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Miso Carbonara Udon

Carbonara went to Japan and never came back. That's the idea here.

White miso does what Parmesan does in the original — salt, umami, depth — but with a rounder, sweeter edge that plays beautifully with egg yolk and butter. Thick, chewy udon replaces spaghetti. Crispy bacon stays, because of course it does.

Servings
2
Prep Time
5
mins
Cook Time
15
mins
Ingredients
10
Total Time
20
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Pantry bits

  • White miso
  • Soy sauce
  • Black pepper

Ingredients

  • 200g udon noodles (fresh or frozen)
  • 100g bacon or pancetta (diced)
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 tbsp white miso
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp black pepper (freshly ground)
  • 3 tbsp udon cooking water (reserved)
  • 1 spring onion (sliced)
  • Nori, to finish (optional)

Instructions

  1. Cook the udon
  2. Boil udon according to packet. Reserve 4 tbsp of cooking water before draining.
  3. Fry the bacon
  4. In a cold pan, add bacon and bring up to medium heat. Fry until crispy and golden. Remove and set aside. Keep the fat in the pan.
  5. Build the sauce base
  6. Take the pan off the heat. Add butter and miso. Stir until combined and melted into the bacon fat.
  7. Prep the egg mix
  8. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks with soy sauce and a generous amount of black pepper.
  9. Combine — carefully
  10. Add drained udon to the pan (still off heat). Toss to coat. Add egg mixture and 2 tbsp cooking water. Toss quickly — the residual heat cooks the egg without scrambling it.
  11. Adjust and serve
  12. Add more cooking water to loosen if needed. Sauce should be silky and coating. Top with crispy bacon, spring onion, extra pepper, and nori if using.

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Notes:

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  • Off the heat when adding eggs — this is the critical step. Don't skip it.
  • White miso is milder and sweeter. Red miso works but comes in punchier
  • Frozen Sanuki-style udon gives the best chewy texture

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Other recipes

Japanese Butter Shoyu Rice
Oyakodon (Japanese Chicken & Egg Rice Bowl)
Mapo Tofu-recipe
Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐)

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