Nagashi Somen Noodle Party
Two Michelin Stared Chef's Lissa Doumani and Hiro Sone of Ame Restaurant and Terra show Nick Smith that eating noodles forces you to find new combinations and techniques every time.
Hiro Sone and Lissa Doumani, the celebrated duo behind the acclaimed Terra restaurant in Napa Valley, have brought their passion for exceptional dining to their first San Francisco restaurant, Ame. The menu showcases seasonal New American cuisine featuring fresh ingredients from local purveyors, including an assortment of sashimi, crudo, tartare, carpaccio and other raw treatments.
Website: www.amerestaurant.com
This recipe can be made for a really large gathering (40 people) or for a smaller gathering (6 people). There are other Japanese noodles you can use also; Buckwheat Soba, a thin brown noodle made from buckwheat and wheat.
Noodle Broth
Mix all ingredients together and bring to a boil. You can make this up to 3 days ahead and keep refrigerated.
- 8 1/2 cups Bonito Stock (Hon Dashi, you can buy this in granular form at an Asian market)
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 6 tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Sugar
- 2 tablespoons Mirin
Garnishes, try to include at least 5 different items, the more you chose the more fun:
- 3 cups Tuna Sashimi Grade diced
- 2 cups Green onion white and green parts finely chopped
- 2 cups Salmon Caviar or Flying Fish Roe
- 1 cup Toasted Nori shreds, you can buy them already cut
- 1 tube Wasabi
- 2 cups Yamo Imo, a mountain potato that is a bit slimy, peeled and diced
- 1 cup Shiso leaves chiffonade
- 1 pound Somen Noodles
You will need an 8 ounce dipping bowl for each person to hold the noodle, broth and condiments. Place each one of the ingredients that you choose to garnish with in its own bowl and set out with a serving utensil for each one. Drain the cooked noodles into a large flat bowl and toss with ice cubes. This will keep the noodles cold and pliable. You can set this up on a counter and each person stands takes a few noodles and dips them into their bowl or you can set everything on the table.
To cook the Noodles:
Start the noodles just when you want to serve and not before.
Fill a large pot 2/3 with water and bring to a boil and drop in the somen. Check the noodles after 3 minutes then every half minute to see if they are done to your liking, al dente is preferred. Drain and rinse well then cool in an ice water bath. Then follow the instructions of serving.
A great accompaniment for this party is to have a sake tasting. Most of us are used to drinking hot sake but in Japan most people drink sake cold so that they can appreciate the aroma of the rice and the delicate flavor of the sake. There are a few good sakes made her but you should try to include regional sakes from Japan. They may be harder to find and mostly come in very large bottles, 1.8 liter. Talk to your wine store or Asian market so that you can get an assortment of styles then refrigerate a day before and serve in wooden sake boxes if you want to be very traditional, small sake cups or a great choice is a wine glass. Put out a large zinc tub or another decorative tub, fill with ice and the sake bottles and let your guests pick their favorite.
