Beef and Udon Noodle Soup

A broth that has a beautiful deep flavour, served with seared, blushing medium rare steak and beautiful thick udon noodles.

I remember certain moments during the time I was studying when I would be super hungry, and then I would go to little restaurants that served ramen or udon noodle soups, then coming out feeling pregnant with a food baby inside of me. I also love that satisfying hot feeling you get, and you start to sweat as you eat and slurp away at the steamy filling soup. I wanted to try and re-create that experience with this recipe.

This, however, is not a traditional recipe, this is just my take on noodle soup. Although this recipe does leave plenty of room to make things personal. You could use a different stock, different aromatics, heck, even a different kind of noodle.

Now, this recipe does involve cooking steak, and it does take you through the steps of how to do that. However, if you’d like to grasp a greater understanding of those steps, and know the fundamentals of how to cook a good steak, feel free to check out my Sirloin Steak with Chimichurri Sauce recipe.

The stock

This is my favourite way to flavour a soup or broth. You simply just simmer the stock in aromatics for about 10-15 minutes, it’s that simple. And it’s good for a number of reasons.

Making sure you season any dish well enough is important, however, seasoning itself is only one part of the equation when trying to create flavour. We also want a good depth and body of flavour, which is exactly what simmering the stock in the aromatics does.

The aromatics infuse in the stock, which gives a lovely flavour and aroma. And don’t be afraid to add any other aromatics of your own. For example, if you want your soup to be spicy, go ahead and add some chillies or chilli flakes in there.

The other reason I like this technique is that the simmering will make the stock reduce a little bit, which will also give a more intense flavour.

It’s important to skim the stock as well when you see all the impurities float to the top. What is skimming you ask? It’s just when you use a ladle or spoon to skim away any foam or fat that has risen to the top of any soup or sauce.

Don’t rush this step, because when you serve the soup, you want to the broth to be as clean and clear as possible. Basically, your broth should look like this:

Lastly, the recipe says to season the broth to taste with soy sauce, but be careful when doing this. Do not add too much and ruin your broth. Honestly, you may even feel like the broth doesn’t even need any seasoning. If that’s the case, forget the soy sauce. And, if you do feel like you’ve overpowered the broth, just add a splash or 2 of water, but make sure you keep tasting the broth.

Ramen Eggs

This soup works beautifully with ramen eggs (eggs marinated in a soy mixture). And I just made a recipe for Ramen Eggs not long ago so if you would like to have a look at that post, click the link.

Honestly, if you try any soup with a ramen egg, you’ll never go back. From that point on, a noodle soup without a ramen egg will feel like a piece of your soul is missing……ok it’s not that intense but you get the idea.

Storing the Soup

If you have any leftovers, make sure you store the broth separately from the other ingredients. If you just store the broth and all of the other ingredients in the same bowl, container etc. the ingredients may just go all soft and soggy.

Granted that the ingredients won’t be as fresh the next day anyway, but it’s still worth storing them separately.

Before we move on to the recipe, I want to ask a question, what’s your favourite kind of noodle? Is it udon, ramen, soba, rice noodles? I would love to know your thoughts. Me personally, nothing beats ramen and I think many other people think the same way. However, I could be wrong.

Thank you so much for taking the time to check out this post. I really hope all learnt something and that you all have an incredible day. If you would like to subscribe, feel more than free to do so. Also, comment down below and share what you think of this recipe. Do you like this recipe? Do you disagree with any of my cooking methods? Let me know your thoughts.

4.8 from 5 votes

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Beef and Udon Noodle Soup

A personally made udon noodle soup recipe served with bok choy and blushing slices of tender beef.

Course Soup

Cuisine Japanese Influence

Keyword beef and noodle soup, noodle soup recipe, udon noodle recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 736 kcal

Author Nicolas

Ingredients

• 350 g of udon noodles
• At least 2 big handfuls of ice
• 250 g of bok choy washed, remove the stem from the leaf
• 2 L of vegetable stock
• 1 thumb sized piece of ginger peeled
• 3 garlic cloves peeled
• 2 star anise
• Light soy sauce for seasoning
• One 750 g portion of blade steak at room temperature 1 inch thick (if you can't find blade steak, the scotch fillet and porterhouse steak are other good options)
• 1 tablespoon of light oil such as grape-seed oil or canola oil
• 1 spring onion thinly sliced for garnish
• Sesame seeds for garnish
• Salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions

1. Put 3L of water 1.5 teaspoons of salt in a large pot, then bring the salted water to a boil. Add your udon noodles and cook for 9 minutes (or cook to packet instructions). Use a pair of tongs to remove the noodles and transfer them to a colander. Give the cooked udon noodles a quick rise and set aside.

2. Get a large bowl, fill it with water then add your ice.

3. Bring the salt boiling water in the pot down to a simmer, add the bok choy stems, simmer for 1 minute then add the leaves and cook for another 30 seconds.

4. Use your tongs or a large slotted spoon to transfer the bok choy to your ice bath. Leave for 20-30 seconds and then drain (do not leave the bok choy in the ice water).
5. Put your stock, ginger, garlic cloves and star anise in a pot. Bring the stock to a boil over the stove, then turn the heat down low and simmer stock uncovered for 10-15 minutes.

6. Once you have simmered the stock, use a slotted spoon to remove the ginger, garlic and star anise. Then use a regular spoon to skim the stock. Finally, season the stock to taste with your soy sauce. Make sure you don't add too much and taste as you go.

7. Season your steak on both sides generously with salt and pepper.

8. Pre-heat a pan over high heat for at least 1 minute, turn the kitchen fans on and/or open the windows. When the pan is nice and hot, add your oil, then add your steak and sear for about 4 minutes on each side for medium rare (this is for a steak that is about an inch thick).

9. Transfer the steak to a plate to rest for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a board. Use a sharp knife to slice thin strips out of the steak.
10. Put some of your noodles in a serving bowl, then add some bok choy, neatly place a few strips of steak on top, garnish with spring onions and sesame seeds, ladle in some of the stock and if you've made them, serve with a ramen egg.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

• Make sure you skim the broth.
• Serving this dish with the ramen eggs will only make it more awesome.
• Look at the sirloin steak with chimichurri post to understand how to cook a good steak.
• If there are any leftovers, store the broth and the ingredients separately.

Nutrition Facts

Beef and Udon Noodle Soup

Amount Per Serving

Calories 736 Calories from Fat 175

% Daily Value*

Fat 19.4g30%

Saturated Fat 7.5g47%

Cholesterol 169mg56%

Sodium 2764mg120%

Potassium 1060mg30%

Carbohydrates 64.4g21%

Fiber 5.4g23%

Sugar 12.7g14%

Protein 81.6g163%

Calcium 60mg6%

Iron 10.4mg58%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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