Japchae with Seaweed (AIP friendly)


Doing an elimination diet is hard, even if it is temporary.  The benefits make it worth it, but during the elimination phase and in the early days of doing re-introductions, a person can really start to feel tired of it all.  Tired of cooking every meal, tired of not getting to eat familiar and comforting foods, tired of not ordering take out.  It is so tiring!

After a few months of being on the AIP (Autoimmune Protocol), I really started to get tired of not eating rice, tired of not having sushi, or even pho.  I LOVE all kinds of Asian dishes, they are my absolute favorite type of food to eat.  Not having real pho noodles wasn't too hard.  I experimented with zucchini noodles and kelp noodles, too.  Not quite the same, but good enough.  Pho is all about the broth anyway, right?  But then, because of a close friend, I discovered japchae noodles.  

Japchae is used in Korean cuisine, for the dish of the same name.  It's a noodle stir-fry similar to yakisoba or chow mein.  These noodles are made from sweet potato flour, sometimes also called sweet potato glass noodles, or dangmyeon.  Totally gluten free, and totally AIP just as they are!  Can you hear those angels singing right now?!  Literal heaven for someone who hasn't had a real, chewy noodle in months.


They only take about 6 minutes to cook, and you can use them in a salad, soup, or as a base to top with a vegetable and meat(or seafood!) stir-fry.  Traditionally they are boiled, then mixed with the japchae ingredients and not cooked any further.  There are so many ways to use them, and I stock up so I can have noodles whenever the craving hits! I live in Seattle, so I find mine at Fred Meyer or QFC, which both carry Kroger brand.  For less than $2 a package, they are pretty affordable.  If you can't find them near you, here's a link to them on Amazon.

On the Autoimmune Protocol, it's important to incorporate nutrient dense foods like organ meat, seafood, greens, and sea vegetables.  Now, I know that isn't so easy for some, especially organ meat.  There are lots of recipes out there for liver and other organ meats that make incorporating them easier.  But I haven't seen many recipes using sea vegetables like wakame, dulse, and others.  I think nori is the most familiar to people, or even the "snack" seaweed that comes in the little individual packages.  For many, the texture and flavor of nori or snack seaweed is off-putting, unless it is as a sushi roll.  Well, rice is out on the AIP, so you might find it difficult to incorporate seaweed like nori, but the recipe below uses wakame, which is easy to find and prepare, and the flavor isn't very strong.


I had the bright idea to use wakame with the japchae noodles, making a yummy fresh tasting noodle salad with other vegetables and herbs.  Honestly, I was just making it up as I went along, and it was one of the best things I had tasted since starting AIP in January.  Wakame is very common and should be easy for you to find in your local grocery store.  If not, here is a link to one on Amazon, and one on Thrive Market.  I also encourage you to try your local Asian market for the japchae(also called dangmyeon, or sweet potato glass noodles), seaweed, fish sauce, and ume plum vinegar; you would definitely get the best price there!


If you are interested in signing up for Thrive Market, and earning 25% off your first order, just use my sign up link, here.  I will get a coupon for me to spend on groceries if you sign up and complete an order, which I'd appreciate so much!  I get my wakame, fish sauce, ume plum vinegar, and coconut aminos there, among a lot of other great things.

There is an optional re-intro ingredient here, sesame oil.  I reintroduced it successfully and it gives the salad a great authentic flavor.  But don't worry, if you can't tolerate sesame oil yet, this dish is still delicious without it!



Japchae with Seaweed (AIP friendly)
Serves 2-4, depending on how you serve it (as a main or a side)

Ingredients:

1 package sweet potato glass noodles (japchae or dangmyeon)
1/4 cup dried wakame
1 medium carrot, grated small
1/2 small English cucumber, or two Persian cucumbers, sliced thinly
1 cup red cabbage, finely shredded
1 rib celery, sliced thinly
2 green onions, sliced thinly
1/4 cup fresh basil, minced
1 Tablespoon avocado oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil (optional AIP re-intro)
1/4 teaspoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon ume plum vinegar, or apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons coconut aminos
sea salt if needed

Directions:

1.  Cook the noodles according to package directions, rinsing in cold water and putting into a medium sized bowl.
2.  While the noodles are cooking, prep your seaweed.  Place wakame into a bowl and cover with plenty of cold water.  Let sit for 5 minutes, then drain thoroughly.
3.  Slice or grate the carrot, cucumber, cabbage, celery, green onion and basil.  Toss with the noodles.
4.  Add the seaweed to the veggies and noodles, toss.
5.  In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients.  Depending on your coconut aminos and which vinegar you choose you may need to add salt. (ume plum vinegar is salted)
6.  Pour the dressing over the noodles and toss well.  Taste for seasoning, and add salt if needed.

Serve as is as a side dish to accompany your protein of choice.  I grilled some shrimp to go with mine.  Grilled or sauteed chicken would go well, and so would any kind of fish.

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