I think Japanese shrooms tend to get overlooked here in Singapore since it’s readily available all year, you can find it anywhere, and a packet is just under a dollar (if you know where to look). Most people tend to go for the meatier, more expensive field or portobello variety which I’m also obsessed with and I’m lucky to be living in Australia where these shrooms cost half the price they get sold for in Singapore. The bad? The ‘specialty’ Japanese shrooms are expensive and should be avoided when you’ve spent half your allowance on things best left hidden away from the mothership LOL. Every time I fly home I make sure I eat my fill of Japanese shrooms until I can’t stand the sight of them anymore.

I like the idea of having Japanese food for New Year’s because it makes me feel like I’m one with my people HAHAHAHA RIGHT! The Japanese have this ritual of eating certain foods during New Year’s and while I’m not entirely sure whether they actually eat soba then but what the heck let’s pretend they do! I hope you guys like this recipe, it’s simple and clean eating – what the Japanese do best.

Tsuyu is essentially the dipping sauce that comes with your soba noodles and you can get it at any supermarket with a Japanese food aisle. Muslims might have some trouble finding a bottle without mirin or sake in it so here’s a recipe I always follow. Just replace the mirin with a little white grape or apple juice and add less sugar since juice is inherently packed with fructose ;p And because we’re already eating the soba noodles with the exact same tsuyu we’ve made/bought, I’ve added a couple of twists for the tsuyu simmering sauce so everything doesn’t end up tasting the same

Tsuyu Simmered Shimeji Mushrooms with Cha Soba

Ingredients
Chilled tsuyu
Cha soba (or normal soba if you prefer)
1 packet shimeji mushrooms (enoki works great too!)
A squeeze of lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Shredded seaweed

1. Cook the soba according to the instructions on the packet. Drain the pot when done and if you like your soba chilled, plunge the soba in ice cold water. Drain again and put it in the fridge until ready to eat.

2. Pour some tsuyu into a pot and throw in some shredded seaweed, lime juice and soy sauce.

3. When the tsuyu reaches a light boil, it’s time to dump in your shrooms!

4. Let it simmer for about 5-10 minutes or until all the shrooms are cooked.

5. Drain the mushrooms but don’t throw away the simmering sauce! You can pour it in a bottle, chill it and voila – dipping sauce for your next soba meal!

6. Get your soba out of the fridge, pile your shrooms on the noodles, garnish with more seaweed and roasted sesame seeds! Pour the rest of your chilled tsuyu in a small bowl and you’re all set! ME GUSTAAAAAAA

Happy 2012, everyone! Thank you for reading this tiny speck of space on the web, it means so much to me! I was thinking of changing my layout but I remembered how torturous it was for me to recreate all my graphics last year so I’m scrapping that idea LOL. I did, however, change the typefaces for my entry titles and headings so everything looks more streamlined now – that counts right? 8D I also just renewed my web hosting for another 3 years so I guess tea noir’s not going anywhere. Here’s to a beautiful and fulfilling year for everyone!

Share this: