Time: 1 hour 10 min.
Complexity: easily
Servings: 6

Japchae is a sweet and savory noodle dish that's stir-fried. You can add as many vegetables as you like. The word "chap" translated from Korean means "to collect and mix many ingredients," and "che" means "vegetables." "This dish is typically prepared in large quantities and served for both special occasions, including weddings, and for casual occasions," shares Jackie Ji-yoon Park, food stylist and recipe developer. Each component of the recipe should be cooked separately to give the japchae a purer and more distinct flavor. This has a big advantage: you can prepare the ingredients in advance and then combine them in a pan just before serving.

Ingredients:

Beef

• 220 g ribeye steak, tenderloin, or other tender cut of beef (or pork)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 tbsp dark sesame oil
• 1 tbsp. granulated sugar

Onion

• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• Half a large onion, cut into 0.5 cm thick half rings.

Red bell pepper

• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 0.5cm wide strips.

Carrot

• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• Half a large carrot, cut into strips (0.3 cm thick)
  

  Eggs

• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil

Mushrooms

• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• 220 g shiitake mushrooms, cut into 0.5 cm wide strips.
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 0.5 tsp chopped garlic
• 0.5 tsp. dark sesame oil
  

  Spinach

• 1 bunch spinach (about 300 g), stems trimmed
• 1 tbsp dark sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic

Japchae

• 340 g dangmyeon (Korean sweet potato funchose)
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup dark sesame oil
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup rice syrup, corn syrup, honey, or agave syrup
• 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds, ground in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder
• Special equipment: non-stick frying pan with a diameter of 30 cm.

Substituting ingredients
Measuring containers used

1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Recipes with similar ingredients

beef, sweet potato, sweet pepper, eggs, shiitake mushrooms, spinach, soy sauce, carrot, sesame

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Preparation:

Step 1
• Beef:
  
  Slice the beef across the grain into strips approximately 0.5 cm thick and 5 cm long. Place in a medium bowl along with the soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, sugar, and a few pinches of freshly ground black pepper. Stir until the meat is completely coated with the marinade, and set aside.
Step 2
• Onion:
  
  Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring constantly, until softened, 4–5 minutes. Season with salt and transfer to a plate; do not wash the skillet.
Step 3
• Sweet pepper:
  
  Wipe the skillet clean, add vegetable oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Add the peppers and cook, stirring constantly, until softened and beginning to brown, 4–5 minutes. Season with salt and transfer to a plate; do not wash the skillet.
Step 4
• Carrot:
  
  Wipe the skillet clean, add vegetable oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Add the carrots and cook, stirring constantly, until softened but not browned, 2–3 minutes. Season with salt and transfer to a plate; do not wash the skillet.
Step 5
• Eggs:
  
  In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with 1/4 teaspoon of salt until smooth. Wipe the skillet dry. Add the vegetable oil and heat over medium-high heat. Pour in the eggs and swirl the skillet until the mixture coats the entire surface. Cook until the eggs are set on the bottom, about 1 minute. Carefully flip the egg crepe over to keep it whole, and cook for another minute. Transfer to a plate or cutting board to cool, then cut the crepe into 4 equal horizontal strips. Stack the strips and cut into 1/4-inch-wide strips, then set aside; do not wash the skillet.
Step 6
• Mushrooms:
  
  Wipe the skillet clean, add vegetable oil, and heat over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until golden brown, 6–7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer the mushrooms to a medium bowl. Add the soy sauce, garlic, and sesame oil, mix well, and set aside; do not wash the skillet.
Step 7
• Spinach:
  
  Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over medium-high heat and prepare a bowl of ice. Add the spinach to the boiling water and blanch until bright green, about 30 seconds. Remove the spinach with tongs or a slotted spoon and immediately transfer to the ice water; reserve the water in the saucepan. Once the spinach has cooled completely, remove it and squeeze it dry. Cut the spinach into 4-5 cm pieces. Transfer to a medium bowl, add the sesame oil, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Stir well and set aside.
Step 8
• Japchae:
  
  Bring the water back to a boil. Add the noodles and cook, stirring constantly to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the noodles are almost translucent and pliable, 3–4 minutes. At this point, the noodles will not be fully cooked.
Step 9
• Place the noodles in a sieve and rinse under cold running water, rubbing them between your fingers and gently massaging them in the water. Drain the water, then rinse again, repeating twice more to remove excess starch. Place the noodles in a sieve and let them drain well.
Step 10
• Wipe the skillet dry. Add 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the marinated beef and cook, stirring frequently, until browned (being careful not to burn the garlic), 5–6 minutes. Transfer to a plate; do not wash the skillet. Wipe the skillet dry. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the noodles and cook, stirring constantly with tongs, until they smell slightly starchy, are completely coated with oil, and the moisture has evaporated, 6–7 minutes. You will hear a loud sizzling sound after about 2 minutes; this is normal. Add the soy sauce, reduce the heat to low, and fry the noodles again for 1–2 minutes; the soy sauce will turn them golden brown.
Step 11
• Once all the sauce has been absorbed, transfer the noodles to a large bowl. Immediately add the sesame oil, sugar, and rice syrup and stir until combined and the sugar has dissolved. Add the fried onions, peppers, carrots, mushrooms, spinach, and beef and stir until evenly distributed. Add the eggs and gently stir again (try not to tear the noodles). Transfer the japchae to a large serving bowl and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.
  
  

  Chef's Note

  
  You can prepare all the vegetables and eggs a day in advance. Store the ingredients separately in tightly sealed containers in the refrigerator. Before serving, reheat in a nonstick frying pan without oil or in the microwave. Leftover japchae can also be reheated in a nonstick frying pan with a little vegetable oil.

Votes: 1

Author of the recipe - Jackie Ji Yoon Park is a Korean culinary stylist and recipe developer, a registered dietitian, specializing in Korean cuisine.