Shinichiro Harakawa’s Special Makanai Soba “Carrot and Tofu Soba with Vegetable Broth”
Text：Eri Ishida Photo: Ariko Inaoka
Serves four
1 spring onion
1 carrot
1 bottle of all-purpose concentrated soup stock (Usu dashi)
2 bags of dried buckwheat noodles
200g of Zaru tofu (not extra firm, ….zaru-tofu is quite soft, the fresh tofu having been drained with a colander); if zaru is not available you can substitute with kinu tofu (soft and silky tofu packaged in water).
Salt to taste
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 Yuzu lime
2 tablespoons buckwheat cooking water
2 tablespoons of Canola Oil
1) To make the vegetable broth, first separate the root and green part of the spring onion from the white part. Save the white part of spring onion for Step #3
2) Cut the base of the carrot stem. Remove the leaves from the stems and cut the stems into chunks.
3) Pour 1 liter of water into the pot with the green part of the spring onion as well as the root (the hairy end), and the carrot chunks and heat until boiling. When it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and boil for about 15 minutes. Then turn off the heat and add contents of 1 bottle of Owariya Usu dashi (the soup stock)
4) In a separate pot, boil the soba noodles in plenty of water for about 4 minutes, then blanch by draining it in a strainer and running cold water over for the noodles until they are sufficiently chilled. *Don’t forget to save two tablespoons of the boiled soba water for Step #6.
5) While the soba is boiling, make the sauce. Put the zaru (or drained kinu) tofu and pinch of salt in a bowl, puree with a blender, and add the sesame oil, mixing the contents.
6) Prepare another bowl. Finely chop 2cm of the white area of the spring onion. Add juice from the yuzu and grate the carrots. Add the 2 tablespoons of buckwheat cooking water and a few pinches of salt.7) Heat the Canola Oil in pan and fry carrot leaves until crispy. Add salt to taste.8) Warm up the soba by quickly running it under hot water, drain, and put in serving bowls. Pour in the soup stock from Step #3, topped with about 1 tablespoon of the tofu puree from Step #5, about 1 tablespoon of the carrot sauce from Step #6, the fried carrot leaves from Step #7, and finally topped off with a snippet of sliced yuzu skin peel.
