Japchae Recipe with Beef (Korean Glass Noodles)

This japchae serves two in about 45 minutes. Dangmyeon (sweet potato starch noodles) are boiled, dressed with soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil, and tossed with stir-fried beef, onion, carrot and mushrooms, plus blanched spinach and egg strips. The key is to drain the rinsed noodles well and dress them promptly, so they do not stick together.

The National Folk Museum of Korea’s encyclopedia describes an early japchae in Eumsik dimibang, a cookbook from around 1670, made without noodles from vegetables, mushrooms and pheasant. According to the same encyclopedia, recipes with dangmyeon appear from the 1930s. Today it is a common dish for birthdays and feasts.

The onion and carrot are stir-fried separately, so each keeps its color and texture. The noodles are tossed in a bowl instead of stir-fried in the pan.

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• Pot, for boiling water
• Frying pan, 24–26 cm (about 9 1/2–10 1/4 in)
• Large mixing bowl
• Kitchen scissors

1. Mix the beef with the soy sauce, sugar, garlic, sesame oil and pepper. Refrigerate it for about 10 minutes.

   Beef, cut into thin strips About 80 g (2.8 oz) · Soy sauce 1/2 tbsp · Sugar 1/2 tsp · Minced garlic 1/2 tsp · Sesame oil 1/2 tsp · Black pepper A pinch

2. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Blanch the spinach for about 30 seconds. Rinse the spinach in cold water. Squeeze out the water.

   Spinach About 100 g (3.5 oz)

3. Mix the spinach with a pinch of salt and the sesame oil.

   Salt A pinch · Sesame oil 1/2 tsp

4. Boil the noodles in the same water for about 6 minutes, until clear and soft. Rinse them briefly in cold water. Drain them well.

   Dangmyeon (dried sweet potato starch noodles) About 100 g (3.5 oz)

5. Cut the noodles a few times with scissors. In the large bowl, mix them with the soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, garlic and pepper.

   Soy sauce 2 tbsp · Sugar 1 tbsp · Sesame oil 1 tbsp · Minced garlic 1/2 tsp · Black pepper A pinch

6. Beat the egg with a pinch of salt. Spread it in a thin layer in an oiled pan. Cook it over low heat until fully set. Cut it into thin strips.

   Egg 1 ea · Cooking oil 1 tsp · Salt A pinch

7. Heat oil over medium heat. Stir-fry the onion for about 2 minutes, until it turns translucent. Add it to the bowl.

   Onion 1/2 ea · Cooking oil 1 tsp

8. Add oil to the pan. Stir-fry the carrot for about 1 minute, until slightly soft. Add it to the bowl.

   Carrot 1/4 ea · Cooking oil 1 tsp

9. Add oil to the pan. Stir-fry the beef and mushrooms for about 3 minutes, until the beef is fully cooked. Add them to the bowl.

   Fresh pyogo mushrooms (Korean forest mushrooms) 2 ea · Cooking oil 1 tsp

10. Add the spinach. Mix everything with tongs or gloved hands. Taste the japchae. Adjust the seasoning if necessary. Top with the egg strips and sesame seeds.

    Toasted sesame seeds 1 tsp

• The noodles are clear and soft, with no white core
• The beef is fully cooked, with no pink juices
• The noodles are evenly coated, with no dry or clumped parts

Japchae-bap (japchae over rice)

One recipe stir-fries leftover japchae with extra seasonings such as gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) and serves it over rice with a fried egg.

Gochu-japchae (pepper japchae)

It carries the japchae name, but in the recipe checked for this entry no noodles appear; pork and bell peppers fill their place.

Jinju-style japchae

Jinju-style japchae is a regional form without noodles, made with bracken, soybean sprouts, bamboo shoots and lotus root dressed with soy sauce and mustard.

• My Korean Kitchen — Japchae
• Korean Bapsang — Japchae
• Maangchi — Japchae
• RecipeTin Eats — Japchae
• Hot Thai Kitchen — Glass noodle stir-fry
• Wtable — Japchae (Korean)
• 10000recipe — Japchae and japchae-bap (Korean)
• Wtable — Gochu-japchae (Korean)
• National Folk Museum of Korea — Japchae (Korean)
• Sempio — Glass noodles ingredients
• Hu et al. — Retrogradation of sweet potato starch noodles (2022)
• Centre for Food Safety, Hong Kong — Bacillus cereus in starchy food
• FDA — Egg safety
• MFDS — Cooking meat safely (Korean)
• Illinois Extension — Grilling and summer food safety
• USDA — Leftovers and food safety
• FoodSafety.gov — Cold food storage chart