Champon

Steps

1. Gather all the ingredients. To cook the noodles, start to bring a large pot of water to a boil over low heat.

2. In a medium pot, combine 2 cups chicken stock/broth and 1 cup dashi (Japanese soup stock).

3. Add 1 Tbsp sake, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, and 1 tsp sugar and bring to a boil.

4. Once boiling, add ¼ cup whole milk and ⅛ tsp white pepper powder.

5. Taste the soup and see if you need to season it with kosher salt. I added about ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt. The saltiness varies depending on the chicken stock you use.

6. Cut 2 oz sliced pork belly into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces. Place in a small bowl and add 1 tsp sake and 1 tsp soy sauce.

7. Add 2 tsp sake to another bowl with 4 shrimp and 2 oz squid (here, I put the shrimp and squid in separate bowls and added 1 tsp sake to each). Set aside for 5 minutes to remove the unwanted odor.

8. Score the squid in the crisscross pattern by making parallel diagonal lines. Make sure not to cut it all the way through.

9. In a small bowl, add 6 pieces dried wood ear mushrooms and just enough water to cover them. Rehydrate until soft and squeeze to remove the water. Cut into smaller pieces.

10. Cut 2 inches carrot into thin slabs and cut in half lengthwise.

11. Cut ¼ onion into slices.

12. Remove the core of 2 leaves green cabbage. Cut the leaves into strips and then smaller square pieces.

13. Remove the strings from 8 pieces snow peas and cut in half. Thinly slice the ⅓ cake kamaboko (fish cake).

14. Heat a wok on medium-high heat and add 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil.

15. Once hot, add the pork belly and cook until no longer pink.

16. Add the shrimp and squid and cook until no longer opaque.

17. Then, add the onion and carrot, and stir-fry for 1 minute.

18. Add the wood ear mushrooms and cabbage and stir-fry for 1 minute.

19. Add the kamaboko fish cake, 4 oz bean sprouts, and snow peas and stir-fry for 1 minute.

20. Season with freshly ground black pepper and toss to combine.

21. Add the soup into the wok.

22. Taste the soup and see if you need to adjust with salt. I added ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt.

23. Cook 11 oz champon noodles according to the package instructions. Make sure to loosen the noodles with your hands first before adding to the boiling water.

24. I usually cook the noodles 15–20 seconds less than what the package instruction recommends. Pick up the noodles (or drain the noodles into a sieve) and transfer them to serving bowls. Make sure to drain the water well so it won’t dilute the soup.

25. Add the toppings and soup and serve immediately.