Hello! This time I would like to show you how to make soba noodles, a familiar dish in Japan, but we’ll be making soba noodles for those of you that are gluten-free. In Japan, Soba, buckwheat noodles, are made from a mixture of at least 30% buckwheat flour and 70% wheat flour but for this recipe I use 100% buckwheat flour or buckwheat flour and gluten-free flour.
Making soba is a very delicate job and success will depend on controlling the environmental conditions.
What do you need for soba noodles
Buckwheat flour
Gluten free flour
Water
What do you need for soba soup
Dashi stock (if you are vegan use Kombu dashi or shiitake mushroom dashi powder)
Sake
Soy sauce
Sugar
What tools you’ll need
Rolling pin
A big, wide bowl
Flat board
Dough cutter. You can get a special soba one but I use a regular rectangular one (it works fine!)
Knife for soba, if you don’t have one use a regular knife.
Tip for making soba noodle
When making soba noodles, it is easier to make soba noodles with a mix of gluten-free flour than with 100% buckwheat flour.
How much water you need to add to buckwheat flour is not constant throughout the year. It needs to be adjusted slightly depending on the season and the environment at the time of making the soba. My recipe says 80-85ml but don’t just add all the water at once.
If you are concerned, add water in several stages (first 1/2 of the total volume, then the remaining 1/2, fine-tuning as needed to gradually find the optimum amount of water required.
The method of boiling is also important. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Sift off the batter and add the buckwheat noodles, breaking them up as you go. Once the water boils, adjust the heat so that the noodles swim by themselves.
Let them rise to your liking (1 to 2 minutes). Cool the soba in cold water at once, and then fir fry the soba to remove the rough heat and sliminess. Plunging the noodles into ice water will tighten them and give them a firm texture.
2 types soba noodles
Equipment
- 1 Rolling Pin
- 1 Dough cutter
Ingredients
With gluten free flour
- 105 g Gluten free flour
- 45 g Buckwheat flour
- 80-85 ml Filtered water Cold
- Starch For dust
For 100% buckwheat flour
- 150 g Buckwheat flour
- 80-85 ml Filtered water cold
- Starch For dust
For soba soup
- 400 ml Filtered water
- 3 g Dashi powder Kombu or mushroom dashi powder
- 1 tbsp Sake
- 1.5 tbsp Soy sauce
- 1.5 tsp Sugar
For cooking soba noodles
- Boiling water
- Soba noodles
Instructions
For gluten free flour and buckwheat flour
- Sift the buckwheat and flour together mixing well. Add 1/2 of the water and mix using your hands. Move your hands in a spiral motion, stirring the flour.
- When the mixture is evenly distributed, add the remaining water, stirring well, 2 to 3 times. As the water permeates the powder, the colour of the powder will gradually change.
- Remove the powder from your fingers. If left in place, the powder will dry and then become mixed in, causing it to break off.
- If there is not enough water, catch water in your hand and add to the mix. Continue mixing, being careful not to add too much. Gradually, the flour will form dough. When enough water is added the dough will hold together. When the powder disappears from the surface of the dough, you’re good to go.
- Knead the dough into a single ball. Knead well so that the flour is evenly distributed.
- The dough becomes smooth, and the surface becomes shiny. Continue kneading until the dough has no more cracks and the surface is smooth.
- While pushing out the air inside, rotate the balls along the edge of the bowl to form a conical shape.
- Place the tip of the cone down and press it flat with both hands.
- Sprinkle flour on a table.
- Place the dough on top. Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough and press down with your hands to flatten
- Next, using a rolling pin, roll the dough from the front of the centre of the dough forward.
- Repeat rolling several times while rotating the dough to form a circle. Stop at the front so as not to crush the edges. It should be about 7 mm thick at this stage.
- Make a rectangle while stretching with the rolling pin until 1mm thick.
- Sprinkle more flour to prevent the dough from sticking together and fold carefully.
- Use a cooking cutter to cut while adjusting the thickness to your liking.
- After cutting, break off the pieces by hand to prevent them from sticking together and place them in a box or airtight container. Please eat it as soon as possible, as it will deteriorate over time and become ragged.
For 100%buckwheat flour
- Sift the buckwheat flour and stir well.
- Add 80ml of water and mix using your hands. Move your hands in a spiral motion, stirring the flour. Mix from outside to inside.
- Do not try to put it all together at once but build the ball gradually.
- When the dough becomes somewhat shredded, gather it up in one piece and force the air out while kneading.
- Firm kneading will give the noodles a strong hold.
- Do not knead too much or it will not hold together.
- Make flat and cut uniformly.
For soba soup for 2 people
- Pour the 400ml of water into a pot and turn heat mid.
- Add dashi powder, sake, soy sauce, sugar into the pot and boil.
For cooking soba for 2 people
- Boiling water in a big pot.
- Add the soba and cook for 1min 30 seconds.
- Pour the soba into a strainer, rinse with cold water, then put into bowls.
- Pour in the soba soup and add shallots.
Video
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YouTube Channel Grazing Wombat Channel
