Organic Recipe Friday: Butternut Squash & Soba

Winter Squash: Take Three

Apparently, acclaimed cookbook author Martha Rose Shulman and I are on the same wavelength. In November, she too acquired several winter squash and has been cooking them in a variety of ways. You know what they say about great minds.

When it came time for me to devour my two little butternut squash this week, I knew I wanted to avoid the obvious but delicious soup option. I wanted to combine them with some tatsoi I got in a bonus CSA delivery and some ginger I had just gotten at the farmers’ market, but I wasn’t sure where this was headed. I looked at the New York Times’ invaluable online Recipes for Health for inspiration, and immediately seized on Shulman’s recent recipe and made just a few tweaks, including the addition of tatsoi and omission of sesame seeds.

Just a note about peeling butternut squash: I peeled my squash with a vegetable peeler before slicing them in half. Only then did I remember that I needed to get rid of everything surrounding the beautiful orange flesh, so I proceeded to slice off a tough layer with a knife. The rest of the preparations were a breeze.

Butternut Squash With Soba

Serves 5

• 8 ounces tofu (firm works best but I used soft and enjoyed it)
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 small or 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced (about 4 cups)
• 1 tablespoon mirin
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce to taste
• 1 small bunch tatsoi, chopped
• 1/2 pound buckwheat noodles (soba)
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

Cut tofu in 3/4-inch slices and wrap in a clean kitchen towel. Set aside for 10 minutes. Chop into 3/4-inch cubes.

Heat a tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick wok over medium flame, and stir-fry the tofu until lightly colored, about three minutes. If you’re using soft tofu, cook a few more minutes. Remove from the wok and set aside. Add the second tablespoon of oil and cook onion until it softens, six to eight minutes. Add the squash and cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes. You should be able to pierce butternut pieces with a fork but they shouldn’t be mushy. Add the garlic and ginger, and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add tatsoi, mirin and soy sauce. Cook for just a couple of minutes.

Bring four quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the soba noodles and stir a couple of times to prevent sticking. Cook for about six minutes. Soba should be tender but not soft. Drain and toss with the sesame oil to reduce chances of sticking.

Serve soba topped with squash mixture.

Photo Credit: Flickr CC User (and author) bornOKthefirsttime