The Cascade Kitchen is a student-run food column that brings you budget-friendly recipes and cooking tips. Check back weekly for something new to try in the kitchen, or if you want to see your own recipe featured next, get started by reaching out to culture@ufvcascade.ca.
This spring has turned unseasonably warm, and when I’m languishing in the heat, I want something cold, crisp, light, and acidic — in other words, this recipe. Not only is it delicious, it’s so cheap and easy that it’s perfect for rent week, clearing out the fridge, or one of the 500 socially-distanced picnics you have planned with your friends.
Adapted from Bon Appétit, this is really a create-your-own-adventure dish with a dressing made mostly from pantry staples. Commenters on the original recipe complain that it’s overly acidic, and I agree, so I’ve balanced the flavours by switching sesame seeds out for everything bagel seasoning, which introduces umami garlic and onion flavours, and adjusting the ratio of olive oil to sesame oil. I’m also taking out the soy sauce, because I find it overpowering and too salty, and providing you with an example set of veggies that go well together, and are commonplace and cheap.
You could fancy up this recipe by choosing special noodles, like buckwheat soba or squid ink ramen, or add protein by marinating tofu in the dressing ahead of time. If you are making it ahead, like for a picnic, bring the dressing separately and add it just before you eat, since delicate greens like cilantro will wilt in the vinegar, and the noodles could get mushy. I find that this recipe leaves a lot of leftover dressing, so you could easily stretch it for a crowd with extra noodles and veg.
Prep Time: 20 min
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
1 packet dry ramen noodles (save the seasoning to double up on your next bowl of soup)
Vegetables, example:
1 cucumber
1 large carrot
A handful of snap peas
A handful of cherry tomatoes
A handful of cilantro
Dressing:
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar or 1/4 cup regular rice vinegar with 4 tsps sugar and 1/2 tsp kosher salt dissolved in it
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp everything bagel seasoning
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
Method:
- Bring your kettle to a boil and pour the water over your ramen noodles in a medium bowl. Let them cook until al dente — about five minutes — then strain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a large bowl, adjusting to taste.
- Cut your veggies. I like to use a Y-peeler to pull thin planks off the cucumber and the carrot. You can go all the way through the cucumber, but I like to work around the watery middle part, rotating my cuke. Cut your snap peas in half at an angle, quarter your cherry tomatoes, and roughly chop your cilantro, including the stems.
- Add noodles and veggies to your sauce bowl and toss.
- Enjoy!
Image: Mikaela Collins/The Cascade
