Description
Creamy miso carbonara udon tosses chewy udon noodles in a silky egg and parmesan sauce with miso, crispy bacon, and garlic. A 15-minute Japanese-Italian fusion dinner with no cream needed.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 serving frozen udon
- Water, enough to boil the noodles
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp white miso paste
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
- 1 tsp vegetable oil (or another neutral oil)
- 1 strip thick-cut bacon
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup reserved noodle water
- Shichimi togarashi, to taste
- 1 sheet nori, cut into thin strips (optional)
- 1 green onion (scallion), chopped (optional)
Equipment
Instructions
- Make the sauce base. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk, white miso paste, salt, pepper, and grated parmesan cheese until smooth. Set aside.
- Boil the udon. In a small pot, bring water to a boil and add the frozen udon. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes, just until the strands separate. Do the next steps while it cooks.
- Cook the bacon and garlic. Snip the bacon into small pieces with kitchen scissors. In a frying pan over medium heat with the oil, cook the bacon until almost crisp, then add the garlic and stir about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Combine. Drain the noodles, reserving 1/3 cup of the noodle water. Add the udon to the pan and toss with the bacon and garlic.
- Make it creamy. Turn the heat to low, pour the egg mixture over the noodles, and stir constantly so the eggs do not scramble. Add the reserved noodle water a splash at a time, stirring until a glossy sauce forms.
- Finish. Transfer to a bowl and top with extra parmesan and a pinch of shichimi togarashi.
- Garnish. Add nori strips and chopped green onion if using, and serve right away.
Notes
- Take the pan off high heat before adding the egg mixture. Eggs scramble above about 160F, so low-and-slow with constant stirring keeps the sauce custardy.
- Reserve more noodle water than you think you need. It is what makes the sauce silky and rescues it if it tightens up.
- White miso keeps it balanced. If you only have red miso, use about two-thirds the amount since it is saltier.
- Whisk the parmesan into the raw eggs before heating to prevent a grainy, split sauce.
- Best eaten right away. Reheat leftovers gently with a splash of water over low heat.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Japanese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 690 kcal
- Sugar: 4g
- Sodium: 1450mg
- Fat: 34g
- Saturated Fat: 13g
- Unsaturated Fat: 18g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 62g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 32g
- Cholesterol: 420mg