Japchae (Korean Stir Fried Cellophane Noodles)
Feeling inspired from our recent adventure with Korean BBQ, we decided to make one of our favorite traditional Korean noodles dish, japchae (Korean stir fried cellophane noodles). This is a great dish to serve a crowd and we brought this to an engagement party and it disappeared quick! We’re a big fan of Maangchi’s Korean Cooking blog and have cooked many of her recipes–they’re great!
Japchae (Korean Stir Fried Clear Noodles) based on Maangchi’s recipe, serves 4-6
Printable Recipe
- 1 lb Beef (cut into small strips)
- 1 12 oz. package of Korean starch cellophane noodle
- 1 cup dried shitake mushrooms (soak in water about 10 min, then squeeze out water)
- 1 bunch of spinach
- 2 large carrots (peeled, cut match stick size)
- 1 onion (sliced)
- 3 green onion (sliced about 2 in. long)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 tbs roasted sesame seeds
- Sesame oil
- Olive oil
- Soy Sauce
- Sugar
- Black Pepper
First boil the noodles until soft, test by sampling a single noodle. Drain noodles and place in large mixing bowl. The noodles are very long. Use scissors to cut the noodles into smaller pieces and set aside.
Blanch the spinach. Remove and rinse well with cold water. Now remove all excess water from spinach by squeezing and wringing it, sorta like a wash cloth (don’t worry, it won’t rip apart). Cut into 2-3 in. pieces and add to mixing bowl.
Stir fry carrots in a large wok or saute pan with a bit of olive oil. After a minute or so, add the onions. Cook until carrots are slightly tender but still have a little crunch and onions are opaque. Add to large mixing bowl.
Using same wok/pan, add a bit more olive oil and saute garlic and then add the meat. Season with 1 tbs of soy sauce and 1 ts sugar. Half way through, add the well drained shitake mushrooms. When almost done, add the green onions and add to large mixing bowl.
Now you’re finally ready to mix all this goodness together. Add about 2 tbs sugar, 1 ts black pepper, 2 tbs soy sauce, 2 tbs sesame oil and mix well. Taste and adjust with more soy sauce/sesame oil as needed. Finally toss in the roasted sesame seeds and enjoy!
