Japchae (korean Stir Fried Noodles)

Total Time: 20 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• korean starch noodles (dangmyun)
• 150 g beef (optional)
• 1 bunch spinach
• 1 medium size carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
• 1 medium size onion, sliced thinly
• 5 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 7 -8 green onions, cut into 7 cm long pieces
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
• 4 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
• olive oil
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Recipe

• 1 soak 5 dried shitake mushrooms in warm water for a few hours until they become soft. squeeze the water out of them and slice thinly.
• 2 boil 2 bunches of noodles in boiling water in a big pot for about 3 minutes. when the noodles are soft, drain them and put in a large bowl.
• 3 cut the noodles several times by using scissors and add 1 tbs of soy sauce and 1 tbs of sesame oil. mix it up and set aside.
• 4 *tip: take one sample and taste it to see whether or not it’s cooked properly. if it feels soft, it’s finished.
• 5 in the boiling water, add a bunch of spinach and stir it gently for 1 minute. then take it out and rinse it in cold water 3 times. remove any grit or dead leaves thoroughly while rinsing. squeeze it gently to get the water out, then cut it into 5 cm pieces. add ½ tbs soy sauce and ½ tbs sesame oil and mix it and place it onto the large bowl.
• 6 *tip: when you drain the hot water from the pot, don’t discard the hot water. put it back into the pot so you can cook your spinach quickly.
• 7 on a heated pan, put a few drops of olive oil and your carrot strips and stir it with a spatula for 30 seconds. put it into the large bowl (don’t burn it!).
• 8 place a few drops of olive oil on the pan and add your sliced onion. stir it until the onion looks translucent. put it into the large bowl with your carrots.
• 9 place a few drops of olive oil on the pan and add the sliced mushrooms. stir it for a bit and then put it in the large bowl.
• 10 place a few drops of olive oil on the pan and add your green onions. stir for 1 minute and put it into the large bowl.
• 11 place a few drops of olive oil on the pan and add your beef strips (optional) and your sliced shitake mushrooms. stir it until it’s cooked well, then add 3 cloves of minced garlic, ½ tbs soy sauce and ½ tbs sugar. stir for another 30 seconds and then put it into the large bowl.
• 12 add 2 tbs of soy sauce, 3 tbs of sugar, 2 tbs of sesame oil, and 1 ts of ground pepper to the large bowl. mix all ingredients, then sprinkle 1 tbs of toasted sesame seeds on the top.