Yotam Ottolenghi's Soba Noodles with Avocado, Lime, Cardamom and Pistachios

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Looking for a fresh main course for the summer? You’ve come to the right place!

This recipe is one of my favourites from Yotam Ottolenghi’s cookbook “Simple” (publisher’s website). It combines the great freshness of basil and coriander with the acidity of lime, the fat of avocado, the spice of cardamom and the light crunch of pistachios - and it all comes together beautifully thanks to soba noodles. It’s a fantastic combination, especially on a hot summer’s day!

This recipe is not only super tasty, but also super easy! ✌ You can have everything ready in about 15 minutes and enjoy the meal. I like it best served lukewarm, e.g. when the soba noodles have had time to cool a little while you are chopping the last ingredients for the sauce.

Soba noodles are made from buckwheat and originate from Japanese cuisine, where they are used in a variety of ways. They are thin, grey-brown and slightly shorter than spaghetti. If you have an Asian market near you, you will be able to find them there - otherwise they can be found in well-stocked supermarkets. I would really recommend using them and not replacing them with another type of Asian noodle such as ramen or rice noodles: I have yet to find the mild, nutty taste of soba in other types of noodles.

Recipe #

Yotam Ottolenghi’s Soba Noodles with Avocado, Lime, Cardamom and Pistachios

15 minutes

2 portions

Ingredients #

• 100g soba noodles
• 15g basil
• 15g coriander
• 35g pistachios
• 1 organic lime
• 1 avocado
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1 pinch of chili
• 1/4 teaspoons cardamom (or 6 cardamom pods, scraped out)
• 1 pinch of salt

Directions #

1. Cook the soba noodles according to the instructions on the packet, drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
2. While the noodles are cooking, prepare the sauce: Chop the basil, coriander and pistachios. Wash the organic lime and grate some of the peel, e.g. with a kitchen grater. Try to leave as much of the white peel as possible. Squeeze the lime and save the juice. Cut the avocado into slices about 1/2 cm thick.
3. Mix the basil, coriander, pistachios, avocado, lime zest and juice, oil, chilli and cardamom in a bowl. Stir in the pasta, season with a pinch of salt and serve.

Carbon Footprint #

In total, two portions of soba noodles with avocado, lime, cardamom and pistachios according to Yotam Ottolenghi have an estimated carbon footprint of 555 g.

This ranks it number 1 out of 56 recipes published on the blog so far in terms of estimated carbon footprint.

At first glance, it may seem strange that the avocado of all things has quite a good climate balance. In recent years in particular, the avocado has repeatedly had the reputation of being a “climate killer” due to the high water consumption for its production and the often long transportation routes. However, these are only partial aspects of the overall carbon footprint: It is true that avocados transported by air have a relatively poor climate footprint - however, most avocados are actually transported by boat or truck and have a carbon footprint of approx. 0.2kg CO₂e per kg of avocado (source 1, source 2). For avocados transported by air, this can increase by up to factor 50 - but again, this is quite rare. Because most avocados do not come to us by plane, their carbon footpint is pretty good on average. Here are two simple tips to avoid avocados that have been transported by air:

1. Avocados now also grow in Europe, for example in Spain or Sicily. (If you live in the US, it will be hardly news that most of the avocados in your stores are grown in Mexico.) If you buy these, it is very likely that they have been transported by truck and have a lower carbon footprint than air avocados.
2. Try to avoid avocados that are harvested when ripe for consumption. Avocados continue to ripen after harvesting, for example during transportation by ship or at home. However, if the avocados are harvested when they are ready to eat, they have to be brought to market very quickly and are therefore often flown in. Unfortunately, there is no sure way of recognizing the harvesting method when you buy them, but there is one indication: if avocados are still really hard, they are not yet fully ripe - it is therefore more likely that they were transported by ship if they come from Peru, for example.

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