The days when pasta was a diet detour are over! These days, we have all sorts of new and healthy pasta-like varieties to choose from: black bean, quinoa, shirataki, brown rice and of course, buckwheat noodles.
Buckwheat noodles are also known as soba noodles, a type of noodle popular in Japan. Buckwheat is gluten, fat, and cholesterol-free AND it is the highest protein-containing grain (other than oats), offering about 6 grams of protein per cup. It is also a good source of manganese, a nutrient important for energy metabolism, and thiamin, a nutrient important for synthesizing the body's main source of energy (ATP, for those of you that vaguely remember science class).
Along with the buckwheat noodles, we added spiralized veggie noodles to lighten up the carb load while adding a pop of color, fiber, and crunch. Enjoy!
Ingredients: (serves 4 side servings)
- 8 oz buckwheat soba noodles
- 1 zucchini, spiralized
- 4 large carrots (we used rainbow carrots to add color), spiralized or peeled using vegetable peeler
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup peanuts
- 5 mint leaves
- 4 tablespoons spicy Thai peanut marinade (we used San-J brand)
Directions:
- Cook the buckwheat noodles in boiling water for 4 minutes. Drain and set aside in a bowl
- Use a spiralizer or vegetable peeler to create noodles out of the zucchini and carrots
- Sautée the vegetable noodles and peanuts in light oil on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes. Avoid overcooking, you want the veggies tender but still crunchy
- Add the vegetable noodles and peanuts to the buckwheat noodles and add about 4 tablespoons of the spicy peanut marinade
- Tear the mint leaves and mix in, leaving one mint leave to garnish on top
- Great served hot or cold!