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Miso Sesame Corn Chicken Noodle Bowls

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

For the chicken:*

  • 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp mellow white miso paste
  • 1 lb boneless chicken thighs or breasts

For the bowls:

  • 2 ears of corn (½ cup grated)
  • 6-8 oz soba noodles (or use udon, rice noodles, or spaghetti)**
  • 1 large bunch leafy greens (kale, swiss chard, etc…)***
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp tahini
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp mellow white miso paste
  • 1 tbsp grated ginger (or grate 2 cloves garlic)
  • ½ tsp kosher salt

Toppings:

  • 1 cucumber, grated
  • 1 avocado, chopped or sliced
  • Chopped cilantro or scallions
  • Sesame seeds
  • Lime wedges
  • *You can also just top with regular grilled chicken or sub another protein. This just adds a lot of flavor to the bowl.
  • **I used soba noodles and I think they work best here. If you have an Asian grocery store nearby, highly recommend getting soba noodles from there. They are so much better and more flavorful than the soba noodles you find at Whole Foods!
  • ***If using greens (like kale) with tough stems, remove them. Keep the leaves whole so they are easier to remove - you will chop them later.

Items you can prep ahead (optional)

  • Toss chicken in marinade + cook the chicken (grill or pan-fry)
  • Grate 2 ears of corn (½ cup grated)
  • Cook 6-8 oz noodles (+ 1 bunch leafy greens)
  • Grate 1 tbsp ginger (or grate 2 cloves garlic)
  • Whisk together the dressing
  • Grate 1 cucumber
  • Chop cilantro or scallions

Instructions

For the chicken:

  • Add soy sauce, sesame oil, and miso to a medium bowl and use a fork to mix/mash until combined. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Grill or pan-fry the thighs until cooked through (about 4-6 minutes per side). Slice them up.

For the bowls:

  • Bring a pot of water to a boil. Into a large bowl, grate the corn on the large holes of a box grater. You can add the cobs to the boiling water along with the noodles to infuse more corn flavor, if you’d like. Cook the noodles according to the package instructions. When there are 2 minutes remaining, place the greens on top and gently submerge them into the water.
  • Use tongs to remove the corn (if using) and transfer the greens from the pot onto your cutting board. Drain and rinse the noodles with cold water until the noodles are just lukewarm. Once the greens are cool enough to handle, squeeze out any excess water, then thinly slice it.
  • In the bowl with the corn, add the sesame oil, tahini, vinegar, miso, ginger, and salt. Whisk until combined. You can use a fork to help mash/mix the miso in. Add the noodles/greens to the bowl and toss to coat.
  • Serve the noodles topped with chicken, cucumber, avocado, herbs, sesame seeds, and a squeeze of lime.

Notes

Substitutions:

  • To make vegetarian/vegan, use tofu in place of chicken. You can toss it in that same marinade and bake or pan-fry it. For vegetarian, you could also just top with a few fried eggs (add a dash of soy sauce to the skillet when you’re frying them).
  • If you don’t have or can’t find miso paste, you can leave it out of the chicken marinade or replace it with 1 tablespoon sriracha for a kick. For the dressing, replace the miso with 1 tablespoon soy sauce. If the sauce is too thin/loose, you can add more tahini to thicken it up. Always taste and add more acid (rice vin or lime) or salt.

Storage:

  • Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer:
    • Dressed noodles: up to 5 days in the fridge
    • Cooked chicken: up to 4 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer

Leftovers + Repurposing:

  • Eat the salad chilled right out of the fridge or pop it in the microwave for 10-20 seconds just to take the chill off. I like to warm up the chicken to have a contrast of warm and cold together. Make sure to top leftovers with all the toppings and (most importantly) plenty of lime juice and herbs.
  • The salad does get a little mushy in texture as leftovers, which is fine! Just top it with crunchy things like cucumbers or any other crunchy veggies. 
  • Top with fried eggs, tofu, or edamame in place of or in addition to chicken. 
  • Top with chili oil for next level status or sriracha for some spice.