Vietnamese Grilled Chicken with Soba Noodles

Vietnamese Grilled Chicken piled high on the most flavorful soba noodle salad…whats not to love? You may recall a recipe for a Bahn Mi that I posted last summer which featured this delicious Vietnamese 5-spice Grilled Chicken, it was so good that since then I’ve been grilling up a big batch of it every few weeks to enjoy in recipes like this one (that is if there is any left after Marc finds it in the fridge!). The combination of the sweet and salty noodle salad is the perfect compliment to the savory grilled chicken and the addition of fresh vegetables like cucumber and carrot give just the right amount of crunch to the dish. I like to serve it at room temperature but it’s just as good served hot or chilled in the fridge!

Vietnamese Grilled Chicken with Soba Noodles

Ingredients:
Vietnamese Chicken
– 3 cloves of garlic, minced
– 1 large shallot, chopped
– 1 tablespoon, peeled and minced fresh ginger
– 2 teaspoons honey
– 1/3 cup soy sauce
– 2 tablespoons fish sauce
– 1 teaspoon five-spice powder
– 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
– 1 1/2 lb chicken thighs
Soba Noodles:
– 1 packages soba noodles, cooked per instructions on box
– 2 carrots, julienned
-1/3 cucumber, thinly sliced
-3 green onions (about 1/3 cup), roughly chopped
– thin slices of red onion
– 1/4 cup raw cashews, roughly chopped
– 1/2 cup cilantro, removed from stems
– 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
– Sriracha
Dressing:
– 1/3 cup rice vinegar
– 3 tablespoons sesame oil
– 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
– 2 teaspoons soy sauce
– 2 cloves garlic
– pinch of red pepper flakes, depending on heat preference

Directions:
– In a food processor or blender combine garlic, shallot, ginger and honey until well combined. Mix in the soy sauce, fish sauce, five-spice power and black pepper.
– marinade chicken at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours, remove from marinade and grill  on medium heat for 8 minutes a side or until cooked through. Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes then cut into strips.
– In a large mixing bowl, add ingredients for dressing. Mix well. Toss in carrots, red onion and cucumber, mix well.
– Cook soba noodles according to the directions on the box, drain and let cool. Add too the mixing bowl with the carrots, onion, cucumber and dressing. Toss until noodles are evenly coated in dressing. Mix in green onions, cilantro, cashews and sesame seeds.
– Plate and top with grilled chicken and Sriracha.
Enjoy!