Cold Tea Noodles

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A perfect warm-weather dish. Keep cool by cooking the noodles in tea the night before serving. The next day, assemble the short list of ingredients, and dinner is on the table.

Preparation facts

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 Tbs (15mL) Japanese Genmaicha green tea

1/2 lb (230g) Chinese water noodles or Japanese udon noodles

1 package firm tofu, well drained

1 package enoki mushrooms

1 package radish sprouts, washed and dried

1 bunch scallions, sliced into thin rounds

1 small bunch cilantro leaves

Light soy sauce, to taste

Japanese sesame oil, to taste

Shichimi togarashi (Japanese spice mixture, available at Asian markets) or freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Bring two quarts water to 180°F (85°C) and add tea. Steep for 3 minutes and pour through a sieve. Reserve liquid for cooking the noodles.

Bring the reserved tea to a boil and add noodles. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until noodles are al dente. Remove from heat and allow the noodles to remain in the liquid until it has cooled. Remove noodles from liquid and place in a bowl, covered, overnight in the refrigerator.

The next day, put tofu on a plate and cover it with several layers of paper towels. Press any excess moisture from it by placing a two-pound weight on top of the paper towels.

Remove weight and paper toweling after 15 minutes. Carefully slice the tofu into 1-inch (2.5cm) cubes and set aside.

Place noodles on four plates. Scatter tofu and remaining ingredients over all. Serve with soy sauce, sesame oil and seasoning.

Nutrition facts

Serving Size 1 serving
Calories 242
Calories from Fat 15 (6%)
% Daily Value*
3%Total Fat 2g
1%Saturated Fat 0.2g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.3g
0%Cholesterol 0mg
9%Sodium 212mg
6%Potassium 221mg
16%Total Carbohydrate 47g
12%Dietary Fiber 3.1g
Sugars 4g
Sugar Alcohols 0g
18%Protein 9g
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Nutrition facts are calculated by a food expert using nutritional values provided by the USDA for common products used as recipe ingredients. Actual nutritional values may differ depending on the amounts or products used and can be affected by cooking methods.