Easy & Quick Japchae (Korean Glass Noodle Stir Fry)

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This Easy & Quick Japchae aka Korean Glass Noodles is the perfect dish when you’re craving something delicious and healthy! This dish is loaded with lots of sautéed vegetables with a light sesame and soy sauce. Make a big batch for parties or for this week’s meal prep.

A plate of glass noodles, red bell peppers, spinach, and sprinkled sesame seeds, with a small dish of kimchi.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Japchae (잡채) is a classic Korean dish made from sweet potato starch noodles (called dangmyeon, 당면) stir-fried with bell peppers, onions, spinach and mushrooms. The dish is often served with protein like bulgogi beef, but my recipe is vegetarian friendly! The dish is meant to be served room temperature and has a mild taste which pairs perfectly with Korean BBQ dishes like Korean BBQ short ribs and Samgyeopsal. Make the best Korean BBQ meal with grilled meat, japchae and a delicious kimchi stew for the ultimate meal!

In my recipe, I cook all the vegatables in the same pan to make things quick versus cooking the vegetables one by one.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Substitutions and Variations
How to Make Japchae
Recipe FAQs
Expert Tips
Check Out More Asian Noodle Recipes
Japchae

Ingredients

Here’s a look at what you need to make Japchae (Korean Glass Noodle Stir Fry). The highlights are here but the full ingredient list and quantities of each are in the recipe card.

Noodles & vegetables:

Dried sweet potato noodles – These Korean noodles are made of sweet potato starch and water. They’re naturally gluten-free, with a translucent, chewy texture that holds up beautifully in stir-fries. It’s traditionally used in Japchae so if you substitute this, this dish will not be japchae anymore 😉 You can find this at all Korean grocery stores and asian groceries.
Salt – we need to season the vegetables when we’re sauteeing them to ensure that they have flavor! A good dish is when we season throughout cooking.
Onion – frying onions gives this dish a fragrant and sweet flavor. You can also use shallots for the same flavor.
Vegetables – I like to saute bell pepper, fresh shiitake mushrooms, spinach for this dish because these vegetables cook fast and chop quickly. Using these vegetables is the reason why this Japchae is easy and quick!
Low sodium soy sauce – this is the main base to season the japchae noodles. You need this to give a savory flavor!
Dark soy sauce – this is optional as this gives a nice golden color to your japchae. I find that regular soy sauce doesn’t make the japchae look as beautifiul and authentic looking. You can find this at asian grocery stores.
Garlic – grated raw garlic adds a sweetness and mild spiciness to the dish. The texture should be grated so you don’t eat chunks of raw minced garlic with your soft noodles.
Sesame oil – the nutty fragrant aroma is a must to make this japchae taste authentic and delicious.
Fish sauce (optional, can sub with more soy sauce instead) – I love extra umami so I always add a little bit of fish sauce. If you’re vegetarian or simply don’t have this, just skip!

Substitutions and Variations

The best part of this Japchae is that you can customizable the dish with the vegetables and meat you already have in your fridge!

Add more protein like beef bulgogi, chicken, tofu or shrimp. You can add it in the beginning of cooking the onions and it will taste great. Make sure you season the protein with some soy sauce, sugar and salt (or your favorite seasoning) so the dish is still flavorful.
Add or swap out vegetables. You can also add sliced carrots, bok choy, oyster mushrooms, and zucchini if you want. Make sure to adjust your cooking times so your vegetables are cooked and tender.
Make it spicy! This dish is delicious with chili oil or korean red pepper powder (gochugaru).

How to Make Japchae

Sweet potato glass noodles being cooked in a pot of boiling water.

Step 1: Cook sweet potato noodles in boiling water according to package directions. This should take around 10-15 minutes.

A plate of sliced vegetables including red bell peppers, yellow onion, and shiitake mushrooms.

Step 2: While the noodles are cooking, wash your vegetables. Then, slice you bell pepper, onion, and shiitake mushrooms.

Sliced onions being sautéed in a pan with oil.

Step 3: Heat pan on medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add oil and your sliced onions. Then, add ½ teaspoon salt. Mix together for 2 minutes.

Stir-frying sliced onions, red bell peppers, and shiitake mushrooms in a skillet.

Step 4: Then, add your bell pepper and mushrooms. Add remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and saute for 2-3 minutes.

Fresh spinach added to a skillet with sautéed vegetables including onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms.

Step 5: Lastly, add your spinach and cook for 1 more minute until the spinach is slightly wilted.

Sautéed vegetables including wilted spinach, bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms in a skillet.

Step 6: Keep your vegetables in the pan while you are cooking the noodles.

Rinsing the glass noodles in a metal strainer placed over a pot.

Step 7: After 15 minutes of cooking, give a taste test for your noodles, they should be soft. Rinse noodles under running water and strain.

Sweet potato noodles in a large metal bowl topped with stir-fried vegetables, garlic, sauce, and sprinkled with sesame seeds.

Step 8: Put your vegetables and noodles in a large bowl. Mix with soy sauce, dark soy sauce, grated, garlic, sesame oil, fish sauce (optional), black pepper and sesame seeds. Mix everything well and give it a taste to ensure it is savory enough for you.

A plate of Korean Japchae noodles made with glass noodles, red bell peppers, spinach, shiitake mushrooms, and sprinkled with sesame seeds.

Recipe FAQs

How long can you keep Japchae in the fridge?

You can keep japchae in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days. After that, the noodles can get hard and the vegetables can taste like the ‘fridge’ if you know what I mean.

How do you keep the japchae (glass noodles) from sticking?

You can rinse the noodles under running water to wash off the starch. In addition, make sure you use enough sesame oil! These two methods prevent sticking to one another.

How do I reheat japchae noodles?

Japchae can be served hot or cold. You can also microwave with a wet paper towel for 30 seconds so the noodles soften up again.

Expert Tips

Only cook the spinach for less than a minute so it has the vibrant green color! When cooked too long, it will wilt and turn grayish green.
After straining the noodles, make sure you rinse the japchae (sweet potato glass noodles) under running water. This ensures that the noodles don’t clump together.
Mix your noodles with a gloved hand. The noodles will be well-coated and delicious. If you use a spoon and fork, the noodles might be too slippery or break.