Soba, Cucumber and Mango Make Friends with Some Tasty Tofu

Tofu and soba – they go together like "rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong"  

Today's was the post that nearly wasn't. I was planning to do a soba noodle salad but the details of it were yet to come together, particularly what to serve with it. I thought about salmon and trout and scallops. All good options, but things I cook all the time. I wanted to do something a little different. Because I have a baby in tow, I've fallen into a routine of cooking and photographing for the blog a day ahead of time, and I've usually researched and shopped for the recipe at least a couple of days in advance. Not so yesterday. Yesterday, the idea of what to make and how to round out the recipe popped into my head while on a stroll with my little guy, who was refusing to take his morning nap. I thought the fresh (read: frigid) air would help. It did. He conked out, and I end up getting a coffee and hitting the mall. Somewhere between Baby Gap and Old Navy the idea of marinated tofu came to mind. It was the perfect accompaniment. Then I was wondering how to freshen up the soba noodles, and decided on mango and cucumber. Cilantro would be nice. Maybe edamame. Definitely ginger. On the way home, I stopped to pick up what I needed, but Rory was awake and in no mood to spend one more minute out, and certainly not content to hang out at the grocery store. I dashed around managing to remember about half of my mental list. When I got home, I realized I bought the wrong tofu, medium instead of firm. Okay, not a disaster, but I wasn't sure if it would work. 

Then this happened...

Splat! Tofu hits the deck. I can laugh about it now.

And I cursed just a tiny bit. Super-important cooking tip here: actually seal the resealable plastic bag, especially if you plan to turn it upside down. (Also, why are messes such a magnet for cats and babies?) I thought about scrapping the lot. But that seemed a little overly dramatic. While that tofu ended up in the garbage, thankfully, I had just enough left to make this:

Marinated & Baked Tofu

And after that rambling preamble, here's what I have to say about it. It was tasty. Even though I didn't have the right tofu, it held together. I couldn't marinate it for long enough because I was on a tight let's-get-this-thing-done-before-the-baby-wakes-up schedule (nap number two), but it was enough to impart flavour. So I share this recipe with the caveat that I didn't do it perfectly. This recipe is decidedly not triple tested. So what you see here is a little pale, not as imbued with marinade or as golden as it should be. Yours will be better. As for soba or buckwheat noodles, well that was the easy part. They cook quickly and have lots of nutty flavour. Had I remembered my whole list, I would have probably added some cilantro and maybe edamame, but maybe not. Maybe simpler is better. I played with the dressing until it was a good balance of salty, sour and sweet. I find different tamari/soy sauces and miso pastes have different salt levels, so you may need to adjust based on your brand. If you don't have mirin, which is sweet, you can add a touch more sweetness, maybe a bit more vinegar. A quick tip, the tamari/soy sauce in the dressing will darken the mango and cucumber and dull their bright flavours, so this is an eat-right-away versus do-ahead; although the dressing, of course, is made ahead in order to marinate the tofu.

So please accept today's harried and humble offering. I can attest that it makes for a very good, long-overdue lunch eaten standing up by the kitchen sink, but I imagine it will also hold up to somewhat more noble circumstances should you deem it worthy.

Soba Noodle, Cucumber & Mango Salad with Marinated Tofu 

Prep Time: 10 min. | Total Time: 50 min., plus marinade time | Serves: 4

Dressing
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp tamari or light soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp mirin 
1 tbsp agave syrup or 3/4 tbsp honey
2 tsp miso paste
2 tsp grated ginger 
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, divided
1tsp seeded and finely chopped red finger chili

Tofu
1 pkg firm or extra firm tofu, drained and cut into cubes

Salad
1 mango, peeled and julienned
1/2 English cucumber, julienned 
1 pkg/200 g soba noodles 
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Whisk together ingredients for the dressing, using half the green onions and half the chili, setting aside remaining for later use. Place half the dressing in resealable plastic bag with tofu cubes, seal and place in the refrigerator. Allow to marinate for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Reserve remaining dressing, refrigerating until needed.

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place tofu in a sieve and drain excess marinade. Place tofu on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake for approx. 40 to 45 min. until golden, turning every 10 to 15 min.

Meanwhile, cook soba noodles in salted boiling water for approx. 5 min. until al dente. Drain and place in a bowl filled with ice water to stop the cooking process and cool. Drain and place in a large bowl. Add mango, cucumber, reserved green onion and chili and sesame seeds. Toss with reserved dressing. Serve soba salad with tofu, on the side or on top.