Salmon, Soba, Spinach, and Avocado Bowl

The best part about this dish?

Sunday night at 5:45pm, and my husband assumed it was so late, we’d be getting takeout.

6:15pm? Dinner on the table…..And it’s delicious

Total Prep/Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients: (4 servings)

Salmon and soba:

• Soba noodles (around 6 ounces dry)
• salt
• 4 cups packed spinach, roughly chopped
• 4 x 4-ounce pieces of wild salmon
• 4 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 avocado, thinly sliced
• 4 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Pickled cucumbers:  (my favorite part – yes, you’re going to make your own pickles. In 5 minutes.)

• 4 small pickling cucumbers (or about 1/2 of those long English cucumbers)- whatever you use, you want it to be thin, with minimal seeds
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger (optional – I just asked the man at my grocery store’s sushi counter for a little bit of ginger, and then chopped it myself, instead of finely grating)
• 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Sauce:

• 4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 2 splashes sesame oil
• 4 teaspoons kimchi juice (optional – can be bought at Whole Foods)

To Cook:

1. Start by making the pickles:  Thinly slice cucumber, add all ingredients, and then add just enough water to over.  Let that marinate at room temperature while you prepare everything else.
2. Cook soba noodles per the package instructions.
3. In a separate pot, put spinach, and about 1-2 inches of water, and cook on medium, until spinach is nice and green.
4. Preheat oven to broil
5. Pour 1 teaspoon of sesame oil on each filet of salmon, and rub it over the salmon piece.  Season each filet with salt and pepper, and place in a glass oven dish.
6. Broil salmon for 8-12 minutes, checking at 8 minutes and frequently after, until the salmon pieces flake easily.
7. To make the sauce, just whisk together all ingredients into a small bowl.
8. When it’s all ready, place soba and spinach in the base of the bowl, then top with salmon, avocado, and pickled cucumbers. Garnish each bowl with sauce and sesame seeds.

(My version is a modified and slightly simplified version of a recipe on Goop.com).