Udon Noodles with Edamame Pesto

Serves 4

Pan IconWHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: Here we pair thick, chewy udon noodles (a favorite in Japanese cuisine) with a creative Asian-inspired pesto featuring frozen edamame, parsley, cilantro, and basil (as well as the classic pesto ingredients of olive oil, pine nuts, Parmesan, and garlic). The edamame-based pesto is hearty and naturally protein packed, so all this recipe needs is a vegetable (we opt for asparagus) to turn it into a one-dish meal. The pesto takes minimal time to prepare since all the ingredients are simply added to the food processor and pureed. We cook the asparagus and noodles together in the same pot to save time, so all we have to do once they’re drained is combine them with the sauce. The addition of a little reserved pasta cooking water turns the thick pesto into a creamy sauce. We recommend using the thinnest asparagus stalks available to ensure that they’ll cook in about the same amount of time as the noodles.

8

ounces frozen edamame, thawed

1

cup fresh parsley leaves

1

cup fresh cilantro leaves

1

cup fresh basil leaves

½

cup pine nuts, toasted

1/3

cup grated Parmesan cheese

¼

cup olive oil

2

tablespoons lemon juice

1

garlic clove, minced

Salt and pepper

2

(9-ounce) packages fresh udon noodles

1

pound thin asparagus, trimmed and cut on bias into 1½-inch lengths

1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Process edamame, parsley, cilantro, basil, pine nuts, Parmesan, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic in food processor until smooth, about 20 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed. Transfer to small bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste.

2. Add noodles and asparagus to boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, until noodles and asparagus are tender, about 4 minutes. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain pasta and asparagus and return them to pot.

3. Stir pesto into pot with noodles. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add reserved cooking water as necessary to adjust consistency. Serve.