Udon Noodle Soup (Kake Udon)
This classic Udon Noodle Soup (Kake Udon) is all about simplicity and comfort. The thick and chewy noodles in a delicate broth are perfectly garnished with sliced green onions. Enjoy this vegan-adaptable soup as is or add your favorite toppings for a more substantial meal.
Servings: 2
Calories: 271kcal
Ingredients
For the Homemade Broth
- 2⅓ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) (use standard Awase Dashi, a dashi packet or powder, or Vegan Dashi)
- 1 Tbsp mirin
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1½ Tbsp soy sauce
- ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (plus more, to taste)
For the Quick Broth (optional)
- ⅓ cup mentsuyu (concentrated noodle soup base) (or enough to make 2½ cups, 600 ml of soup; each brand is different, so follow your bottle‘s instructions for hot udon soup (うどん or めんのかけつゆ); I used Kikkoman Koidashi Hontsuyu; you can make my Homemade Mentsuyu)
- 2⅓ cups water (for my bottle‘s mentsuyu-to-water ratio of 1 to 7; please adjust the water based on your bottle‘s dilution ratio for hot udon soup)
- 1 Tbsp mirin
For the Udon Noodle Soup
- 2 servings udon noodles (1.1 lb, 500 g frozen or parboiled udon noodles; 6.3 oz, 180 g dry udon noodles; or 10.6 oz, 300 g Homemade Udon Noodles)
- toppings of your choice (thinly sliced green onion/scallion, shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice), and more options in the blog post)
Instructions
To Prepare the Homemade Broth
- In a medium saucepan, add 2⅓ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock), 1 Tbsp mirin, 1 tsp sugar, 1½ Tbsp soy sauce, and ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
- Bring the broth to a gentle simmer. Once simmering, remove the pot from the heat. Cover with a lid and set aside.
To Prepare the Quick Broth (optional)
- Follow the instructions on your bottle of concentrated mentsuyu for the correct dilution ratio for noodle soup broth (shown here as めんのかけつゆ).
- Combine the water, mentsuyu, and mirin in a medium saucepan. For the brand of mentsuyu that I use, I add 2⅓ cups water, ⅓ cup mentsuyu (concentrated noodle soup base), and 1 Tbsp mirin. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Once simmering, remove the pot from the heat. Cover with a lid and set aside.
To Cook the Udon Noodles
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. When the water comes to a full rolling boil, add 2 servings udon noodles and cook according to the package instructions. The brand of frozen udon noodles I use requires reheating them for 1 minute. Using chopsticks, stir the noodles to loosen them up. For fresh noodles, see the cooking instructions in my Homemade Udon Noodles recipe.
- When the noodles are done, drain them in a colander or scoop them up with a fine-mesh strainer. Serve the hot udon noodles in individual bowls.
To Serve
- Pour the hot broth over the noodles and top with thinly sliced green onion and shichimi togarashi for a spicy kick (optional). For a more substantial lunch or dinner, you can top it with tempura, beef, fish cake and toasted mochi, tofu, Inari age, or vegetables. Watch the video above for 4 variations!
To Store
- You can keep the udon noodles and broth separately in airtight containers and store them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Calories: 271 kcal · Carbohydrates: 54 g · Protein: 8 g · Fat: 1 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Sodium: 554 mg · Potassium: 41 mg · Fiber: 4 g · Sugar: 3 g · Vitamin A: 60 IU · Vitamin C: 1 mg · Calcium: 25 mg · Iron: 1 mg