Japchae

Name: Japchae
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 150g of sirloin steak, trimmed of fat and sliced into thin strips; 1 tbsp of soy sauce; 1 tsp mirin; 1/2 tsp garlic, crushed; 1 tsp sesame oil; freshly ground black pepper; 70g of shiitake mushrooms, fresh, sliced (or dried shiitakes, soaked in water for 3 hours); 4 white mushrooms, sliced; 250g of sweet potato noodles, (dangmyeon); 4 tbsp of soy sauce; 1 tbsp of runny honey; 1 tbsp of soft brown sugar; 1 tbsp of sesame oil; freshly ground black pepper; 115g of baby spinach, rinsed and drained; 1/2 tsp garlic, crushed; 1 tsp sesame oil; 3 spring onions, trimmed and sliced lengthways into strips; 1 red pepper, julienned; 1 carrot, peeled and julienned; vegetable oil, 2-3 tbsp; 1 large egg, separated into white and yolk; salt; 1 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds

by Louise Robinson

Item 1 of 1

Main
easy
4
40 minutes

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Louise Robinson's japchae recipe demonstrates how a little care in preparing your ingredients can go a long way. The sweet potato noodles found in this classic Korean stir-fry dish are becoming increasingly available, and add a delightfully chewy, slippery texture to the finished dish.

First published in 2017

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Japchae is my first foray into home-cooked Korean food. Having eaten in some great restaurants, I wanted to create an authentic tasting dish. A little research and recipe testing revealed it was not that daunting, simply a matter of having the right ingredients and treating those ingredients with care.

This recipe may seem like a labour of love, but taking a little time and effort does make a difference to the finished dish. Do not be tempted to throw everything in together. The cooking time for each ingredient varies, so do stir-fry the ingredients separately. If you cannot find fresh shiitake mushrooms, you can use dried shiitake but you will need to soak them for a few hours beforehand. It is definitely worth sourcing the sweet potato noodles or dangmyeon. They can be found easily online or from Asian food stores. The slightly slippery, chewy texture really adds to the dish and although you could substitute other noodles, I am not sure it would be quite the same.

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Sirloin steak

150g of sirloin steak, trimmed of fat and sliced into thin strips

Steak marinade

1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tsp mirin
1/2 tsp garlic, crushed
1 tsp sesame oil
freshly ground black pepper

Mushrooms and sweet potato noodles

70g of shiitake mushrooms, fresh, sliced (or dried shiitakes, soaked in water for 3 hours)
4 white mushrooms, sliced
250g of sweet potato noodles, (dangmyeon)

Mushroom and noodle marinade

4 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of runny honey
1 tbsp of soft brown sugar
1 tbsp of sesame oil
freshly ground black pepper

Spinach

115g of baby spinach, rinsed and drained

Spinach marinade

1/2 tsp garlic, crushed
1 tsp sesame oil

Vegetables

3 spring onions, trimmed and sliced lengthways into strips
1 red pepper, julienned
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
vegetable oil, 2-3 tbsp

Garnish

1 large egg, separated into white and yolk
salt
1 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds

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Method

To begin, place the strips of sirloin in a bowl with the soy sauce, mirin, crushed garlic, sesame oil and a grinding of fresh pepper. Stir and set aside to marinate while you prepare the rest of the ingredients

Place all of the mushroom and noodle marinade ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Put 2 tablespoons of the mixture in a separate bowl, add the shiitake and white mushroom slices, stir to combine and leave to one side

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add the spinach. Blanch for 30 seconds, then remove the spinach with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of iced water to cool it down as quickly as possible. Keep the saucepan of water simmering while you prepare the spinach

Squeeze the spinach with your hands to remove as much water as possible and place the spinach in a bowl with the crushed garlic and sesame oil. Stir to combine and leave to one side

Bring the water that the spinach was cooked in back to the boil and add the noodles. Cook for 1 minute, stir the noodles then cover and simmer for a further 7 minutes. They should be soft and chewy. Drain the noodles in a sieve and rinse under the cold tap to stop them cooking further

Place the drained noodles in a large bowl and cut into them randomly with a pair of kitchen scissors a few times to shorten them. Add the rest of the mushroom and noodle marinade to the noodles, stir to combine and leave to one side

Next, prepare the egg garnish. Place a small frying pan over a low heat, add a teaspoon of vegetable oil and swirl it around the pan

Add a pinch of salt to the egg white, lightly whisk with a fork to combine and add to the pan, swirling to create a thin layer. Cook gently for one minute, flip over and cook for a further minute. Transfer to a plate, while you cook the egg yolk

Repeat the same process with the egg yolk and transfer to a plate. Once cool, cut both the cooked egg white and egg yolk into thin strips. Set aside

Place a wok or large frying pan over a medium-high heat and add a couple of teaspoons of vegetable oil

Add the spring onions and stir-fry until they are translucent. Transfer to the bowl of noodles

Add another couple of teaspoons of oil to the frying pan, along with the carrots, and stir-fry for a minute. Add the red pepper and stir-fry for another minute before transferring to the noodle bowl

Add another couple of teaspoons of oil and stir-fry the mushrooms for a couple of minutes. Transfer to the noodle bowl

Finally add another 2 teaspoons of oil to the pan and stir-fry the beef for a couple of minutes before adding to the noodle bowl

Stir all of the ingredients in the noodle bowl together and serve topped with the egg strips and a sprinkle of sesame seeds