How To Cook Udon Noodles with Nissin Demae Iccho Bar Udon

How To Cook Udon Noodles (Quick Navigation to Udon Noodle Recipe):

• Jump to Curry Udon Recipe
• Jump to Bonito Udon Recipe
• Jump to Tonkotsu Udon Recipe
• Jump to Beef Udon Recipe

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What is udon?

Udon are thick, chewy noodles. You can make hot udon soup or cold udon served with a dipping broth or sauce at room temperature. 

What is udon made of?

Udon noodles are made of wheat flour, water and salt.

Is udon Japanese?

Yes! It is. Udon noodles are Japanese noodles. There are many kinds of udon, differing in texture and thickness, from different regions of Japan. 

Japanese Inaniwa udon is a special, thin, flat and smooth variety of udon noodles from Akita Prefecture in Japan, celebrated for its refined flavor and texture. Crafted using a traditional hand-stretching process dating back to the 1600s, these noodles require careful, multi-day production, resulting in a delicate, silky finish with a gentle snap.

 

As the industry pioneer, Nissin used modern technology to successfully replicate the smooth, chewy and full-flavored Japanese Inaniwa udon. To elevate the whole tasting experience, the Bar Udon comes with 4 types of delicious soup base: Curry, Bonito, Tonkotsu and Tomato Beef.

Instant Inaniwa udon is hard to find here in the U.S., so this is definitely a treat for us.

Here are some recipes below on how to make a yummy udon noodles soup.

 

#1 Curry Udon Recipe with Pork Belly Slices, Baby Carrots & Onion Slices

Pork and carrots are the usual ingredients for Japanese curry rice bowls. This is basically a udon version of that. Instead of chops, thin slices of pork belly are easier to cook in broth. And baby carrots are quicker to cook through than normal carrot pieces. The final touch of onion slices add to the taste and aroma, providing sweetness, umami and depth of flavor.

Here's how I would cook it:

1. Bring to boil 600ml of water in a one-man clay pot in high heat. 
2. Add only the soup powder from the package, stir well, then let it boil.
3. When the water boils, turn the fire to medium-low, add baby carrots, then let it simmer for 10 minutes in medium-low heat.
4. 10 minutes later, add bar udon and cook for another 6 minutes. Stir a few times during this period of time.
5. Add pork belly slices, flip them a few times to ensure they're thoroughly cooked. It takes about 2 minutes. When the color turns from pink to light brown, that means it's cooked.
6. Add onion slices and the seasoning oil from the package, then you're done.

 

#2 Bonito Udon Recipe with Japanese Fish Cake, Bean Sprout & Chopped Scallions

This clear broth udon is so fragrant. It reminds me of the Hong Kong fishball noodles. Perhaps I'm always home sick ;P 

Japanese fish cakes and bean sprouts complement the taste of the bonito soup base fantastically. The final touch of chopped scallions and bonito flakes enhances the dish with a smoky, savory, umami-rich flavor, adding to the complexity of the taste.

Here's the steps to make this Japanese version of my favourite fishball noodles:

1. Boil 600ml of water in a one-man clay pot in high heat.
2. Add seasonings from the package.
3. When the water boils, put the udon then fish cakes (I like to cut them into bite size pieces but it's totally up to you how you like it) into the boiling broth, turn the fire to medium-low heat, let it simmer for 8 minutes.
   
4. Stir the noodles a few times while simmering.
5. 8 minutes later, add bean sprouts, then turn the fire off. I don't like my bean sprout soggy so I don't really cook it. The boiling hot broth would soften them well. But if you like them real soft, you can keep simmering for another 30 seconds.
6. Put some chopped scallions & bonito flakes. They make the udon smell even better!

 

#3 Tonkotsu Udon Recipe with Homemade Char Siu, Shiitake Mushroom & Corn

This one is for Japanese ramen fans! Same flavor but chewier and smoother noodles!

You can easily get char siu at store but I love to batch-make a bunch of char siu (barbecue pork, Hong Kong style), slice them and put them in the freezer. They last quite some time. Whenever you want to make ramen, udon, fried rice or even Chinese Char Siu sandwich (of course not with bread but the Chinese steamed bun), you can simply pull them out of the freezer and defrost them for use. If you wanna try making them, Below is my Facebook post for recipe: 

Corn and mushrooms soak up the broth super well. I used Shiitake mushrooms. You can also use White Beech or Shimeji Brown mushrooms, both of which work equally well. 

Here's the steps:

1. Boil 600ml of water in a one-man clay pot in high heat.
2. Put both of the seasonings from the package into the water, stir well to make the broth.
3. When the broth boils, turn the heat to medium-low, add udon, then Shiitake mushrooms and corn. Simmer for 8 minutes.
4. Stir a few times while simmering.
5. When 8 minutes passed, add the char siu. If they're still frozen, you can give an extra minute for the slices to be warmed up. Then you're done!

 

#4 Beef Udon Recipe with Marble Beef Slices, Cherry Tomatoes, Chinese Lettuce & Onion Slices

Isn't it unsurprising that I'm adding tomatoes and beef to a tomato beef udon? Yup! They really go well together, LOL.

I used marble beef slices as they are more tender. You can put any type of tomato but I picked Cherry tomato for its sweetness and also the big slices will dissolve into the broth after 8 minutes of boiling. So if you want to eat the tomatoes, use the small tiny ones. Chinese lettuce is perfect for this broth given its original neutral taste. Onion gives the broth more complexity.

Now here are the how-to:

1. Boil 600ml of water in a one-man clay pot in high heat.
2. Add only the soup powder to the water and stir well to create the broth.
3. When the broth is bubbling, turn fire to medium-low. Add udon and simmer for 3 minutes.
4. After 3 minutes, add cherry tomato and let it simmer for 3 more minutes.
5. After a total of 6 minutes, put the Chinese lettuce, Onion and marble beef slices into the broth. Flip the beef slices a few times so that they're cooked through. 
6. Then, stir in the other pack of seasoning sauce into the broth, mix them well. Now, you're done!

 

Now, it's your turn! Pick a flavor that you like, start making your bowl of yummy, chewy and unstoppable slurp-inducing udon!

While you're enjoying the yummy udon, and showing it off on social media, don't forget to tag us @thehongkongfoodies so that we can see your creation too! I'm sure they're just as amazing if not better.

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