Somen Noodle Soup (Nyumen)

1. Gather all the ingredients. For cooking the dried somen noodles, bring a big pot of water to a boil, covered, over medium heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and keep simmering.

To Make the Somen Broth

1. In a large pot or donabe (I used this Hario‘s Yukihira Stainless Steel Pot), add 3 cups water and 2 dashi packets. Bring it to a boil, covered, over medium heat. If you have mentsuyu (concentrated noodle soup base), see the instructions below for how to prepare a quick somen broth.
2. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cook, covered, for 2–3 minutes. Then, squeeze the liquid from the dashi packets and discard them.
3. Add 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1½ Tbsp mirin, 1 tsp sugar, and ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and mix it all together. Turn off the heat. Cover the pot with the lid (so the broth doesn’t evaporate) and set it aside.

To Prepare the Ingredients

1. With a knife, cut 1 head Shanghai bok choy in half lengthwise. Then, cut it into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces. Separate the tough white parts and leafy green parts into two groups and set them aside.
2. With a vegetable peeler, peel 2 inches carrot and cut it into thin rounds with the knife. Set them aside with the tough white parts of the bok choy.
3. Remove and discard the stems of 4 shiitake mushrooms. If you‘d like, create a decorative flower cut on the caps called shiitake hanagiri. Set them aside with the leafy green parts of the bok choy.
4. Detach the bottom of the kamaboko (fish cake) by inserting the knife between the wooden board and fish cake. Then, thinly cut into 4 slices kamaboko (fish cake). Set aside with the leafy vegetables.
5. Cut 3 sprigs mitsuba (Japanese parsley) and 1 green onion/scallion into small pieces. Set them aside on a small bowl or plate to serve with the soup later on.
6. In a small bowl, beat 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) with a whisk (I use a flat whisk that I love) and set aside.
7. Remove the ribbons that wrap around the 3 bundles dried somen noodles. The noodles take only 90 seconds to cook; therefore, you want to start cooking the noodles all at once.

To Cook the Somen Noodle Soup

1. Add the tough white parts of the bok choy and carrots to the simmering broth. Cook, covered, for 4–5 minutes over medium heat.
2. Add the shiitake mushrooms, kamaboko, and leafy green parts of the bok choy to the broth. Cook, covered, for 2 minutes. During this time, cook the somen noodles (instructions in the next section).
3. After cooking for 2 minutes, take out the kamaboko and shiitake mushrooms. This is an optional step and only applies if you want to decorate your final dish with kamaboko and shiitake on top of the noodles.
4. Slowly drizzle a small amount of the beaten eggs over the simmering broth, which will create a fluffy texture. Place your cooking chopsticks at the edge of the bowl that contains the beaten eggs. This will help drizzle the eggs.
5. Add the cooked somen noodles and let them warm up while the eggs continue to cook.
6. Place the kamaboko and shiitake mushrooms on top of the noodles. Sprinkle the green onions, mitsuba, and ½ tsp toasted white sesame seeds on top.

To Serve

1. Serve the noodles and broth into individual bowls and enjoy!

To Cook the Somen Noodles

1. Add the dried somen noodles to boiling water. Cook according to the package instructions (usually 1½–2 minutes; mine is 1½ minutes). I undercook the noodles by 30 seconds (so I cook the noodles for 60 seconds), since the noodles continue to cook once I place them in the hot broth.
2. Stir the noodles occasionally, making sure they do not stick to the bottom or the sides of the pot. After cooking, drain the noodles into a sieve.
3. Rinse the noodles in cold running water until they are cool enough to handle. Then, rinse them as if you are washing your clothes. You need to knead/massage the noodles to get rid of the oil. When you have finished, drain well.

To Make the Quick Somen Broth (with concentrated mentsuyu; optional)

1. Follow your mentsuyu bottle instructions to make the broth. Your total volume of the broth should be approximately 750 ml or a little more than 3 cups. For my bottle of concentrated mentsuyu, I combine 2⅔ cups water, 6 Tbsp mentsuyu (concentrated noodle soup base), and 2 Tbsp mirin in a large pot. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Once simmering, cover with a lid. The somen broth is ready to use.

To Store

1. Refrigerate the noodles, toppings, and broth separately for up to 2–3 days. Reheat in a pot on the stovetop until hot.