Gluten-Free Bottarga Soba with Samphire (Karasumi Soba)
This is a very simple yet nutritious dish that I love to have when I feel like having carbs.
Soba and Bottarga is a common combination in Japanese recipes and they do go very well together.
I love this dish for a few reasons:
1. Simple and quick! (10min max?)
2. It's Gluten-Free
3. Packed with minerals (Samphire!!)
4. The good fats from Bottarga (It's fish roe!)
Gluten-free plays a crucial role in my diet. Not only does gluten cause inflammation, it is also very addictive. (It is hard to get yourself off gluten right?)
It might be a little challenging initially, however, If you can remove gluten (wheat protein) and casein (protein in dairy) from your diet, inflammation in your body will go down drastically.
For instance, if you are feeling bloated, tired, low metabolism (gaining weight) or even having a constant brain fog, try removing these items from your diet. Trust me, you will be seeing a huge improvement in your body.
One important thing when it comes to choosing your soba noodles is- make sure it's 100% buckwheat. MOST SOBA NOODLES HAVE WHEAT in it, hence making them NOT GLUTEN-FREE.
One rather exotic ingredient we will be using in this recipe is samphire.
Samphire is like a cactus without the thorns. It grows on the shores and stores the salty water in its stems. And guess what... IT TASTES SALTY!
It is a rich source of vitamins A, B and C and minerals like magnesium, potassium, calcium, and sodium. It is also known as an anti-inflammatory herb while it contains a rare compound, fucoidan (often found in sea vegetables BTW, mozuku has a lot of fucoidan too! )
Bottarga is another amazing powerhouse of nutrients.
Bottarga is a preserved mullet roe and as you know, fish roes are very rich in Omega 3, therefore, rich in good cholesterol. (Great Brain food guys!!)
However, Bottarga is preserved with salt. So make sure you are careful with the amount of salt you plan to add on to your recipes.
As you can see, I didn't add any salt to this recipe as there's enough savouriness from the samphire and bottarga.
Enjoy this simple, tasty and nutritious dish!!
Gluten-Free Bottarga Soba with Samphire (Karasumi Soba)
(One serve)
Ingredients
100g, 100% Buckwheat Soba Noodles
50g, Bottarga, sliced
3 cloves, Garlic, peeled and sliced
Pinch of Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1 Tbsp., Sunflower Frying Oil
150g, Samphire
Instructions
- Soak the samphire in water for 15 minutes and rinse off for a few times. This vegetable is VERY salty! DO NOT ADD ANY SALT to the recipe as there is already enough salt to taste!
- Slice about 6 to 8 slices of bottarga. Peel the wax and the thin layer of the skin off the rows and toast the bottarga on a frying pan with no oil.
- To prepare the noodle, put 100g of the soba noodle in a pot of boiling water and boil it for 5 minutes. When ready, keep 1/4 cup of the soba water form the pot and set that aside, this will be used to cook the Samphire. Drain the rest of the water and rinse off the soba noodles with cold water. Then, drain off the water and set aside.
- In the meanwhile, time to prepare the samphire. Stir-fry the sliced garlic and black pepper in a frying pan. When the flavors come out, add the samphire and mix the ingredients well.
- When the samphire is coated with oil, add the 1/4 cup of soba water that was set aside from boiling the soba noodles. Cook the samphire till the sauce thickens. Break in one of the bottarga here so the flavor infuses into the sauce.
- When the samphire is ready, place it at the bottom of the serving dish.
Add the boiled and rinsed soba noodles on top of the samphire layer.
- Lastly, top the dish with the toasted bottarga and serve! Mix the noodles and the samphire well when eating.
Enjoy!
Tableware used:
Hana Craft Handmade Amber Candy Glaze Ceramic Bowl - 6" inch
Hana Craft Handmade Amber Candy Glaze Ceramic Plate - 7" inch
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