Step 1

Soak Korean glass noodles (Dangmyeon or Vermicelli) and any dried mushrooms in room temp water for 2- 3 hours. You can also soak both mushrooms and glass noodles overnight.

Step 2

Clean and cut other vegetables: julienne carrots, onions and cut green onions into similar lengths as carrots and onions. Split lengthwise in half if the white part of green onion is thicker than a pencil.

Step 3

When mushrooms are fully reconstituted, rinse and clean the mushrooms. When cleaning wood ear mushrooms, make sure the bottom part are free of dirt and white matter by rubbing all of it off with your fingers.

Step 4

Drain and squeeze any excess water from shitake mushrooms. DO NOT DISCARD all of the mushroom water. Save 2 Tbs of mushroom water for later. Do not squeeze the mushrooms too much, just one gentle squeeze with your hands is good enough. Just enough so that mushrooms are not dripping water.

Step 5

Cut shitake mushrooms into thin slices. Cut wood ear mushrooms into bite size pieces (size of quarters).

Step 6

Marinate Shitake mushroom slices with soy sauce, rice wine, garlic, sugar, sesame oil and black pepper.

Step 7

Make sauce for Japchae by mixing everything in a bowl except water. Set aside.

Step 8

Drain glass noodles and set aside.

Step 9

Heat 2 Tbs of vegetable oil on medium high heat in a wok or deep stir-fry pan and stir-fry chopped green onions (about 2 Tbs) for 30 seconds or until cooked but not browned.

Step 10

Add marinated Shitake mushrooms to pan and stir-fry for 30 seconds or so.

Step 11

Add carrots, onions and wood ear mushrooms and stir-fry for about 2 minutes. Season lightly with salt (1/8 tsp) and pepper (1/8 tsp). Vegetables should not be fully cooked.

Step 12

Add glass noodles (dangmyeon) to pan. Stir-fry noodles and vegetables together to coat the noodles with oil for about 1 minute. Some noodles will start to become more transparent and thicker after 1 minute.

Step 13

Add 2 Tbs Shitake mushroom water and stir-fry until noodles are fully cooked (transparent) but still al dente. Probably about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Step 14

Add Japchae sauce to pan and stir-fry for another 2 minutes or so until the sauce is fully absorbed. Quickly taste noodles along with vegetables. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Step 15

When noodles and vegetables are all cooked, turn off heat.

Step 16

Immediately, add green onions to pan and toss. Green onions will get perfectly cooked in the residual heat.

Step 17

Sprinkle sesame seeds and another drizzle of sesame oil before serving.