Hiyashi somen
Chilled thin noodles
Hiyashi somen: chilled thin noodles with cold mentsuyu
All over Japan, hiyashi somen is what families eat on the hottest evenings of July and August: hair-thin wheat noodles chilled in iced water and dipped, a mouthful at a time, into cold mentsuyu with grated ginger and spring onion. The dipping sauce is made with bonito dashi and mirin, which contains alcohol; it is boiled briefly, and an alcohol-free swap is given. The classic mistake is not rinsing the cooked noodles hard under cold water, which leaves them starchy and stuck together. Chef's tip: tie the bundles with a little thread before cooking, or keep their paper band on, so they stay in neat skeins.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
For the mentsuyu
- ¾ cup dashi stockbonito and kombu
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp mirinfor alcohol-free use 1 1/2 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp more water
For the noodles
- 7 oz dried somen noodles
- 1 handful ice cubes
- 2 tsp fresh gingerfinely grated
- 1 spring onionvery thinly sliced
- 4 shiso or mint leaves (optional)shredded
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Bring ¾ cup dashi stock, 3 tbsp soy sauce and 3 tbsp mirin to the boil in a small pan, simmer for 1 minute, then pour into a jug and chill in the freezer while you cook the noodles.
3 minStep 2: Bring a large pan of water to a rolling boil. Add 7 oz dried somen noodles, stir to separate and cook for the time on the packet, usually 1½–2 minutes, until just tender.
3 minStep 3: Drain into a colander and rinse under cold running water, rubbing the noodles between your hands to wash off the starch, until they feel slippery, not sticky.
2 minStep 4: Put the noodles in a bowl of iced water with 1 handful ice cubes and serve them straight from it, or drain onto a chilled plate.
1 minStep 5: Pour the cold mentsuyu into small dipping cups. Each person adds 2 tsp fresh ginger, 1 spring onion, 4 shiso or mint leaves and 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds to taste, then dips the noodles as they eat.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 410 kcal
- Protein
- 13 g
- Carbs
- 84 g
- Fat
- 2 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does hiyashi somen take?
- About 15 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of soy sauce?
- Tamari, same amount (gluten free).
- What can I use instead of mirin?
- Rice vinegar with ½ tsp sugar per tbsp.
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