Serves 2

2 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger

2 tbsp sake

2 tbsp Kikkoman soy sauce

2 tbsp mirin

6 spring onions

170g Japanese soba (buckwheat) noodles

100g peeled, cooked North Atlantic prawns

1 tsp plus 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

2 medium eggs, beaten

½ tbsp sunflower oil

7.5g toasted nori sheets

Put the ginger, sake, soy sauce and mirin in a small saucepan. Set over a low heat and slowly bring up to a simmer, then cook for 2 minutes. Leave to cool while you prepare the other ingredients.

Trim the spring onions and finely slice the pale green stems. Place in a large mixing bowl. Add the noodles to a pan of unsalted boiling water, making sure that it doesn’t stop boiling. Cook according to the packet instructions until al dente — usually 5-7 minutes. Drain and rinse under the cold tap.

Meanwhile, pat dry the prawns on kitchen paper and mix into the spring onions. Set a nonstick frying pan over a high heat. Whisk a teaspoon of sesame oil into the eggs. Add ½ tbsp of sunflower oil to the pan and, once hot, add the beaten eggs and cook as a thin omelette. Fry for 2 minutes or until cooked through. Tip out and, as soon as it is cool enough to handle, roll up and finely slice. Mix into the prawns.

Snip the nori into small pieces and add to the prawns with the well-drained noodles. Whisk 2 tbsp of sesame oil into the soy dressing and mix into the noodles. Serve immediately.

Adapted from Citrus and Spice: A Year of Flavour, published by Simon & Schuster on Nov 3 at £20. Buy it for £18 (inc p&p) through The Sunday Times BooksFirst on 0870 165 8585 or at timesonline.co.uk/booksfirst

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