Quick and easy is the name of the game these days, at least when it comes time to throw together a meal.  My latest fixation is based on one of my favorite dishes, but slightly tweaked to cut down on cooking and prep time.  It’s not rocket science or terribly innovative stuff, but fun, tasty, and takes about 10 minutes total to slap together.  Just think sushi, but ditch the rice and reach for some soba noodles instead.

Pick any sort of soba you’d like (pictured above are matcha-flavored noodles, thus the lovely shade of green) and tie 1 – 2 ounces together at the very end of the bundle with kitchen twine or clean crochet cotton. Toss into boiling water, and cook for 3 – 4 minutes. Meanwhile, chop up any veggies (or tofu, tempeh, even beans!) you have on hand into thin match sticks. Here, I went with carrot, cucumber, red beet, avocado, shiitake, and daikon sprouts.

Drain and lightly rinse the cooked noodles in cold water, and let dry for a minute or two. Lay out a sheet of nori on a dry, clean workspace, and carefully drape the noodles over about half of the sheet. Cut of the top of the bundle that’s become fused together, and spread the noodles as evenly as possible. Place your veggies and other fillings in the center of the noodles, and wrap the whole thing up like you would for any sushi roll. Cut into 6 pieces with a very sharp knife, and serve with soy sauce.

Even if you aren’t pressed for time, this variation makes for a nice change of pace from the standard white rice sushi!