Zaru soba
Chilled buckwheat noodles with homemade mentsuyu, shredded nori, grated daikon and a dab of wasabi — refreshing, fast and genuinely addictive.
Zaru soba is simple Japanese comfort: chilled buckwheat noodles dunked into a salty-sweet dashi-based sauce. It’s brilliant for hot evenings, or when you want something that feels light but still properly satisfying.
The trick is clean flavours and fast chilling so the noodles keep a firm bite. Make your own quick mentsuyu here — it lifts shop-bought noodles into proper restaurant territory without fuss.
Ingredients
- 320 g soba noodles
- 750 ml cold water — for making dashi
- 10 g kombu — one 10 cm piece
- 15 g bonito flakes
- 500 ml dashi — made from kombu and bonito in step 1
- 60 ml light soy sauce
- 45 ml mirin
- 5 g caster sugar
- 2 l extra water — for boiling noodles
- 6 ice cubes
- 2 spring onions — trimmed and finely sliced
- 2 nori sheets — to shred over the noodles
- 150 g daikon — peeled and grated
- 10 g wasabi paste — for serving
- 10 g toasted sesame seeds — optional, for sprinkling
Equipment
- fine sieve or muslin
- box grater
- large saucepan
Instructions
Put the kombu into a saucepan with the cold water and leave to soak for 30 minutes.
Place the saucepan over a medium heat and warm until tiny bubbles appear at the edge (just below simmer). Remove the kombu, add the bonito flakes, bring to a very gentle simmer for 30 seconds, then remove from the heat and leave the flakes to steep for 5 minutes.
Strain the liquid through a fine sieve or muslin into a jug and set the clear dashi aside.
Measure 200 ml of the dashi into a small saucepan. Add the light soy sauce, mirin and caster sugar, warm gently and simmer for 60 seconds until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and leave to cool — this is your mentsuyu dipping sauce.
Bring the extra water to a rolling boil in a large saucepan. Add the soba noodles and cook uncovered, stirring gently, for 3–4 minutes or according to the packet instructions until just tender.
Drain the noodles in a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold running water until the surface starch is gone and the water runs clear. Transfer the noodles to a bowl of iced water with the ice cubes and toss gently for 30 seconds to chill.
Divide the chilled noodles between four serving plates or a zaru, shred the nori and scatter over the top, add a pinch of sliced spring onion and a spoonful of grated daikon. Serve each portion with a small bowl of the mentsuyu and a dab of wasabi; sprinkle sesame seeds if using.
Tips
- If you’re short on time, cool the mentsuyu quickly by sitting the saucepan in an iced-water bath rather than waiting for it to chill in the fridge.
- Rinse the noodles until the water runs clear — skipping this step leaves a starchy film that ruins the texture and the dipping experience.
- Grate the daikon finely and squeeze out excess liquid if it’s very wet; too-wet daikon will dilute the mentsuyu when mixed.
- Make extra mentsuyu and keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days — some prefer it stronger; dilute with cold dashi or water to taste.
- Use a zaru (bamboo draining tray) if you have one; it helps drain quickly and looks classic, but a shallow plate works perfectly well.
Substitutions
bonito flakes → use an extra 15–20 g kombu and a little mushroom dashi or dried shiitake to make a vegetarian dashi
Noticeably differentsoba noodles → 100% buckwheat soba (labelled ‘juwari soba’) for a gluten-free option
Stays closementsuyu (homemade) → shop-bought mentsuyu concentrate, diluted according to the label (use less salt yourself)
Stays closemirin → 1 tsp caster sugar plus 10 ml sake or omit and add an extra 1 tsp caster sugar
Noticeably different
Nutrition
Per serving · estimated
- 300
- Calories
- 11 g
- Protein
- 54 g
- Carbs
- 4 g
- Fat
- 3 g
- Fibre
- 8 g
- Sugar
- 950 mg
- Sodium
FAQ
Can I make the mentsuyu ahead?
Yes — make up to 3 days ahead and keep chilled. Taste before serving and dilute with a little cold dashi or water if it’s too strong.
Why do I need to rinse the soba?
Rinsing removes surface starch, stops the cooking and firms the noodle’s texture so they stay springy and don’t clump.
Can I skip the kombu and bonito and use only soy sauce for the dip?
You can, but the dashi provides the savoury backbone. Without it the sauce lacks depth; using stock concentrate or instant dashi powder is a reasonable shortcut.
How long will leftover cooked soba keep?
Chilled, rinsed soba keeps up to 24 hours in the fridge. They’ll become softer over time, so best eaten the same day.
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