The name “Japchae” (잡채) literally means “mixed vegetables” or “mixed ingredients”, which describes this colorful dish perfectly.
Japchae is a traditional dish in Korean cuisine that originated in the 17th century. Today it is always prepared with glass noodles made from sweet potato starch (Dangmyeon). Japchae can be served both hot and cold, as a main course or as a side dish, and is very versatile. We show a typical preparation with some meat, but you can easily make japchae with seafood, vegetarian or vegan.
The dish impresses with its harmonious balance of sweet and spicy sauce, crunchy vegetables and the unique texture of the glass noodles. It is important to use the Korean product, which is available in our well-stocked Asian market and looks like this, for example:
If you can’t get fresh shiitake mushrooms, put dried ones in warm water for at least an hour, but preferably two, so that they rehydrate. Their weight then increases by a factor of 6 – 8.
The dish can be prepared with vegetables only, but beef is also a typical ingredient. Tofu or seitan can of course also be used as an alternative. We cut a small amount of beef fillet and (fresh) shiitake into strips and marinate them in a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar and black pepper.
If you like, you can whisk egg with a fork and fry it in very little sesame oil on a low heat in a non-stick pan to create a thin pancake and then cut it into strips.
A dressing is made from soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, grated garlic and ground black pepper and stirred until the sugar has dissolved.
Then wash young spinach and pour boiling water over it.
After just 1 minute, we pour it through a sieve and immediately rinse it with cold water to stop the cooking process. This also helps the spinach to retain its rich dark green color. Squeeze out the water vigorously with both hands and cut the bundle once or twice, depending on the size of the leaves. Then pluck the leaves apart again and marinate them with a little soy sauce and sesame oil.
Time for the other vegetables and here you can choose according to your preferences and season. We cut carrot, onion, bell pepper and mushrooms into thin strips, the hard carrot thinner and the soft mushrooms thicker. We also cut the green part of spring onions into pieces 2 – 3 cm long and the white part diagonally into slices. If you like, add a little fresh chilli for spiciness.
The glass noodles are cooked according to the instructions on the packet, which takes about 7 minutes, during which you have to stir repeatedly so that nothing sticks together. These noodles remain quite firm to the bite and this is very important for the dish.
As the noodles are very long, they are usually cut twice to reduce them to a third of their original length. The best way to do this is with scissors. The noodles are then immediately mixed with a little soy sauce for seasoning and sesame oil to prevent them from sticking.
The noodles and spinach can now be placed in a large bowl. The other ingredients are quickly added. Fry each type of vegetable separately in a little neutral oil so that they are perfectly cooked. If you are unsure about the cooking time – taste your food. This is always important when cooking.
The meat (or tofu or seitan) is also stir-fried together with the marinated mushrooms and added to the noodles, as are the egg strips, if you choose this option.
The prepared dressing is added. Everything is carefully but thoroughly mixed together, there is no better way to do this than with your hands.
Finally, sprinkle some light-colored sesame seeds over the japchae.
Enjoy.
And may the taste be with you.
Ingredients (for 2 people):
2 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in warm water for at least one hour, or 50 g fresh shiitake mushrooms
Optional: 80 g fillet of beef or 100 g firm tofu or seitan
1 clove of garlic, grated
2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp sugar, a little black pepper
Optional: 1 egg
For the dressing:
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 clove of grated garlic
Black pepper from the mill
100 g young spinach (alternatively: frozen spinach leaves)
1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp sesame oil
1 small carrot
1 small onion
½ red bell pepper
4 – 6 mushrooms
2 – 3 spring onions
Optional : 1 fresh chili
250 g Dangmyeon (Korean glass noodles)
2 tsp sesame oil and 1 tsp soy sauce
Some neutral vegetable oil for frying
1 tbsp light sesame seeds
