Miso Nikomi Udon

Step 1

Gather all the ingredients.

Step 2

Make 3 cups dashi using one of 3 Ways to Make Dashi. Here I used the convenient dashi packet method. If you’re vegetarian/vegan, use Kombu Dashi. If you want to make standard Awase Dashi.

Step 3

Cut the end of shimeji mushrooms and separate into smaller chunks.

Step 4

Cut the stem of shiitake mushrooms and cut in halves. I use “sogigiri" cutting technique to increase the surface.

Step 5

If you like, you can make a decorative cut on the shiitake mushrooms.

Step 6

Cut Kamaboko fish cake into 4 slices.

Step 7

Cut the Negi (long green onion) diagonally, and separate white and green parts (we will add them to the pot at different times).

Step 8

Pour hot water over aburaage to get rid of the factory oil. Some people skip the step as the oil used is cleaner these days. I do it anyway to get rid of excess oil. [Optional] Cut into smaller pieces. I cut into triangles.

Step 9

Cut the chicken into smaller bite-size pieces. I use "sogigiri" technique to create a bigger surface of the chicken so it will cook faster and absorb more flavors.

Step 10

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the frozen udon noodles and loosen it with chopsticks. As soon as they are loosened (30 seconds or so), drain the udon noodles into a colander and set aside. If you use dry noodles, follow the package instructions.

Step 11

Crack eggs into a small bowl (so you won’t accidentally drop an egg shell into the pot) and make sure all ingredients are now ready to go!

Step 12

In a large pot (or donabe), add 3 cups dashi, chicken, and white part of negi.

Step 13

Cover to cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, or until the outside of the chicken is no longer pink (inside can be still pink at this stage). When boiling, turn the heat down to simmer. Skim off the fat and scum with a fine mesh skimmer.

Step 14

Add 3 Tbsp mirin and 3 Tbsp miso (keep 1 Tbsp for later. Why? Read my post.). I use a Miso Muddler and it works wonderfully to make sure miso is dissolved completely. You should place miso in a ladle and use chopsticks to let miso dissolve inside the ladle before releasing it into the dashi. That way you can make sure there are no miso chunks left at the bottom of the pot.

Step 15

Add udon noodles, aburaage, shimeji mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, and green part of negi. If you care about the presentation of this dish, now is a good time to place each ingredient and fish out the chicken pieces and place on top of udon noodles.

Step 16

Increase the heat to medium, cover with the lid, and cook for 5 minutes. When boiling, turn the heat down to simmer. Once in a while, make sure to check udon or other ingredients are not stuck on the bottom of the pot, by inserting cooking chopsticks. Skim off the fat and scum with a fine mesh skimmer.

Step 17

Add 1 Tbsp miso in the soup. Be careful not to drop the chunk of miso. Use a ladle as a “mixing bowl” so you won’t lose the miso.

Step 18

Add kamaboko fish cakes (where it could have a nice color) and carefully drop the eggs in the middle. From this point, you do not want to cover with the lid (egg yolk will have a thin white coating when you cover). Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Step 19

Serve the pot at the table along with individual bowls. Serve in the bowl and sprinkle Shichimi Togarashi for a bit of spicy kick.