Happy New Year! We welcomed the Chinese New Year today with a big skillet of Yaki Udon—a stir fried dish of vegetables, different proteins, and very long plump wheat noodles. In Chinese culture, eating long noodles during Lunar New Year, also known as Longevity Noodles (长寿面, chángshòu miàn), is a tradition symbolizing long life and prosperity.
The reasons behind this practice are both symbolic and cultural:
Symbolism
- Longevity: The length of the noodles represents a long and fulfilling life. Cutting the noodles is avoided as it is believed to shorten one’s lifespan.
- Prosperity: Noodles are also associated with wealth and good fortune. Consuming them is thought to bring financial success in the coming year.
- Unity: Sharing a meal with family and friends during the Lunar New Year fosters a sense of unity and togetherness.
Cultural Significance
- Family Tradition: Eating longevity noodles is a way to honor ancestors and keep traditions alive.
- Celebration: It’s a celebratory dish often enjoyed during festive meals, accompanied by other symbolic foods like dumplings (symbolizing wealth) and fish (symbolizing abundance).
Because these customs highlight the importance of food in Chinese culture, not just for nourishment but also for conveying blessings and well-wishes, we honored this tradition with a delicious treat of this dish and braised beets and two new recipes. This recipe is suppose to serve 4-6, but we enjoyed it so much, it only provided 3 servings. The beets also gave us pink noodles.
Udon noodles are a thick, chewy wheat noodle from Japan and Yaki Udon is a popular stir-fried noodle dish with vegetables and protein, usually seasoned with a rich, sweet soy sauce and other flavorings. You can find these noodles in any Asian market in either dry or precooked frozen form. I am especially fond of the frozen version used here.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons regular soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetarian oyster sauce
1 tablespoon mirin
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
1 pound (two packages) frozen udon noodles
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound ground pork, beef, chicken or turkey, or crumbled firm tofu
1 white onion, thinly sliced or diced
1 cup white or cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 large carrot, scrubbed or peeled, cut into thin 3-inch-long sticks
1 cup Broccoli florets, divided into 1/2-inch pieces
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
3 scallions, sliced into 2-inch pieces, plus more for serving
Gochugaru (red pepper flakes), to taste
Gomasio, soy sauce, or chili oil, for serving
Sauce: In a medium bowl, combine the dark soy sauce, regular soy sauce, oyster sauce, mirin, rice vinegar and syrup. Taste and adjust flavors, if needed.
Noodles: Bring a pot of water to boil over medium-high. Add the frozen noodles and cook, gently nudging them apart, until they separate and are pleasantly chewy, about 2 minutes. Drain, quickly rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, transfer to a medium bowl and drizzle with a little sesame oil so they don’t stick to each other. I forgot to rinse in cold water and they were a little overcooked. Be careful—these are precooked noodles.
If using tofu, freeze overnight if possible. Thaw and squeeze out as much water as possible and crumble. You can still use a fork to mash up unfrozen tofu or tear into bite-sizes pieces, but freezing does give the best texture.
In a wok or a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high. Add the protein and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat or tofu to a small bowl.
Pour the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil into the wok. Add the onions and stir-fry, tossing frequently, until fragrant and the vegetables take on a little color, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the carrot, broccoli, mushroom and garlic; constantly stir until the vegetables cook but still have a crunch, about 3 minutes. Stir in the scallions and cooked protein; stir-fry for 1 more minute. Add the noodles and sauce, tossing until the noodles are coated and glossy. Taste and adjust any seasonings, if needed.
Serve, topping with chopped scallions and gochugaru, to taste. Serve with gomasio, soy sauce, and chili oil.
NOTE: Other vegetables may be used like bell peppers, cauliflower, asparagus, or bok choy, just adjust stir frying time accordingly. You want the vegetables to keep some crunch.
In a recent New York Times review of the best instant noodles, one used udon instead of the more common ramen style. It is not vegetarian, but it is delicious and very spicy. I need to cool it down with yogurt, but if you want a very lazy way to try these udon noodles and eat seafood, I recommend it highly. It is available on Amazon from Nongshim as ‘Neoguri Spicy Seafood Udon Noodle Soup.’ Amazon has mislabeled them as ramen, but you can see they are udon on the package photo. Add some broccoli or other vegetable to the cooking water and an egg to poach while the noodles cook or fry one and add on top with fresh chopped scallions. Tofu or seafood can be added as well as some grated cheese. Yum.
CLICK for another udon dish.
Add comment