Udon Nabemono
Thomas J. Story
You know what’s better than soup to warm you up on a cool night outside the tent? Hot pot, particularly packed with well-spiced noodles. This “nabe” is a go-to for Palm Springs chef Gabriel Woo, who’s at the helm of Bar Cecil restaurant.
Before you head out on a camping trip, Woo recommends preparing these vegetables at home. Then all you have to do is heat up the broth—an induction burner will do the trick—to build your bowl.
This recipe and others like it can be found in the article "No Fire? No Problem. Camp Cooking Solutions."
How to Make It
1
Add chicken broth to a medium stockpot and bring to a low simmer on medium heat.
2
Add tamari, sake, dashi powder, and mirin, and stir to incorporate. Let the broth simmer 5–10 minutes. Adjust seasoning to your liking.
3
Blanch the spinach and steep 1 minute. Remove and shock in an ice bath. Then remove and squeeze out as much excess liquid as possible from the spinach. Roughly chop and set aside.
4
Add mushrooms to broth and cook 5–10 minutes. Remove to a plate and allow to cool completely.
5
Add cabbage to broth and cook 5 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside to cool completely.
6
Add broccolini to broth and cook 2–3 minutes until vibrant green. Remove, shock in an ice bath, and set aside.
7
Add carrots to broth, cook 2–4 minutes, remove, then allow to cool on a plate.
8
Taste broth and readjust seasoning.
9
Pack broth, veggies, noodles, and tofu
in separate containers. Seal for easy
transport to a camping trip.
10
When you’re ready to eat, heat up broth in a pot on an induction burner. Add noodles, veggies, and tofu. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with scallions and furikake to taste. Enjoy!
Ingredients
4 ½ cups chicken broth
1 cup tamari
¾ cup sake
1 tsp dashi powder
¾ cup mirin
2 bunches Bloomsdale spinach
4 oz shimeji mushrooms, trimmed
½ Napa cabbage, roughly chopped
1 bunch broccolini, trimmed
2 medium carrots, sliced on bias
1 lb udon
1 lb firm tofu, pressed and cut into 1⁄4-inch cubes
1 scallion, chopped
Furikake for garnish
Directions
1
Add chicken broth to a medium stockpot and bring to a low simmer on medium heat.
2
Add tamari, sake, dashi powder, and mirin, and stir to incorporate. Let the broth simmer 5–10 minutes. Adjust seasoning to your liking.
3
Blanch the spinach and steep 1 minute. Remove and shock in an ice bath. Then remove and squeeze out as much excess liquid as possible from the spinach. Roughly chop and set aside.
4
Add mushrooms to broth and cook 5–10 minutes. Remove to a plate and allow to cool completely.
5
Add cabbage to broth and cook 5 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside to cool completely.
6
Add broccolini to broth and cook 2–3 minutes until vibrant green. Remove, shock in an ice bath, and set aside.
7
Add carrots to broth, cook 2–4 minutes, remove, then allow to cool on a plate.
8
Taste broth and readjust seasoning.
9
Pack broth, veggies, noodles, and tofu
in separate containers. Seal for easy
transport to a camping trip.
10
When you’re ready to eat, heat up broth in a pot on an induction burner. Add noodles, veggies, and tofu. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with scallions and furikake to taste. Enjoy!
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