Sunday Supper: Chicken Soba Noodle Salad

Serves 2.

Note: Low-sodium soy sauce is a must in this recipe. If you only have regular soy sauce, then decrease the amount to 1 tablespoon or the salad will be too salty. Most packages of dried soba noodles recommend a cooking time of 6 to 8 minutes, but that seems too long to still have firm noodles, says Adrianna Adarme in her book, "The Year of Cozy." She prefers to boil soba noodles for about 3 minutes. Since every brand of noodles is slightly different, she suggests tasting the noodles after 3 minutes to see if they are cooked to your liking. To toast sesame seeds, place in a dry pan over medium heat and warm until fragrant and slightly browned; stirring occasionally.

• 4 oz. dried soba noodles

• 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar

• 2 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce (see Note)

• 1 tsp. sesame oil

• 1/2 tsp. sugar

• 3/4 tsp. grated fresh ginger

• 1 c. shredded cooked chicken breast

• 3 green onions, thinly sliced

• Small handful of fresh cilantro leaves

• 1/2 tsp. sesame seeds, toasted if preferred (see Note)

Cook soba noodles in salted boiling water until they're tender yet still firm, about 3 to 5 minutes (see Note above). Drain noodles and immediately run them under cold water to stop any additional cooking. Give them a good shake in the colander and set them aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, garlic and ginger.

Place the noodles in a medium bowl and pour the vinegar dressing over them. If they start to stick together, take a fork and mix in the dressing vigorously. This will help separate the noodles.

Toss in the shredded chicken. Garnish with the green onions, cilantro and sesame seeds.