Vegetarian Chap Chae

A couple of weeks ago, I headed down to the city to satisfy my chap chae craving (and boy it was a major one to satisfy). I must be out of luck as even the best chap chae in town did not even come close to hitting the spot. It was much too oily, slightly soggy and ten miles past my threshold of sweetness in a supposedly savoury dish. Disappointing much. I set out to make my own chap chae a few days ago because, hey -  reduced sugar, fresh ingredients, no-no greasiness? - sounds terrific to me.


Ever since I first heard of Chap Chae, I have this inkling suspicion that it actually means 杂菜 ('mixed vegetables' in Mandarin). Sure enough, Wiki confirmed that. Or so history claims that Chap Chae was created in the 17th century for a huge banquet in the palace. The king actually loved this dish so much that he presented the creator (and his WHOLE LINEAGE) with a title equivalent to 'Secretary of Treasury'. It's a bit mental what they do in the olden days huh?


Traditional Chap Chae was made with cellophane - sounds like I'm eating tape - noodles made from potato starch and a variety of vegetables like shiitake mushrooms, cucumber and daikon radish. Inspired by David Chang's recipe, here's my take on one of my favourite Korean dishes.


Vegetarian Chap Chae


Makes 2 meals


Ingredients:
100g uncooked sweet potato cellophane noodles, cooked as per instructions
1 tbs oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium carrot, julienned
1 medium cucumber, julienned
3 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked and thinly sliced
3 medium pieces dried black fungus, soaked and thinly sliced
2 handfuls mung bean sprouts, washed
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs sesame oil
1 tsp artificial sweetener (I used Splenda)
Pepper to taste
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish


Preparation:
Heat oil in large saucepan, sauté onion, ginger and garlic until fragrant and onions are soft. Lower flame. Add carrot, black fungus and mushrooms and cook for about 5-8 minutes. Add mung bean sprouts and cook for 1 minute (I like them crisp). In a large bowl, add the noodles and mix in the cooked vegetables. Toss in the cucumbers and the Splenda (dissolved in soy sauce), sesame oil and some seasame seeds. Mix thoroughly and add pepper to taste. 


The beauty of Chap Chae is that it is so easy to make, requires cheap ingredients and can be served either hot or cold! One thing though, I had some leftovers the next day and it became soggy and mushy. Not very nice. So it's a good idea to finish it within the day - not a hard thing to do since it's so yummy anyway! :)