Cold Somen Salad

On Day 4 of our trip, we drove to Lake Tahoe for some sightseeing.  The weather was nicer than we had hoped for during our entire stay and that day was no exception.  I learned many fun facts about the second deepest lake in the U.S. that I never knew before.  This trip was quite educational.  Did you know that Lake Tahoe has never been known to freeze over because of the huge volume of lake water?  Also, the lake holds over 39 trillion gallons of water, enough to cover the size of California to a depth of 14 inches!  Very interesting, right?  

After a quick stop at North Lake Tahoe, we rushed back home to prepare dinner for my mother-in-law's birthday.  I was in charge of the salad and appetizer so I decided to make Cold Somen Salad and Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings. 

Cold Somen Salad Recipe

Somen salad is a Japanese noodle based salad served with a vinegar-shoyu mixture and variety of garnish.  I remember this as one of my favorite lunches back in the school days while growing up in Hawaii. You can eat this as a side or as a meal by itself and is very simple to make.  

Serves 8-9

1 package somen noodles

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 T seseame oil

1/2 head lettuce

1/2 lb. ham, slivered

2-3 eggs, beaten

1 pkg. komoboko, slivered (optional)

1 cucumber, slivered

1 stalk green onion, chopped

sesame seeds (optional)

Cook somen according to package, rinse and drain.  Be careful not to overcook.  In sauce pan, combine chicken broth, equal parts sugar, rice vinegar and soy sauce, and sesame oil. Bring to boil, let simmer for 5 minutes, turn off heat, add seseme seeds (optional), and let chill.  Cook eggs, let cool and cut into strips. Place noodles on a large tray or platter and garnish with lettuce, ham, eggs, komoboko (fish cake), cucumber and green onions.  You can add as little or as much garnish as you like.  Serve with sauce.  Bon appetit!