Chilled Noodle Recipe

This classic Japanese dish of cold noodle is known as somen. The noodle are surprisingly refreshing when eaten with the accompanying ingredients and a delicately flavor dip. The noodle are served with ice to ensure that they remain chilled until they are eaten.

Ingredients

  • dried somen noodles - 400g/14 oz
  • yaki-nori seaweed - 1 sheet, finely shredded
  • spring onions - ½ bunch, thinly sliced
  • oil
  • eggs - 4, size 2, beaten with a pinch of salt
  • wasabi paste
  • ice cube - for serving

For the dip

  • bonito stock or instant dashi and kombu - 1 litter/1¾ pints/4 cups
  • mirin - 15ml/1 tbsp
  • soy sauce - 200ml/7fl oz

Method

  • Prepare the dip in advance. Bring the ingredients to the boil, leave to cool and chill thoroughly.
  • Heat some oil in a frying pan. Pour in half the egg, tilting the pan to coat the base evenly. Leave the egg to set, then turn it over and cook the second side briefly.
  • Turn the omelet out on to a board, and cook the remaining egg in the same way.
  • Leave the omelets to cool then shred it finely. Put the shredded omelets, spring onions, wasabi and nori in four small bowls.
  • Next, boil the somen noodle according to the packet instructions and drain. Rinse the noodle in cold running water, and stirring with a chopsticks, drain well.
  • Place the noodle on large plate, add some ice on top to keep the noodle cool.
  • Pour the cold dip into four small bowls. Noodle and selected accompaniments are dipped into the chilled dip before they are eaten.

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