How to Cook Shirataki Noodles

Of all of the things I miss since beginning my healthier lifestyle (brownies, cake, sandwiches, etc.), the item that tops the list is pasta. Back when Mom made dinner each evening after work, a family favorite was "Maya's Noodle Dish." Of course, I hadn't invented it. I was maybe seven when Mom first tried the recipe. It was from one of the food magazines she'd collected, and was composed of penne, a lemon-garlic sauce, blistered tomatoes, and slightly melted mozzarella cheese. Let me say - that meal was fantastic! I requested it all the time. Not to brag about my powers of persuasion, but my begging paid off. We had it at least twice a month. Mmmmm!
Enter Primal, stage left. No more bread. No more grain. No more processed foods. And worst of all, no more pasta. I knew it would be worth it but... ah, man! No pasta?

That was tough, at least in the beginning. I missed spaghetti, I missed tortellini, and above all, I missed my noodle dish. To replicate the flavors of the meal, caprese salads were prepared for dinner. They were delicious, just not... well, you know. The situation was kind of like replacing cheddar with vegan cheese. Maybe you find a brand that's halfway decent, but it is nothing like the real deal.

One day, I was wandering through the gluten free aisle at my local grocer's; maybe a third of the way down, I saw the most interesting thing. They looked like rice noodles, and were floating in a sealed, water-filled package. But there was nothing noodle about them. No wheat or grain made this pasta. I read the label. Shirataki Noodles. Huh. But what were they?

So I got home. Being the geek that I am, I researched this new discovery. According to Wikipedia, "Shirataki (白滝, often written with the hiragana しらたき) are thin, translucent, gelatinous traditional Japanese noodles made from the konjac yam (devil's tongue yam or elephant yam). The word "shirataki" means "white waterfall", describing the appearance of these noodles. Largely composed of water and glucomannan, a water-soluble dietary fiber, they are very low in digestible carbohydrates and calories, and have little flavor of their own."

I was fascinated. These noodles definitely fit the way I was eating. There was no harm in trying them, 
right? Dad ordered them on Amazon and I anxiously awaited their arrival on my porch. I would use the
phrase 'pleasantly surprised' to describe my first taste of this mysterious, konjac-yam pasta. 
In my opinion, they tasted EXACTLY like rice noodles, just slightly more gelatinous. Wikipedia was right! 
Granted, I did cook them the first time with marinara. It wasn't bad, but... would you eat rice noodles with 
marinara? No, no, no. They were far better suited to Asian dishes. 
And I have been using them for occasional dishes ever sense. 

A challenge I faced when the packages were first delivered at my doorstep was as follows: How on Earth 
do I cook these babies? I didn't order Miracle Noodles the first time, which is now my preferred brand.
I used an alternative type, whose instructions weren't exactly well suited to an English speaking cook. 
So I read up on several different methods. Here is the one I have adapted (through tweaking, trial, 
and error), to work the best:

1. Cut open the package of shirataki noodles. Drain the liquid well. Note: the pasta is going to smell pretty darn bad. Like, REALLY bad. I'm not kidding - but don't fear, reader! This is just the stink of the konjac yam. It'll go away as you cook the noodles. Rinse the pasta with cold water for about thirty seconds.
2. Add your smelly, freshly-rinsed shirataki to a pot of boiling water. Boil for two to three minutes.
3. This is the step that I got wrong every time because I made a simple mistake - I oiled the pan. In the following: DO NOT OIL THE PAN! Drain the boiled noodles, and place them in a pan with   NO OIL!
4. Got that? NO OIL!
5. Fry them until dry, about ten minutes. No water should be left in the pan, and the noodles should be more opaque. Transfer them onto a plate.

Not too hard, huh? Enjoy your shirataki! I suggest using them in an Asian dish, like Pho or a noodle bowl. A twist of lime juice or a squeeze of sriracha is always a super addition. But, heck, do whatever you want with them. Add some marinara. If you're feeling adventurous, add tomatoes, mozzarella, and a lemon-garlic sauce to replicate my childhood fav!

Guess what another definition for shirataki is? It's an im-pasta! Ha. Ha. Ha.

どうぞお召し上がりください (Enjoy your meal!)

-Maya

Photo by Heather Schwartz on Unsplash, Photo by Aditya Romansa on Unsplash,

Photo by Edward Guk on Unsplash