Instead of spending Chinese New Year in bustling and balmy Singapore, I escaped to snowy Furano - a sleepy little ski town in the middle of Hokkaido (the northernmost island of Japan). To survive the below freezing temperatures, as low as -20°C at night, I indulged in Japanese kare (curry) カレー, nabe (hotpot) なべ物, and noodle soups like ramen ラーメン and udon うどん.
Inspired by my time in Japan, this recipe for niku (beef) udon is a quick and easy weeknight dinner. The components can be changed depending on what’s available to you - I like the heartiness of beef combined with the earthiness of mushrooms and richness of a soft-boiled egg. You can make your own dashi stock ? or use store-bought dashi powder depending on how much time you have.
Niku Udon
Makes enough for two
200g beef or steak, very thinly sliced
Half an onion, thinly sliced
Assorted mushrooms (shitake, enoki, etc.)
Napa or Chinese cabbage
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
For sauce
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 Tablespoon sake
1 Tablespoon mirin
2 Tablespoon sugar
For udon soup
3 cup dashi stock
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 Tablespoon sake
1 Tablespoon mirin
2 packets of fresh udon
1 block of tofu, cut into 3cm cubes
2 half boiled eggs
1 spring onion, cut diagonally
What to do
Soak udon in hot water for 10mins to allow the noodles to soften. Drain udon and divide into 2 bowls.
Boil dashi stock with soy sauce, sake and mirin for the udon soup.
In a small bowl, mix soy sauce, sake, mirin and sugar for the sauce, and stir well until sugar dissolves. Heat oil in large pan to medium-high heat, add onions and fry for 5mins until translucent.
Add mushrooms and cabbage, pour sauce over the top and stir. Move vegetables to the side, add beef and stir-fry for a few minutes until meat starts to change colour. Remove pan from heat.
Place beef, mushrooms, cabbage, tofu and soft-boiled egg on top of udon noodles. Pour hot udon soup over noodles and garnish with spring onions.
