Spicy Seafood Japchae

Ingredients

• 4 ounces dangmyeon (당면 (Korean sweet potato starch noodles))
• 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1/2 to 1 tablespoon gochugaru (preferably finely ground - see note)
• 1 small squid (about 4 ounces)
• 8 small shrimp (peeled and deveined)
• 1/4 medium onion (thinly sliced)
• ⅓ small carrot (cut into matchsticks)
• 2 to 3 fresh shiitake mushrooms (or mushrooms of your choice, thinly sliced)
• 2 ounces enoki mushrooms - optional
• 1 scallion (sliced diagonally)
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the noodles in warm water until soft (about 30 to 40 minutes), and drain.

2. 2

   Clean the shrimp and squid. Cut the squid into bite size pieces.

3. 3

   Prepare the vegetables, and mix all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

4. 4

   Add the vegetable oil, sesame oil, and the gochugaru to a pan, and heat until hot over medium low heat, stirring. Remove from the heat as soon as the oil starts to turn red and the chili pepper flakes become a bit pasty. Do not burn the gochugaru.

5. 5

   Turn the heat to medium, and add the noodles to the pan along with 1-1/2 tablespoons of the prepared sauce. Stir-fry until the noodles are soft, 3 to 4 minutes.

6. 6

   Remove the noodles onto a plate. In the same pan, stir fry the onion for a minute, and then carrot and mushrooms until wilted. Add a tablespoon of water if the vegetables look dry. Lightly season with salt and pepper.

7. 7

   Add the seafood and the remaining sauce, and stir-fry until the seafood is cooked through. Follow this by the scallion and optional enoki mushrooms until the scallions are slightly wilted.

8. 8

   Return the noodles to the pan, and toss everything well together. You can add a bit more sugar and/or soy sauce to taste.