A sweet and savory Korean stir-fried sweet potato glass noodles with colorful vegetables and well-seasoned beef, also known as Japchae. This simple noodle dish is perfect as a side dish to accompany any Korean BBQ or as a main meal. You can serve japchae warm, cold or at room temperature.
Sweet Potato Noodles - A Tasty Korean Side Dish:
Korean food is pretty much everywhere. From kimchi, bulgogi, to bibimbap, the deliciousness is never-ending. In this post, I am going to share my recipe for Japchae, which is my favorite of all the Korean side dishes.
Why You'll Love This Sweet Potato Noodles - JapChae:
The traditional Japchae usually stir fry the noodles along with the vegetables and well-seasoned meat. But in this recipe, I decided to skip most of the stir-frying. Instead, I only stir-fried the colorful vegetables and meat separately, used very little oil and then mixed all the ingredients together in a bowl.
More Korean-inspired Recipes:
- KOREAN BEEF BOWL – SWEET AND SPICY
- KOREAN PORK BULGOGI FUSION TACO RECIPE
- KOREAN SPINACH SALAD RECIPE (SIGUEMCHI NAMUL)
The noodles are seasoned with a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil. It's actually a quite simple seasoning but yet so flavorful. Now let's talk about the ingredients:
Dangmyeon Noodles
Japchae is made from sweet potato starch noodles, known as Dangmyeon or Cellophane noodles or glass noodles. It's a classic ingredient that everyone in my family loves. What makes the Dangmyeon special is the chewy and rubbery texture. It's also gluten-free.
I highly recommend cutting the noodles into small pieces to prevent children from choking on them.
You can purchase these glass noodles at any Asian grocers or Amazon.com. It's very inexpensive, I bought a 12 oz bag for under $2.
Japchae Vegetables:
To make Japchae, I used a combination of white onion, red bell pepper, carrots, shitake mushroom, and spinach. Each of these ingredients is cooked separately in a skillet using a small amount of oil and salt.
Check Out More Asian recipes:
- BEST PORK TENDERLOIN STIR FRY
- ASIAN GROUND BEEF STIR FRY
- THAI SALAD DRESSING
- MINCED PORK NOODLES WITH HOISIN SAUCE
- CHINESE EGGPLANT WITH MINCED PORK
- SHRIMP AND GREEN PEAS STIR FRY
- SESAME NOODLES (MA JIANG MIAN)
I used dried shitake mushroom because it has a stronger flavor and meatier texture than the fresh shitake mushroom. You can purchase dried shitake or fresh shitake mushrooms at many grocery markets, including Ralph's or Kroger, Sprout's, Target, and of course at Asian grocers.
If you can't find dried shitake mushroom, feel free to use fresh shitake mushroom or regular mushrooms like Bella or white mushroom as a replacement ingredient.
Japchae with Well-Seasoned Beef:
This noodle dish is served along with well-seasoned beef. I used thin beef loin that is quickly marinated with soy sauce, mirin, sugar, sesame oil, and black pepper. It's absolutely delicious! The cooking process of this beef is pretty quick. The tender meat can be ready within minutes!
Well, I hope you will enjoy this recipe! Don't forget to share this recipe on Pinterest! Enjoy!
📖 Recipe
Japchae (Korean Stir-Fried Sweet Potato Glass Noodles)
Ingredients
- 6 oz Dangmyeon, (also known as Sweet Potato Glass Noodles)
For Beef:
- ½ pound beef, (such ash sirloin, tri-tip, ribeye, top loin (strip), tenderloin) - remove fat and cut into long strips.
- 1 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon white sugar
- 1 garlic clove, (minced)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon mirin , (or use rice wine vinegar)
- 1 teaspoon pure sesame oil
Japchae Sauce:
- 3 tbsp + 1 teaspoon of regular soy sauce, (see notes)
- 1 tablespoon white sugar, (see notes)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil, (or use more according to your liking)
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, (or use more according to your liking)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, (or use more according to your liking)
- 1 garlic cloves, (minced)
For Vegetables:
- ½ cup fresh julienned carrots
- 1 cup thinly sliced white onion
- ½ red bell pepper, (cut into thin slices or julienne)
- 1 bunch fresh spinach , (about 12 oz)
- 5-6 dried Shiitake mushrooms, (or use fresh Shiitake mushroom or regular mushrooms)
- 2 green onions, (cut crosswise into 2 inch long pieces)
- vegetable oil , (to stir fry)
- salt, (to stir fry)
Optional:
- 2-3 whole eggs
Instructions
Preparation:
- Marinate the Beef: In a medium bowl, combine beef with soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, black pepper, and minced garlic. Mix well and marinate while preparing other ingredients.
- Soak the Dried Mushrooms (skip this if you are using fresh mushrooms): In a medium bowl, cover the dried Shiitake mushrooms with boiling water. Cover with plastic wrap to stop heat escaping. Let the mushrooms sit for at least 20 minutes until the caps are tender. Before use: Squeeze the excess liquid from the mushrooms, then remove and discard any tough stems.
- Japchae sauce: In a medium bowl, stir together soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, sesame seeds, black pepper, and garlic. Set aside.
Cook the Vegetables:
- White Onion: In a large skillet, heat about 1 teaspoon of oil over medium heat until shimmering. Cook the white onion with a pinch of salt until just tender (for about 2 minutes). Be sure to keep stirring to prevent burning. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Carrot: Add ½-1 teaspoon vegetable oil and cook the carrots with a pinch of salt until just tender. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent burning. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Red Bell Pepper: Add ½-1 teaspoon vegetable oil and cook the red bell pepper with a pinch of salt until just tender. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent burning. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Green onion: Add ½-1 teaspoon vegetable oil and cook the green onion with a pinch of salt until just tender. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent burning. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Shiitake Mushroom: Add the shiitake mushrooms into the skillet with no oil needed. Stir and keep cooking until the mushroom is fully cooked or browned. Remove from heat and set aside.
Cook the Beef:
- In a large skillet, heat about ½-1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add beef and cook, stirring, until beef is cooked through. Remove from heat and set aside.
Cook the Noodles and Spinach:
- Spinach: In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook spinach until tender, about 30 seconds. Remove the spinach from the heat and rinse in cold water a couple of times. Squeeze out excess water from the spinach with hands. Set aside.
- Noodles: In the same pot, using the same water, cook the noodles according to the product packaging or until tender but still chewy. Drain the cooked noodles and transfer to a large platter or bowl.
Cook the Eggs:
- In a large skillet, heat about 1 teaspoon of oil; swirl to coat over medium-low heat. Cook the beaten eggs, swirl so the egg covers the surface into a thin layer. Cook until the egg is set. Remove from the heat and cut into small pieces or julienne.
Mix all the ingredients with sauce:
- Stir in about ⅔ of the Japchae sauce into the noodles until well coated. Add cooked vegetables and beef into the bowl, then add the remaining sauce. Toss all the ingredients together until well coated. Adjust seasoning with salt/pepper, sesame oil, and sesame seeds if needed.
Karen Morse says
I've had this in restaurants before but I never actually thought about making the recipe at home. I wouldn't mind though, because it's really good!
Sarah Bailey says
I've never had noodles quite like this before but it sounds like something I would really enjoy and always up for trying something new too!
Terri Steffes says
Those flavors are popping out from the page. I can tell this is a fragrant dish. I would love to make it.
Ana says
I love Sweet Potato and would love to try your recipe. It looks incredibly delicious!