Japanese cuisine is so diverse and rich in outlandish combinations of tastes that not every one of us can become its adherent. But still, there are more familiar dishes in it that you can not only fearlessly order in any Japanese restaurant, but also try to cook at home. It is to these that Udon can be attributed. What it is?
In the best traditions
Many people think that the main food of the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun is rice, seafood and, of course, a variety of sauces. But actually it is not. This cuisine is very, very diverse and boasts not only an abundance of various dishes that Japanese chefs come up with, but also its special approach to the products from which they will be prepared. And here we have something to learn from them.
Let's start with a simple comparison. How many types of pasta do you have on the shelves of our supermarkets? Surely a lot, but they are all made according to the general principle and often differ only in appearance. Most of them are made from wheat flour with or without eggs. But in Japan, cooking noodles is a whole tradition. And one of the examples is the famous udon. What is it, now let's figure it out together.
A bit about Japanese noodles
Unlike us, the Japanese got the hang of making noodles not only from wheat flour. Rice, buckwheat, and even bean are involved. Each type is prepared according to an individual recipe and served in combination with a specific set of products and sauces. So, somin, for example, is customary to eat chilled and with ice, but yakisoba is served fried with vegetables, meat and other products. But today we are talking about udon noodles. What is it, few know. Well, fill this gap.
What is udon
This is exactly the kind of noodle that is made from wheat flour, water and salt. It is somewhat similar to ours, but it turns out to be more elastic and soft. The noodles themselves are quite thick - up to 4 mm in diameter, and after cooking it looks voluminous. Its color can vary from white to grayish. Such a variety of noodles can be found in our supermarkets, because everyone can try to cook a dish in the Japanese manner at home. To bring udon to the table, a specific recipe is not needed. The Japanese serve such noodles with a wide variety of vegetables, the main thing is to be tasty and satisfying. We will certainly tell you some options.
How to cook and serve properly
Preparing such noodles is very simple: just dip it in boiling water and boil for 4-5 minutes after the water boils. Now you need to drain the water and rinse the noodles in cool water. Udon is ready, now you can use it for further cooking. If you cook the noodles in advance, add a little vegetable oil, the udon will not stick together and this preparation can be stored longer. Serve noodles in a variety of variations: cold or hot, in broths in the manner of soups or with vegetables, seafood or meat. In general, if you cook udon, you can adapt the recipe to your taste, this is quite acceptable for such a dish. And now let's focus on a few simple recipes that will help you with this.
Udon with teriyaki sauce and vegetables
Udon noodles (a recipe with vegetables is perfect for the fasting period or for people who adhere to a vegetarian lifestyle) - a hearty and very tasty dish. You can change the recipe to your liking or add something new. Japanese-style sauces can be purchased at almost any supermarket in the spice department.
For one package of noodles you will need 150 g of vegetables such as carrots, zucchini, a stem of leek, Chinese cabbage and a few cloves of garlic. Also buy teriyaki and tonkatsu sauces , vegetable oil, a little fried sesame seeds and fresh cherry tomatoes for decoration.
How to cook
Udon with vegetables can be prepared in 15 minutes.
- Pre-boil the noodles and rinse.
- Cut the onion into rings, zucchini into small cubes, carrots into straws, and cabbage randomly but not coarsely. Grind the garlic.
- Pour a little oil into the preheated pan, lightly fry the carrots on it, then add the onions and zucchini. Stir constantly.
- After a minute, send garlic and cabbage to vegetables, salt.
- After another minute, add 5 tbsp to the vegetables. l tonkatsu and teriyaki and boiled udon. Stew another minute and the dish is ready.
Serve the dishes in deep plates, sprinkled with sesame seeds and garnished with quarters of cherry tomatoes.
Chicken udon
If you want to give a Japanese touch to a family dinner, make udon with chicken. The recipe will not take much time and effort, but it will turn out very tasty and original.
For one package of udon you will need 600 g of chicken. Also take 150 g of vegetables: onions, carrots, sweet bell peppers. Add a couple of celery stalks, 3-4 cloves of garlic, grated ginger - 1 tsp, soy sauce and black pepper. A little vegetable oil.
How to cook
- Udon noodles are pre-boiled and washed. The recipe is a bit like the first option. The base is easy to prepare.
- Cut the chicken fillet into large pieces and fry a little in oil until half cooked.
- Crush celery stalks into slices, dice the pepper, onion and carrot into half rings. Grind the garlic.
- In hot oil, fry the onions and carrots, and then add all the other vegetables to them. Constantly stirring, keep on fire for 2-3 minutes.
- Pour 150 ml of water and 5 tbsp into vegetables. l of soy sauce. Stew the vegetables for 1-2 minutes, and then add the chicken fillet and boiled udon to them, salt and pepper. Keep the dish on fire for another 5 minutes so that the fillet has time to cook completely.
The dish is ready and can be served.
As you can see, Japanese cuisine is not as sophisticated as it might seem at first glance. It has many simple but tasty dishes. Now you know a little more about the traditional dish of Asian countries, whose name is udon. What is it, how it is prepared and served, we examined in detail. You can safely experiment at home.
Good appetite!