Nyumen Somen Soup

Ingredients

• 300 g dried somen noodles
• 1.2 litres dashi
• 2 tbsp usukuchi light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mirin
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 4 dried shiitake mushrooms, or 100 g fresh shiitake
• 8 slices kamaboko fish cake
• 150 g spinach
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• A few strips of yuzu peel, optional

Before you cook

• Soak the dried shiitake in 150 ml warm water for 15 minutes, then squeeze them out and slice them, saving the soaking liquid.
• Wash the spinach thoroughly and shake it dry.
• Slice the kamaboko and the spring onions.
• Grate the ginger into a small bowl.
• Pare a few thin strips of yuzu peel if you have one.

Steps

1. Pour the dashi and the strained shiitake soaking liquid into a saucepan.
2. Add the sliced shiitake and bring the broth to a gentle simmer.
3. Season the broth with the usukuchi soy sauce, mirin and salt, then taste it and adjust.
4. Simmer the broth for 5 minutes so the mushrooms soften and give up their flavour.
5. Add the spinach to the broth and cook for 1 minute, until it wilts.
6. Lift out the spinach with tongs and set it aside.
7. Bring a separate large pot of water to a rolling boil.
8. Cook the somen for 90 seconds only, stirring once, as it goes from raw to overcooked very fast.
9. Drain the somen and rinse it under cold running water, rubbing off the starch.
10. Divide the rinsed noodles between four warmed bowls.
11. Slip the kamaboko into the hot broth for 30 seconds to warm through.
12. Ladle the hot broth and mushrooms over the noodles.
13. Top each bowl with the wilted spinach, the kamaboko and a pinch of spring onion.
14. Add a small heap of grated ginger and a strip of yuzu peel to each bowl and serve immediately.