Japchae

Japchae is an easy noodle dish to make and it travels well. This is vegetarian, if you don't garnish with the egg it can be served as a vegan dish. The ingredients are fairly simple and can be found at major grocery stores or the Asian market. If you can't find the noodles however you can still make this, use a thicker rice noodle or soba. The sauce is the perfect marinade for the tofu recipe at the bottom of this post also. It's also great for chicken, beef, or pork.

I like to cook some of the ingredients separately and then just toss everything together in a big bowl after. You can prepare most of this dish ahead of time.

Japchae

12-ounce package of Korean Sweet Potato Noodles

Olive oil, or Avocado oil (whatever cooking oil you use)
8 ounces of shiitake or baby portabella mushrooms sliced
1 medium carrot cut into matchsticks (1/2 cup of matchsticks)
1/2 bell pepper, cut into matchsticks
4 cups baby spinach

Sauce:
1/3 cup soy sauce, or coconut amnios
3-4 tablespoons sesame oil
2-3 tablespoons brown sugar OR Coconut Water, as pictured
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 tablespoon mirin, optional
Salt
Pepper

Garnish
Sliced green onion
Roasted sesame seeds
Tofu
Thinly sliced egg

1. Cook noodles according to package instructions, rinse with cold water and drain.
2. Stir the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
3. In a skillet or wok add a little cooking oil and saute the carrots and bell pepper until crisp-tender. Remove from skillet and place them in a large bowl.
4. Saute the mushrooms in the skillet, place them in the large bowl when done.
5. Add more cooking oil to the skillet if needed and stirfry the spinach, once the spinach is wilted add a tablespoon of the sauce to the spinach. Put the spinach in the large bowl with the other vegetables.
6. Stir fry the sweet potato noodles with a few tablespoons of sauce just until heated and for some smokey flavor.
7. Add the sweet potato noodles to the large bowl, toss with the remaining sauce a little at a time to taste. 
8. Serve with garnishes warm or hot. Leftovers can be heated up from the refrigerator in the microwave to soften the noodles.

Egg ribbons

4 eggs, scrambled
1 teaspoon of soy sauce or coconut amnios, optional
pinch of salt

1. Cook eggs in batches making crepe like sheets in a lightly oiled pan.
2. Cool and slice into ribbons.

Tofu

1 block of firm tofu
Sauce for Japchae
Cooking oil
Sesame seeds
Garnish- chopped green onion (optional)

1. Place a few paper towels on a rimmed plate. Place the tofu on the paper towels. Top with a few more paper towels. Place a plate on top of the tofu and place a can of beans or something heavy on top to weigh it down. Let the tofu sit for about 30 minutes.
2. Discard the water and paper towels and pat the tofu dry with a paper towel.
3. Slice the tofu into 1/4 inch thick slices.
4. Heat a little oil in a cast-iron skillet. Not a lot a couple of tablespoons.
5. Place the tofu in the skillet and cook until crispy on the outside.
6. Turn it over and cook on both sides.
7. Remove from the skillet and brush the marinade on both sides of the tofu.
8. Garnish and serve.

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