While any noodle or pasta can be the basis of an excellent, quick weeknight meal, earthy soba noodles are some of my favorites. They cook in five minutes or less and taste best tossed with no-cook dressings and sauces.
This time of year, I like to top soba with tender, lightly charred roasted eggplant. I coat the eggplant (I prefer slender Japanese eggplants, but a globe eggplant, cut into thin wedges, also works) with an umami-rich mixture of soy sauce, mirin and vegetable oil, which does double-duty as the soba sauce. From there, I roast the sauced eggplant in a two-stage process under the broiler — first under low heat to tenderize, and then under high heat to finish cooking and caramelize the surface.
You can boil the soba while the eggplant cooks. Take note of the ingredients before you add the noodles; pure buckwheat soba cooks very quickly and is quite delicate, while soba that includes wheat flour and other ingredients, such as sweet potato, will take an extra minute or two to turn tender. Either way, make sure to rinse the noodles under cool water to stop the cooking process and prevent the soba from turning mushy.
Finish the dish with lime zest and juice. They brings brightness and acidity to counter the sweet, salty notes of the sauce.
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