Have you ever been at Korean buffet or Korean food catering place to eat delicious Korean food? If you did, you definitely saw or tried the Korean stir-fried cellophane noodle dish called Japchae. Japchae is one of the most popular and common traditional Korean foods. Compared to the homemade ones, I see a few unique things about restaurant japchae. One is that restaurant japchae seems to keep the shiny oily texture of the noodles longer than homemade ones. Like any other noodle dishes, you can imagine that the noodles become fluffy/soggy as the time goes. Restaurants need to do something about that since you do not want to serve customers soggy noodles. Another thing is that most restaurant japchae doesn’t have meat in it. If the japchae comes as a side or buffet menu in the restaurant, the restaurant makes it cheaper by skipping the meat. Skipping the meat also makes it good for vegetarians or vegans. As a result, restuarnt japchae tends to have a more glossy texture and it is meatless. But, the taste is still delicious and if you make restaurant-style japchae at home, it is okay to make it ahead of time for your party or meal since it keeps better. Of course, if you are a vegetarian or a vegan, this is just perfect for you. So today, I will post my second japchae recipe for japchae – my restaurant or vegetarian version.
Yield: 4-6 Servings