Name: Piri Kara Soba
Yield: Serves 2
Ingredients: 200 g (7 oz.) ﬁrm tofu; 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil; 1 tsp. peeled and very ﬁnely chopped fresh ginger; 2 Tbsp. soy sauce; 2 Tbsp. mirin; 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil; 2 garlic cloves, peeled and ﬁnely chopped; 2 spring onions/scallions, whites only, ﬁnely chopped; 3⅓ cups Vegetarian Dashi; 160 g (5½ oz.) dried soba (buckwheat) noodles; 3 Tbsp. red miso; 1 Tbsp. gochujang; 2 Tbsp. dried wakame seaweed, soaked in water to reconstitute, then drained; 1 Tbsp. toasted mixed black and white sesame seeds; Dried red chile/chile strips; 1 spring onion/scallion, thinly sliced

Spicy miso soba noodle soup with ginger teriyaki tofu in a bowl with chopsticks.

Photo by Yuki Sugiura

Piri kara soba is healthful and quick to prepare, plus, it's full of punchy ﬂavors. It's the perfect no-fuss meal for hungry people. Japanese cuisine tends to be mild on the whole, but this dish has a real kick to it. The earthiness of the soba noodles mixed with the chile will lift your spirits and boost your energy on a cold day.

This recipe was excerpted from 'Atsuko's Japanese Kitchen' by Atsuko Ikeda. Buy the full book on Amazon. Get more of our favorite Japanese soup recipes →

What you’ll need

Recipe information

Yield
Serves 2

Ingredients

For the ginger teriyaki tofu

200 g (7 oz.) ﬁrm tofu

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. peeled and very ﬁnely chopped fresh ginger

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 Tbsp. mirin

For the noodle soup

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and ﬁnely chopped

2 spring onions/scallions, whites only, ﬁnely chopped

3⅓ cups Vegetarian Dashi

160 g (5½ oz.) dried soba (buckwheat) noodles

3 Tbsp. red miso

1 Tbsp. gochujang

To serve, optional

2 Tbsp. dried wakame seaweed, soaked in water to reconstitute, then drained

1 Tbsp. toasted mixed black and white sesame seeds

Dried red chile/chile strips

1 spring onion/scallion, thinly sliced

Preparation

Step 1
For the ginger teriyaki tofu, wrap the tofu in plenty of paper towels and compress under a heavy kitchen utensil for 30 minutes to remove excess water.
Step 2
Dice the tofu into cubes. In a medium frying pan/skillet, heat the vegetable oil over a medium heat and fry the tofu until browned on all sides. Add the ginger and stir in. Add the soy sauce and mirin and fry for 2 minutes until the tofu becomes caramelized. Set aside.
Step 3
For the noodle soup, put the vegetable oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the garlic and spring onions/scallions and fry for 1 minute to infuse some ﬂavor into the oil.
Step 4
Add the dashi and bring to the boil. Once boiling, turn down the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Step 5
Meanwhile, cook the dried soba noodles in a separate pan of boiling water following the packet instructions. Drain well and divide between serving bowls.
Step 6
Combine the red miso and gochujang in a cup and stir in a ladleful of the dashi until dissolved. Add the miso mixture back into the saucepan with the soup and stir well to combine. Heat through for another minute, if needed, before serving.
Step 7
Pour the hot miso soup over the cooked soba noodles in the serving bowls, then top with the ginger teriyaki tofu, wakame, sesame seeds, dried chile/chile strips and spring onion/scallion, if desired.