Recipes that are simple and delicious.
My kid has been coming home on a regular basis for most of his junior year in high school. I always think how rad would that have been when I was in school! He gets this privilege for a couple of reasons, and I am […]
Bubble tea or Boba tea? However you define it there is something completely addicting about a simple addition to a drink. Tapioca pearls. I was first introduced to bubble tea only a couple of years ago. My eldest son was the person who introduced me […]
I often think before I submit what might the audience think of what I might be coming up with next. Another nut recipe? Another recipe that may be seasonal? Nope. This dude is full of surprises. I can go from sweet to savory to snacks to who knows. This is one of those mix ups. Korean. Now I do not dabble that much in Korean cuisine as much as I should or want to but there are a few Korean dishes that get my attention, but Japchae is one that does.
If you have never had japchae, well now is your opportunity. Japchae is a mixed noodle dish that is both sweet and savory and reminds me a lot like the beloved dish of the Philippines, pancit bihon. It is a noodle dish that contains both al dente vegetables along with a protein, commonly beef. In my case, I kept it local and added some awesome smokiness to it by using Nueske’s smoked duck breast. It was a most excellent choice on my part.
This dish uses sweet potato noodles that you can find at your local Asian grocery and trust me you will want to try and find these. The texture is awesome and one that is a bit slippery and a bit bouncy. Super cool to say the least.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
Start by heating a large pot of water. This will serve to cook your spinach as well as your noodles.
While the water comes to boil, prepare your ingredients and have everything on standby.
Once the water comes to a boil, add in the spinach and cook for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon and place into a bowl of very cold water. Blanching if you will. The spinach will be cooked and still retain a nice green color. Strain the spinach. Once strained, push down on the spinach or give it a few good squeezes and remove as much of the water from it as humanely possible.
You can turn off the heat on the water but keep it on the stove as you will cook those noodles in a few minutes.
Next, heat a large skillet on medium heat. Add one teaspoon of oil and give it a nice swirl.
Once heated, pour in the beaten eggs and give the pan a good swirl. The goal is to get a nice and thin egg cooking. After a few minutes, and once the egg has set, flip it over and cook for about 30 seconds on the second side, making sure it is fully cooked. Slide that onto a cutting board and return the skillet to the stove. Slice the egg in half, then another half so that you have four quarters. Slice into strips.
Add another teaspoon of oil to the skillet and let it come to temperature, swirling it as well.
Add in the carrots, and cook just until slightly tender. Remove and slide the carrots onto the cutting board, or onto a plate.
Now add the noodles to the pot of hot water, then bring that up to a boil. Cook the noodles at a low boil for about 8 minutes.
Add the mushrooms to the skillet, and cook in whatever remaining oil might be int the skillet. Stir the mushrooms to that they begin to release some moisture. Cook for about 7 minutes or so until they are cooked and nicely seared. Slide those onto the plate or cutting board.
Wipe out the skillet, then return back to the stove on medium heat. Add in another teaspoon of oil. Add in the bell pepper and garlic and cook for about 3-4 minutes. You still want a nice crunch to the peppers, much like the carrots.
Remove the mushrooms onto the plate or cutting board. Return the skillet to medium heat, add the remaining oil, and then add in the sliced duck breast. Cook the breast until the fat renders and the the breast gets slightly crisp. Yep, slightly crisp.
Remove the duck and place with the other cooked items.
To a small pot, add the soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, and black pepper. Bring this to a boil, stirring along the way. Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Strain the noodles and add them to a large mixing bowl. Pour in about half of the sauce. The noodles will soak up most of it, as will the the remaining ingredients. Give that a good mix.
Using your hands, add in all of the ingredients, and mix well. Mix from the bottom. If it needs a bit more sauce, add a bit more. Give it a taste.
.
The taste should be sweet, savory, and really delicious. Get some of the duck with it. The smokey, almost bacon like flavor brings this to a whole other level. Feel free to season with salt if you need a bump.
Now it is time to serve. When plating, feel free to sprinkle the plates with sesame seeds before serving.
You will love these noodles. The texture is super fun and the flavor is even better. If you are not using Nueske’s duck, don’t worry. Go with a thinly sliced beef or chicken, or heck just go with veggies. However you mix it I think you will be hunting down those noodles in the future. Hope you enjoy!
My oldest son started college this year, and not too long ago he was on Spring break. We really did not have anything planned as everyone’s schedule was not matching up this year so he decided to stay home and rest. It was probably for […]
I really give credit to my wife, in more ways than one, but one of those credits is due to packing a healthy lunch on a regular basis. As I do all of the grocery shopping, I am very in tune as to what is […]
Pudding Pie. I just love the sound of it. What I did not know is that I would love this simple pie so much that I don’t know why I have never really thought of making something like this. I’ve told you that I have had some sweet tooth, pretty much since July or August and I am constantly, or least it seems as though, thinking of sweets. So one afternoon before my kids got home from school, I decided to rummage through my freezer and cabinet thinking of things to make. Remember…. something sweet. I found a frozen pie crust, a crust I probably purchased because I was thinking of sweets, and then I found a box of chocolate pudding. I love pudding. Cold pudding.
Anyway I brought both of them out and thought, heck, why not come up with a pudding pie! We love those French Silk pies from Baker’s Square (sometimes) and this is what I was probably thinking when I saw the two simple ingredients. This pie was not only simple to make but good grief was it delicious.
Ingredients:
Again, this is way too easy. Bake the crust. Make the pudding. Let the crust cool. Add the pudding to the pie crust. Smooth it out. Cover and place it in the refrigerator to get nice and cold.
When you are ready to serve, take a nice slice, add a dollop of Cool Whip to the top and crumble graham crackers over the top. Trust me, you need the graham crackers. They add a great crunch to the nicely cold chocolate pudding pie.
The kids were happy, I was happy, and my oldest who was home skiing from college that night ended up taking half of the pie back to school with him. It was good. It was really good. Hope you enjoy!
