I’m not comfortable cooking with flour. I have over-mixed cake batter that resulted in dense bricks many times, I don’t like cleaning up flour–I hate how it gets on my black apron, I’m also gluten-intolerant-sensitive (I had a brain fart when I was typing this). But I LOVE noodles. I love them all. I don’t mess around when it comes to eating noodles.
My parents always made these noodles from scratch when making Chicken Noodle Soup (with a soda on the side). I had all the ingredients except noodles. The closest Korean market is 20 minutes away.. so in my mind it made more sense to make the dough, let it rest overnight, and make this dish the next day rather than just going to the market. I don’t know if that’s because of my love for noodles or my laziness. Probably more laziness.
Korean zucchini is individually packaged and has a cartoon zucchini on it. Yes, they print a cartoon vegetable on the wrapper and grown-ups buy this.
Be very liberal with the flour when folding over to cut into strips. Next time, I’d like to try this with bread flour instead of all-purpose that I used here. It could’ve been more chewy.
Kimchi, pickled garlic (from my mom), Overnight Pickled Watermelon Radish (coming soon), Spicy Korean Sauce. My sauce is dark because it’s been fermenting in the fridge since February. This stuff lasts forever.
No, that noodle to soup ratio is not off. I ate it all. As soon as I took this shot, I started eating… Okay to be completely honest, I took out some of the noodles because I was thinking, “whoa, too much” but then I kept adding it back to my bowl while eating and before I knew it, I had eaten all the noodles.
I felt like crap the rest of the day (re: gluten intolerance sensitive) but it was TOTALLY WORTH IT.
But also, (this is the grown-up in me speaking because I really don’t want to promote gluttony and irresponsible eating) I drink a green smoothie almost everyday and usually eat only one large meal. These noodles are the only meal I ate that day.
Notes:
I used homemade stock. I wrote about how I do it here (in the notes section). If using store bought stock just get the best kind.
I only made 2 servings of soup for me and the dude so the pics you see of ingredients are half. I saved the rest of the noodles for something else.
I strongly recommend Korean Spicy Sauce with this dish. They’re always served together.
I cook my chicken breasts by blanching them. Add them to a pot large enough for the chicken to be in a single layer. Add enough water to just barely not cover the chicken. Bring to boil, immediately lower heat to low. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, flip chicken breasts over, cover and turn off heat. Let it sit for another 10 minutes. Remove, let cool, and shred.
It’s best the soup is ready before the noodles but if you follow my instructions, they should be ready around the same time. You don’t want the noodles to be sitting in the bowls waiting. After the noodles are placed in their bowls, the soup should be poured in immediately.
Chicken Soup w/ Handmade Knife-Cut NoodlesMakes 4 servings. Dough: active time 20 minutes + overnight rest. Final Dish: 30 minutes
- 300 grams all-purpose flour + 1 cup for rolling and cutting
- 185 ml water
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded into large pieces
- 1 small zucchini, cut like the picture above
- 4 green onions, cut into 3-4 pieces
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 t. sesame oil
Make the noodles:
1. Combine the flour and water. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. I knead mine (by hand!) for 7 minutes. Wrap in saran wrap and let it rest overnight.
2. Roll out the dough very thin, little less than 1/4″ inch thick, use flour to keep from sticking. After the dough is rolled out, spread a thin layer of flour over the surface. Make sure there is no dough exposed, it has to be covered in flour.
3. Fold in half lengthwise. Spread another layer of flour over surface and fold into thirds starting from top to bottom. Spread enough flour in between layers. (SEE PICTURE)
4. Rub a bit of flour on your knife and cut into strips about 1/4″ wide. When cutting, place your knife tip down first and then just slice down in one swift motion. If the knife sticks, rub a bit more flour on knife.
5. Throw on a bit more flour and separate the noodles one by one. Once all separated, toss the noodles with more flour by lifting and dropping the noodles and pulling them apart with your fingers. You want them pulled just a bit. So don’t be afraid when pulling but be gentle.
6. At this point you can cook and serve (see below) or store in the fridge for up to 2 days after the noodles are cut and separated. To do so, toss in more flour, like more than you think, and store in an airtight container. Once ready to cook, coax the noodles apart with your fingers by lifting them up, maybe tossing in more flour and then cook as needed.
Bring it all together:
Cut the zucchini in half crosswise. Then cut each piece in half lengthwise. And then thinly slice lengthwise. (SEE PICTURE) Place a pot large enough to hold all the stock over medium heat. Add the zucchini, sesame oil, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Saute for a few minutes until the zucchini has softened somewhat but still has a bite. Do not overcook. Remove the zucchini and set aside. Add the stock and bring to a boil over high heat.
Meanwhile, bring another large pot with about 3/4 water to boil. Drop the noodles in by the handful. Don’t just dump them all in. Immediately stir and separate with chopsticks or tongs. After the noodles float to the top, cook for another few minutes. Drain the noodles and portion into serving bowls.
To the stock, add salt to taste. Add the shredded chicken, green onions, and zucchini. Cook for a few minutes until the chicken has heated through and the green onions have just softened. Pour over the prepared bowls with the noodles–portion the chicken, zucchini, and green onions. Serve immediately with Korean Spicy Sauce.