Late Summer Udon — Cool, Easy, Perfect
September 17th, 2009 Posted in Dishes
We’re having a mini heatwave again. You’ve got to love a climate (northern CA) that gets its best weather in mid to late September! When it gets this hot, I immediately think of cool, slippery, chewy udon, the thick wheat noodle from Japan that can be enjoyed both hot (usually in a dashi-based broth) or cold (read on).
I’ve found that dried udon, cooked like pasta, is far superior to the frozen udon sold in bags at Japanese markets. Cooking udon until al dente, draining, and then rinsing under cold running water produces a clean, slightly chewy noodle that takes beautifully to light, vibrant sauces. Imagine fresh figs mixed with fruity green olive oil in the blender; that pesto-like sauce is then gently tossed with the cool udon and topped with good salt and pepper. You could do the same with plums, apricots, pluots, nectarines, or any other summer fruit. It’s the coolness of the fruit and olive oil against the cool noodles that makes it so refreshing.
Another favorite is a sauce made from plenty of herbs, lemon (Meyer lemons work especially well here) and young ginger to really wake it up. Combine about a cup of mint, a cup of fresh coriander, a teaspoon of diced fresh young ginger, the juice and zest of a lemon, some olive oil, and perhaps a little yogurt to ensure that the blender can do its job. The dish is so light and vibrant, it almost floats away! The entire dish, start to finish, should take no longer than 15 minutes.
Can you imagine any other combinations for udon? Try some, and report back here!
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4 Responses to “Late Summer Udon — Cool, Easy, Perfect”
By
Em on Sep 18, 2009
Lemon and ginger sounds good! What’s young ginger? Is it the whitish, pinkish one?
These days, dried udon is pretty good. But nothing can beat the freshly made udon!
By
chris on Sep 18, 2009
“With dark soy source and garlic oil” – My old time favourite
Preparation:
1- Fine chopped garlic, heat the pain with oil and stir the garlic until golden brown. (Always stir to prevent garlic burning). Let it cool and store it in tight container(with oil). Note that this can be made ahead of time and be used in other dishes as well, it can be last for couple weeks but i always finished quick
2- Cook the udon and run under cold water, follow by running through in the hot water again (as this dish is good when served hot/warm)
3- Put couple teaspoon of dark soy souce on a plate/bowl, add 1 teaspoon of the garlic+oil(can add more if you like garlic), little white pepper and light soy sauce.
4- Then add the udon on to it and stir well. It taste even better when add roasted pork, pak choy, wontan etc.
By
Eric on Sep 18, 2009
Em — yes, the whitish pink one, really firm, looks very fresh. I picked up a huge bunch of it the other day at New May Wah (on Clement) for I think 2.99/pound, which is ridiculously cheap. Berkeley Bowl also always has it. I think I saw it once at Whole Foods but it was like $12/pound!
Chris, thanks. Have you ever used garlic confit? I’ve pretty much switched all garlic use to confit:
http://www.breakawaycook.com/blog/2008/04/03/garlic-confit/
By
chris on Sep 18, 2009
Eric, i haven’t but will try….
Btw, the one that i prepared do not need to be refrigerated. Just cover will oil.
Some of the advantages of the garlic:
- Prevent heart attack
- Reduce Cholesterol
- Blood “cleaning”
- Kill germs