JAPCHAE
Korean Sweet Potato “Glass” Noodles
Spinach, Beef, Shiitake, Carrot, Cabbage, Onion
Sweet Garlicky Sesame Soy Sauce
The following note was in my mailbox at work:
Lori Lynn – Please bring a COLD PASTA SALAD for the party on Thursday.
Thanks!
At our school, we have a festive monthly themed luncheon for the faculty and staff who are celebrating birthdays. This past month’s theme was football. With hot dogs and chili. And I was (happily) one of a handful of people asked to bring a dish. But I couldn’t bring myself to make the “cold pasta salad.” No farfalle. No rotini. No mayo.
I had a hankering to make japchae, Korean glass noodles with beef, vegetables, and a sweet garlicky sesame soy sauce – a perfect dish to feed a crowd. It’s transportable, economical, and one large bag of dangmyeon (glass noodles made from sweet potato starch) makes over 20 side-sized servings. And since it is often served at Korean celebrations, I thought it would make a great dish for our birthday party. It takes a little while to prepare because all the ingredients are cooked separately, but it is awfully easy.
On that Thursday morning I stir-fried veggies and beef, cooked the noodles, whisked together the sauces and had my dish in the teachers’ lounge by 11:15 AM, in time for the first lunch period.
Japchae Recipe
Stir-fry all the components (except spinach) separately in a small amount of sesame oil. Season with a small amount of salt and pepper.
- Beef, ground
- Shiitake, sliced
- Carrots, shredded
- Cabbage, shredded
- Onion, sliced
- Spinach (not baby)
Blanch spinach in salted water for one minute. Rinse to cool. Squeeze out excess moisture. Season with a small amount of sesame oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.
After cooking the meat, drain off any fat. Combine beef with the cooked shiitake. Whisk the following ingredients together to make a seasoning sauce.
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 T. sesame oil
- 2 T. low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 t. sugar
- 2 t. mirin
Toss the beef & shiitake with the sauce then re-heat.
Set the stir-fried vegetables aside and prepare the noodles. Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling water for 7 -8 minutes until tender or according to the package instructions. Drain and rinse briefly with cool water, drain well.
Whisk the following ingredients together until the sugar is dissolved:
- 1/2 c. low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 T. sugar
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 T. sesame oil
Coat noodles with this sauce then toss in the warm meat and vegetables. Finish with a sprinkling sesame seeds. It’s best served warm, however japchae is also very good at room temperature which is the way it was served at our football luncheon. I find that it is not as good when refrigerated or served cold.
I like japchae with a ratio of lots of vegetables and beef to the noodles. It’s a popular portable dish to bring to any party or event, it even goes with hot dogs!
Try japchae, when you’re cooking for a crowd…
You have a winner here. You did not mention it, but I am sure there were many high 5’s around the lunch room that day!!
Oh wow, this is a stunning dish! I love glass noodles, and your ingredients and dressing sound wonderful.
I am so in love with your photography 🙂
Such a beautiful and tasty sounding dish.. your school has one lucky crowd! I have never cooked asian.. but those noodles sound delicious! Does the sweet potato starch actually lend sweet potato flavoring? Life is so busy these days.. I rarely get to reading blogs and commenting anymore.. but I ALWAYS love your posts Lori! Hope your well in S.P. Happy Holiday’s! xoxo
Hi Laurie – nice to hear from you. Happy Holidays!
The noodles have a neutral taste, and a slippery-chewy texture. The sauce really enhances them.
LL
I really love this dish. I can’t wait to try it. Gorgeous photos, too!
don’t you just love those kinds of letters?? ha. But, you’re clearly a great employee when you go all out and offer a lovely and sophisticated dish… something they were probably not expecting. The sauce is beautiful.
Oh, my! That looks SO delicious! ….I would even go back to work for that one!
This is a gorgeous dish! Your co-workers should be honored to eat your cooking. I don’t eat beef, but I think I could make this with ground turkey or chicken and it would be just as good. Thank you!
Turkey or chicken would work very well, Maggie. Vegetarian versions are also excellent, as there as so many veggies.
LL
I’ve never tried these noodles before but I definitely will now. This salad is truly amazing and I love the complexity of the flavours. Economy is good too – feed a crowd – okee dokee by me.
Why aren’t you in organizations I belong to? I get asked to bring salads all the time and try to be creative – but wow – I so want this. And will get ingredients tomorrow. Oh! Tomorrow’s dinner! Yay!
Just gorgeous!!! I should be going to bed, but now I want some Asian noodles!! I truly love this!!! Have a great weekend~
Great looking dish… I am really in the mood for lighter things (she says as she makes more and more richer than the dickens dishes). I would almost say by CHristmas I am LONGING for them. Puting this on my list.
I am a relative newcomer to the kitchen, and seem to have missed the part about how much of each of the ingredients to use. Is there a ratio you follow? I am also a vegetarian, and wonder whether ‘meat analogs’ might work in this, like seitan or TVP.
Welcome Ray: Taste With The Eyes isn’t really a recipe blog with exact measurements, it’s more about cooking with inspiration from the photos. If you like carrots put more, if you don’t like onion, omit them. Balance the amount of veggies to the amount of noodles. As for the meat, just leave it out, as vegetarian japchae is equally delicious.
LL
Use sliced mushrooms. Shiitaki are lovely, but any will work well. I add black dried mushrooms, rehydrated, too – I like the crunch.
What lucky, lucky teachers! This is gorgeous and it knocks the socks off hotdogs. I love the presentation.
I love your photographs and your recipe. I love glass noodles and always order them at the restaurant, I bet you wooed everyone with this dish!
Mmm glass noodles! They are so good for you too! This is a dish that I must try out at home, it looks full of flavour too, thanks for sharing.
Hey Lori…this is the best looking Jap chae I’ve seen in a while. Just leave those sesame seeds off and I’m good to go.
Gina – thank you! You are the one who introduced me to japchae. I am honored. I know, no seeds for you.
Kamsahamnida my friend.
LL
What a beautiful dish,Lori!Sounds tasty and your pictures are amazing! Happy holidays 🙂
I lived in Korea as a teacher and learned to enjoy much of the food. I’m glad the rest of the world is learning about it. Cold noodle of any kind does not tempt me, but make some DolSut BaBeemBap(sp) and I’m there.
Your Japchae was so delicious! Thank you for posting this, and for the inspiration! Looking forward to trying it out at home. 🙂
Looks delicious!!! I would like to give a tip though. Don’t rinse boiled glass noodles in cold water. This will help to keep the noodles more vivid and chewy. ^^
Do you cut the noodles at any point? Break before cooking? Cut with scissors after?
Hi Traci – no we don’t cut the noodles. You can if you like.
LL