (or soy sauce)
3 tbsp. brown rice vinegar (or unseasoned rice vinegar)
1 bunch garlic chives (or regular chives)
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

8 oz. soba noodles
1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
2 baby bok choy – washed, stems removed and roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, slivered or minced
8 oz. super firm tofu, cubed (or cooked chicken breast or steak)
1/2 cup halved cashews

Whisk together the sesame oil, shoyu and rice vinegar in a bowl, then stir in the garlic chives and mint leaves. Set aside.

Cook the soba noodles until just al dente, then remove to a colander. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, then drain thoroughly. Set aside.

Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once it’s hot, heat the tablespoon of sesame oil, then saute the bok choy and garlic until the garlic just begins to turn golden. Add the tofu and cashews and continue to cook for an additional 5 – 8 minutes or until the tofu begins to brown a bit. Use a spatula to keep moving everything around the skillet so that the tofu doesn’t stick.

Toss the noodles with the dressing and contents of the skillet.

Makes 4 servings.