Cold zaru soba with mentsuyu

Method

1. 01

   Make and chill the mentsuyu

   Wipe the 8 g kombu and soak it in 300 ml cold water for 20 minutes. This water becomes the base of the dipping sauce, not the soba cooking water. Boil 60 ml sake and 60 ml mirin for 2 minutes. Add the kombu water and 120 ml soy sauce, heat until steaming but not hard-boiling, then steep 12 g katsuobushi for 5 minutes and strain. Cool the sauce completely.

   

2. 02

   Boil plenty of water

   Bring the full 4 L unsalted soba water to a rolling boil in a wide pot. The large volume prevents the temperature from collapsing when the noodles enter.

   

3. 03

   Cook the soba

   Fan 320 g dried soba into the boiling water and stir once to separate it. Cook for 4–5 minutes, or follow the package if different, until the noodles are fully tender with a slight chew rather than hard or mushy.

   

4. 04

   Rinse, chill, and drain

   Drain the cooked soba immediately in a colander. Rinse under the 2 L cold water while gently rubbing the strands until the surface starch is gone and the water runs mostly clear. Transfer the rinsed noodles to 1 L ice water for 30 seconds, then drain very well. Shake the colander so no water dilutes the separate dipping sauce.

   

5. 05

   Prepare the visible condiments

   Cut the two nori sheets into fine shreds, slice the 40 g scallions, and divide the 20 g wasabi into small portions. Keep every condiment separate from the cold soba until serving.

   

6. 06

   Plate and dip to serve

   Pile the cold soba on a bamboo zaru and top with the shredded nori. Serve the cooled mentsuyu in a separate cup with sliced scallion and a small portion of wasabi; dip each bite briefly instead of pouring sauce over the noodles.