Chilled Udon Salad (Hiyashi Chuka Udon)

• 1/4 pound haricots verts or green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-in. lengths
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup Strong Bonito Stock
• 1/4 cup Japanese white sesame paste (shiro neri goma) or 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds, ground to a sandy paste in a clean coffee grinder
• 1 tablespoon toasted, ground sesame seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons shiro miso
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3/4 pound fresh or frozen udon noodles
• 1/2 small red bell pepper, cut into very thin matchsticks
• 1/2 seeded Japanese or English cucumber, cut into very thin matchsticks (about 2 in. long)
• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into very thin matchsticks (about 2 in. long)
• 4 tablespoons Pickled Ginger

1. 1. Blanch haricots verts in boiling water 2 minutes; drain and rinse with cool water.
2. 2. Mix eggs, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a bowl with chopsticks or a fork. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer.
3. 3. Heat an 8-in. nonstick skillet over medium heat. When hot, very lightly oil with an oiled paper towel (if you have too much oil, the egg will not form a pancake). Pour 1 tbsp. egg mixture into pan, swirling it around the bottom to form a thin, even omelet with no browning (lower heat if it starts to brown). Cook 1 minute, until surface of omelet is dry; no need to flip. Carefully lift out onto a plate, trying to avoid folds and wrinkles. Repeat with remaining egg mixture, layering each onto the one below, until you've made 10 omelets. Roll omelets and slice into 1/8-in.-thick ribbons of egg.
4. 4. Whisk broth, sesame paste, ground sesame seeds, miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar together in a bowl.
5. 5. Boil udon (see "Udon Essentials," below). Rinse well in a large bowl of ice water.
6. 6. Arrange udon on a platter. Top with alternating piles of haricots verts, bell pepper, cucumber, carrot, and egg ribbons, with pickled ginger in center. Serve with a pitcher of dressing on the side, or pour the dressing over the salad.
7. Udon Essentials Udon (wheat-flour noodles): Store-bought fresh-frozen noodles have a supple texture that's closest to homemade, while the dried ones tend to be thin and flabby. To cook store-bought fresh-frozen udon, drop the frozen block into boiling water. When the water boils again, drain. Cook udon right before serving; the noodles get sticky as they sit.
8. Make ahead: Broth, up to 2 hours at room temperature. Vegetables and egg, up to 1 day, chilled.
9. Sylvan Mishima Brackett, Peko Peko catering, Oakland, California, Sunset
10. FEBRUARY 2014

verts, eggs, sugar, cornstarch, salt, vegetable oil, stock, japanese white sesame paste, shiro miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, noodles, red bell pepper, seeded japanese, carrot, ginger

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/chilled-udon-salad-hiyashi-chuka-udon-52666131 (may not work)