Savory and sweet with a chewy texture, this vegetarian japchae, a beloved Korean dish normally served at special occasions or holidays, is super simple to make and, as long as you have the gluten-free vermicelli or glass noodles, you can substitute with your favorite vegetables and protein sources.
With the Lunar New Year just around the corner (tomorrow!!), I am missing my family even more. As I had mentioned in the earlier post, this day is one of the biggest celebrated holidays in Korea as well as other Asian countries. I guess you can liken it to American Thanksgiving, a day centered around family and FOOD. No, there are no turkey, stuffing, casseroles, etc. involved.
Instead, we happily dig into a warm, comforting bowl of rice cake (and perhaps dumpling) soup or “tteokgook”, which is the traditional main dish. To accompany, every families have their own traditions of foods prepared and served. My mom’s specialties are galbijjim, various assortment of savory pancakes, and japchae…
The star of this dish is Korean vermicelli, otherwise referred to as glass noodles. Made from sweet potato starch, these noodles, once cooked, are chewy and springy. In another words, they are quite fun to eat.
You guys…
You seriously haven’t had japchae until you’ve tried my mom’s! It is simply the best, and I absolutely refuse to order it at restaurants. I’ve asked her to write down the recipe so I can include it in my “Beloved Family Recipes” collection to pass down to my lil’ ones someday, but she’ll simply say “I don’t know what that is.” Surprise surprise. Instead she tells me to move by feel, taste as I go, and as for the seasoning, just eyeball it! That’s very helpful…
So the best I could do is to watch her every move like hawk as I have been doing for many years. Because I love you guys, I measured the seasoning to the best of my ability, but I do have to agree with mom on this one – These kinds of dishes turn out best when you move by feel, allowing your taste buds to guide you. In other words, don’t make this when you are sick.
In this regard, I think japchae is fail-proof. Just make sure to gradually add in, not dump, all the seasonings at once: soy sauce, salt, and sesame oil. As far as the sesame oil goes, there’s no single ingredient I love more. Just sniffing it makes my legs weak. Thus, I’m quite heavy handed with it, but again, you can decide how little or how much to add.
//Tasting as we go (the Hungryman’s fav. part), and yes, Im cooking in my pjs. Simply the best.
So all this to say, let my recipe serve as a guide. Along with adjusting the seasoning to your liking, You can add other vegetables, like sweet bell pepper, bean sprouts (which my mom often adds), or just keep it really simple with 1 or 2 ingredients. One rule that my mom stressed is to cook the vegetables separately so that each and every ingredients will retain its maximum flavor, color, and texture without blending with other ingredients.
And there you have it! Sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds, and if you are like me, a drizzle of sesame oil on top and grab your chopsticks! ;). This could be a side, a snack, or even a meal with some kimchi and rice.
- 6 ounces dried Korean sweet potato vermicelli noodles (dangmyeon)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 1 carrot, peeled and shredded (I used a pre-shredded one)
- 6 dried shitake mushrooms, soaked in warm water and cut into matchstick strips
- 1 bunch of spinach
- ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon sesame oil
- salt
- toasted sesame seeds
- Place vermicelli in large bowl, pour boiling water over the noodles and let it soften, about 6-8 minutes, or until softened and chewy. Drain and rinse under cold water. Using scissors, cut the noodles into shorter lengths, about 8 inches. Toss with 1 teaspoon sesame oil and set aside.
- In a smal bowl, mix soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil together until sugar dissolves. Set aside.
- Steam the spinach in a steamer for about 1-2 minutes (or blanch the for 30 seconds). Remove immediately and rinse in cold water. Drain and gently squeeze out all the water from spinach. Form into a ball, then using scissors, cut it in half. Combine spinach with 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and pinch of salt. Set aside.
- Heat 1 teaspoon canola oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and a pinch of salt. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes, or until onion is slightly translucent. Remove from pan.
- In the same skillet, repeat the whole process with carrots and mushrooms.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the noodles and all the vegetables. Pour in the soy sauce mixture. Using your hands toss until all the ingredients are coated evenly with the sauce. Taste and season with salt, if needed. Add the toasted sesame seeds and a drizzle of sesame oil. Serve immediately.
OMG this looks amazing, totally my kind of food! Can’t wait to make it. Pinned!
This looks delicious! I’ve never tried Korean food but always love authentic Asian dishes! Pinning 🙂
You are speaking my language with this one (and all of your recipes). This looks like the perfect dish to be sitting down to on a freezing day like today!! Can you be my personal Korean teacher and help me get back into my roots?? Haha 🙂
Happy Lunar New Year sweetie! I’m missing my family too – right now they’re digging into steamboat back in Singapore to celebrate Chinese New Year! Can’t wait to be back in Singapore next week! This plate of noodles looks so good, and I think that it will be very at home on my dining table! 🙂 Sending much love and warmth to you!
Thanks for sharing one of your mom’s prized recipes! This looks wonderful and I am also a big fan of sesame oil.
oh yummmmmmmm i love vermicelli noodles.
I need to stop by your house for some of this lovely japchae! It’s DEFINITELY one of my favorite Korean dishes! Happy (early) new year to you, Min!
This dish needs to appear in my week. Happy New Year!
Please come make this for me!!
This is totally something crazy I would make and impress my family with! So yummy!
Thank you Min for the nice recipe.
Such a fun dish, and even better cooked in PJs!!! Love your mom’s advice too 🙂 Happy Lunar New Year to you and Hungryman!!
I LOVE Japchae! Happy New Year and I can’t wait to try your recipe.
Happy New Year!
This is one of my all time favourite dishes- My friend Jae’s mum makes this and always gives me leftovers because I eat them by the bucketful…cold.
Pinned!
This is by far my favorite Korean dish. At our local Korean restaurant it’s all I ever order. Thanks for the great recipe.
It must be hard being away from family at times like these…I hope this dish gave you the comfort you were looking for. It certainly sounds amazing!
Min, I love japchae!! This looks sooo good! one of my faves! My mom says the same thing. . and with all of her Korean food recipes . . they don’t measure anything!!! I guess it’s good that we have to figure it out on our own! 🙂 Happy Lunar New Year!! TGIF!
Holy moly – I LOVE japchae (although I have to admit, I’ve only ever had it AT a restaurant). I need to come visit your mom so I can have hers;) I think the best recipes are the ones for which people don’t have a recipe written down – they’ve got the taste down pat that they know it can’t fail with a little variation here and there. Lucas and I are definitely going to make this ASAP! Happy belated NY!
Gamsahabnida! (That’s basically one of a handful of words in Korean I was taught as a kid, much to Halmeoni’s consternation…) I’ve only heard stories of my grandmother’s japchae, but never knew exactly what it was, or even what to look for. This helps put me in the right direction! Daedanhi gamsahabnida! Prosperous and blessed new year to you and your family!
Hi Lauren! You’re very welcome!! Love that you wrote to me in Korean ;). Yes, japchae is def one of the most iconic Korean dishes, and while the technique/method is the same, there’s always a subtle difference in taste depending on who makes it. That’s the mystery that is Korean cooking ;). It’s probably because people don’t really follow recipes…just eyeball everything. Hope you give this dish a try! 😉