Perfect Picnic Dinner | Soba Noodle Salad

Every spring I make a salad like this at least once a week. We have three kids on three different baseball teams that each play at least two games a week - sometimes three games a week! It means we don’t eat dinner at home all spring. If we do eat dinner at home, it’s at 4:30pm or at 9pm. None of those options seem great.

A few year ago I started packing a picnic basket with dinner for the family. My Ultimate BLT sandwiches came out of that era - and now another option. We stopped eating bread a few years ago and it can make picnicking really challenging. Most picnic food is sandwiches (because that’s what’s easy) or it’s a “light salad” that doesn’t really hit the spot.

This last year I focused in on creating something that was filling, full of protein, and had enough vegetables to count as “full of vegetables.” This salad has been the perfect solution. I usually make it with the soba noodles but you can swap out rice noodles or just spaghetti if that’s what you have on hand.

SOBA NOODLE SALAD

serves 4

STEP 1

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the soba noodles according to package instructions

STEP 2

Chop the cilantro and green onions and shred the carrot.

STEP 3

Drain the noodles – saving some of the water - and reserve them in the strainer.

In the hot pan, combine the tahini, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, sriracha, and ¼ cup of pasta water.  Whisk the sauce then toss the noodles into the pan.  If they appear dry, add more pasta water.

STEP 4

Add the vegetables, bean sprouts, and shredded chicken (or tofu) and serve immediately.  

2 bundles soba noodles

¼ cup tahini

2 tbs soy sauce

2 tbs rice vinegar

2 cloves garlic, grated

1 tbs fresh ginger, grated

½ tsp sriracha

1 carrot, shredded

3 green onions, greens & whites chopped

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

1 cup bean sprouts

2 cups shredded chicken