Miso Chicken Soba Bowls
Healthy cooking doesn’t have to be complicated.
- ⅓ cup white miso
- 2–4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (1–1½ lb. total)
- 1 lb. sugar snap peas, trimmed
- 1 8–9.5 oz. package soba noodles
- 1 Tbsp. sugar
- ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 Tbsp. (or more) low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
- 4 scallions, thinly sliced
- Toasted sesame oil (for serving; optional)
- Whisk ⅓ cup white miso and 1 cup water in a medium pot until miso is dissolved. Arrange 2–4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (1–1½ lb. total) in pot in a single layer. Pour in an additional 4 cups water (chicken should be covered; if not, add more water). Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, about 10 minutes.
- Immediately remove pot from heat and turn chicken over. Cover pot and let sit until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 155° (the temperature will continue to rise), 15–20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a cutting board; set poaching liquid aside. Let chicken cool, then slice ½" thick.
- Cook 1 lb. sugar snap peas, trimmed, in another medium pot of fresh boiling water until bright green, about 30 seconds. Using a spider or slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl of ice water and let cool.
- Cook one 8–9.5 oz. package soba noodles in same pot according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold running water.
- Strain chicken poaching liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl. Transfer 1 cup to a medium bowl and add 1 Tbsp. sugar; whisk until sugar is dissolved. Whisk in ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice and 3 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce or tamari. Taste broth and add more soy sauce if needed. Cover and chill remaining poaching liquid for another use.
- Drain sugar snap peas and cut in half on a diagonal. Divide noodles, chicken, and peas among bowls, then ladle broth into each (about a heaping ¼ cup per bowl). Top with 4 scallions, thinly sliced, dividing evenly, and drizzle toasted sesame oil over if desired. Add a couple of ice cubes to each bowl. Do Ahead: Chicken can be poached 4 days ahead. Strain poaching liquid and recombine chicken and poaching liquid in an airtight container. Cover and chill.
In fact, often the simpler it is, the better it tastes. In Good for You, Test Kitchen editor Rebecca Firkser shares nourishing, craveable recipes that you can pull off in 10 ingredients or fewer. When the weather gets warm, nothing satisfies quite like cold noodles in iced broth.
Shockingly, one of the stars of this dish is skinless, boneless chicken breast. Lean and protein-rich, sure, but not the most desirable cut when it comes to flavor or texture. But when gently poached in miso broth, the end result is tender and moist.
Make a zingy broth with lemon juice, but try using half a lime if you have some, or try yuzu juice if it’s available to you. Build each bowl by shingling sliced chicken alongside crunchy sugar snap peas and nutty soba noodles. Soba is often made with a blend of wheat and buckwheat, but if you use 100 percent buckwheat noodles like Eden or King Soba, and tamari instead of soy sauce, this meal can be made gluten-free.
Ladle in some broth, and make sure it’s extra-cold by nestling a couple of ice cubes into each bowl. Save excess poaching liquid in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Reheat and sip—it’s essentially a version of miso soup. And if you’re feeling especially hungry, double the amount of chicken breast: Follow step 1 as written, but use a large pot so they can sit in a single layer.
