Kake Soba

Kake Soba

Kake Soba is a simple, elegant Japanese noodle soup where hot buckwheat noodles are bathed in a clear dashi-based broth. It showcases the noodles themselves, making it a perfect quick meal in any home kitchen.

Prep

10 min

Cook

15 min

Total

25 min

Serves

2

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •200 g (7 oz) dried soba noodles, 100% buckwheat if possible
• •800 ml (3¼ cups) water, for the dashi
• •10 g (0.35 oz) dried kombu, or 2 pieces (~10 cm each)
• •15 g (½ oz) katsuobushi, dried bonito flakes
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) soy sauce, usukuchi (light) if available
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) mirin
• •2 g (½ tsp) salt
• •1 stalk scallion, thinly sliced, for garnish
• •1 tbsp shichimi togarashi, optional, for serving

Steps

1. 1 Make the dashi: Wipe the kombu with a damp cloth. Place it in a pot with 800 ml cold water and soak for 30 minutes if time allows.
2. 2 Heat the pot over medium heat. Just before the water boils, remove the kombu with tongs (do not boil, or the broth turns bitter).
3. 3 Bring the water back to a bare simmer, add the katsuobushi, and turn off the heat. Let the flakes steep for 2–3 minutes until they sink.
4. 4 Strain the dashi through a fine sieve lined with cheesecloth or a coffee filter. Discard the bonito flakes. You should have ~700 ml of clear dashi.
5. 5 Return the strained dashi to the pot and season with soy sauce, mirin, and salt. Keep warm over low heat - do not boil.
6. 6 Bring a separate large pot of water to a boil. Add the soba noodles and stir gently to separate them.
7. 7 Cook according to package directions, usually 4–5 minutes for dried soba, until just tender with a slight bite. Do not overcook - buckwheat turns mushy quickly.
8. 8 Drain the noodles in a sieve and rinse briefly under cold running water to remove surface starch. (Traditional preparations shock them in ice water; for hot kake soba, keep them warm rather than fully chilled.)
9. 9 Divide the noodles between two warmed bowls, arranging them neatly with chopsticks.
10. 10 Ladle about 350 ml of the hot seasoned dashi over the noodles.
11. 11 Top with sliced scallion and serve immediately with shichimi togarashi on the side.