Chilled Udon with Chicken, Ribbon Egg and Sesame Miso Sauce

The day before serving, make the pickled ginger: Bring a saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the unpeeled beet to the pan and boil until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the beet and set aside until cool enough to handle. Using your fingers, rub off the skin from the beet and discard the skin. Cut the beet into quarters. Set aside.

Using the side of a spoon, peel the ginger. Using a chef’s knife, cut the knob of ginger lengthwise into slices slightly less than 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. Stack the slices and cut lengthwise again into strips 1/8 inch (3 mm) wide. Alternatively, use a mandoline to to cut the ginger into strips of similar size. You should have about 1 cup.

Put the ginger in a saucepan, cover with 2 inches (5 cm) of cold water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Drain the ginger and repeat. Taste the ginger; it should have a strong ginger flavor but not be too spicy. If it’s still too spicy, repeat once more.

In a nonreactive bowl, stir together 1 cup (8 fl. oz./250 ml) water, the vinegar and salt. Add the ginger and beet and stir to coat. Let sit at room temperature overnight, or cover and refrigerate up to 3 days.

When ready to serve, prepare the vegetables: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the haricots verts and cook until bright green and just crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl of ice water and let cool, then drain. If desired, cut each bean in half lengthwise.

Slice the red pepper into thin slivers about 2.5 inches by 1/8 inch (6 cm by 3 mm). Repeat with the cucumber and carrot, keeping the vegetables separate. Plunge the cucumber and carrot into bowls of ice water to crisp. Drain and wrap the cucumber and carrot loosely in separate paper towels until ready to serve.

To make the ribbon egg, in a bowl, stir together the eggs, sugar, sake, cornstarch and salt in a bowl using chopsticks. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl.

Preheat a nonstick fry pan over medium heat and lightly brush it with oil. Pour a small amount of the egg mixture into the pan, swirling it to form a thin, even layer. Cook until the top of the egg is cooked but the bottom is not yet browned, about 1 minute. (It will take some practice to discover the correct quantity of egg for your pan and adjust the heat. You are looking for a very thin omelette of even thickness with no browning.) Using chopsticks, carefully turn the cooked eggs out onto a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining egg mixture.

On a clean work surface, stack the eggs in a single layer and roll them into a cylinder. Using a chef’s knife, cut into strips 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick to form fine ribbons of eggs. Set aside.

To assemble, cook the udon according to the package instructions. Drain the noodles in a colander and rinse well under cold running water. (Because the noodles will be served cold, it is important that they are rinsed well so that the noodles don't stick to each other. You may also want to cook the udon slightly longer than you would if you were serving it in a hot soup.)

Arrange the udon on a large platter or divide among 4 individual bowls. Arrange the haricots verts, gypsy pepper, cucumber, carrot, ribbon egg and shredded chicken on top of the noodles. Pour the noodle bowl starter into a small pitcher or bowls and serve alongside for pouring over the udon, passing the pickled ginger alongside. Serves 4.

Sylvan Mishima Brackett, chef/owner, Izakaya Rintaro, San Francisco, CA