Chewy udon noodles nestled in piping hot dashi broth, topped with jagged slices of pink-swirled Japanese fishcake, and a tangle of soy-sweetened beef shabu. If you so desire, top with an onsen or jammy egg. I don't usually make my own dashi - I find a good quality dashi bag probably tastes better than whatever I can muster to assemble on my own. They've usually got a mix of different dried fishes in the dashi bag itself. It's exactly like what it sounds - like making tea from a bag, and I often do a cold-brewed version...

Ingredients

Dashi Base

• 320ml dashi (I just use water and a dashi bag)

• 1 Tablespoon mirin

• 1 teaspoon to 2 teaspoons light soy (adjust to taste)

  For the Meat

• 125g beef or pork shabu slices

• 1 Tablespoon Mirin

• 2 teaspoons light soy sauce

• 2 Tablespoons water

• 1 teaspoon sugar

  To finish rest of the dish

• 1 packet of frozen udon

• Narutomaki (Fish cake), sliced

• Spring onions, to garnish

Directions

• Start by prepping your beef slices. In a pot or pan, fry up the beef slices with the sugar, mirin, light soy, and water. Give everything a good mix and allow it to simmer over low for about 6 to 10 minutes. Adjust and taste for seasoning. Set aside.

• Boil your frozen udon for about a minute. Drain and set aside.

• For your dashi soup base, just heat everything up together (dashi, mirin, light soy) until it's boiling and piping hot.

• To assemble, place your udon noodles in a bowl. Arrange some slices of Narutomaki (fish cake) on top, pile your beef over the noodles, then ladle or pour over your hot dashi. Garnish with spring onions and serve.