Chicken Udon with Rabe and Shiitake Mushrooms

Daria Souvorova

30 minutes
serves: 8-10

I have not been posting of late, apologies! I was in Sicily for the past two weeks looking at amazing architecture and eating incredible food. I am really looking forward to sharing everything I have learned about Sicilian cooking in the coming weeks.

Today, I will break my blogging silence with a recipe for a simple udon noodle soup. I haven’t been making too much Japanese cuisine of late, but it really hit the spot this week.

You see, the first thing I ate when I got home from Sicily gave me food poisoning. I know, most people get food poisoning while off exploring new cultures, not me, apparently…I might have to make a commitment to cooking all of my own meals when at home. I was sick for three days, throwing up and dealing with crazy muscle spasms and bone pain…not fun. And since I already took a week off work to go to Sicily, I wanted to go to work and teach the kids so they weren’t completely behind. It was a tough couple of days…with no food.

I finally felt like I could eat something after three days, so I figured, why not chicken noodle soup? Except I only had udon noodles on hand, so I went for a more Japanese rendition of the dish, and I can’t lie, the ginger helped settle my stomach too!

This is a really easy dish to make, and you can switch up the vegetables to suit your own tastes or what is available in your fridge and pantry, and since spring isn’t really coming, we might as well eat more soup!

Ingredients:

• • vegetable oil, a few teaspoons
  • 3 inches ginger, peeled and minced
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1/2 large or 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 1/2 pounds chicken, thinly sliced
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 cup sake, or dry white wine
  • 3 tablespoons chicken stock concentrate plus 12 cups water (or 12 cups chicken stock)
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 1/3 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup mirin, or to taste
  • 5 ounces shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 bunch rabe, chopped to bite sized pieces
  • 1 1/2 pounds udon fresh noodles, cooked and chilled

1. 1. Sauté garlic and ginger in oil for a minute or two until aromatic.
      Add the onion and cook for 3-5 minutes longer until the onion is translucent and softened.
      Add the chicken and fry until golden on all sides, 5-10 minutes.
      Season with salt and pepper.
      Deglaze with sake and scrape up any browned bits.
      Add the sock and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
   2. Add the soy sauce, mirin, and honey and stir to combine.
      Add the rabe and mushrooms and simmer for 5 minutes longer.
   3. Arrange some noodles at the bottom of a plate.
      Ladle soup over the top.