I have been enjoying konjac shirataki noodles regularly of late - for those who may not have heard of or tried them, they are Japanese noodles made of glucomannan, an indigestible fiber which comes from the konjac plant. It can absorb a tremendous amount of water and forms a temperature-stable gel in the presence of alkalinity, which is basically how you make shirataki noodles - mix glucomannan with water, add pickling lime, and in a few minutes you have a gel that you can roll out or press into noodles. Because they are mostly water and indigestible fiber, they are naturally low-cal and low-carb.
Anyway, they are a bit pricey to buy pre-made (about $2.50 for 8 oz), so I recently decided to try making them myself at home, with mixed results thus far. For my first attempt, I tried the technique described here: http://www.konjacfoods.com/noodles/6.htm, which was a dismal failure. The konjac congealed in clumps as soon as it hit the water, leaving me with weird hard balls of starch in slightly thickened water.
For my next attempt, I tried a blender version from Modernist Pantry that I found on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KewbgV2PHK8&ab_channel=KitchenAlchemyfromModernistPantry This technique prevented lumps, but the proportions of konjac to water (2T. powder to a quart+ of water) were way off - the mixture never gelled completely. Also, cleaning the blender was something of a nightmare.
Luckily, I found some guidance in the comments as well as another YouTube demo here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64UiwRb3s-A&t=0s&ab_channel=WhiteCat, and combined these suggestions to create a successful-ish third attempt. 1T. of konjac mixed with 1/8. t. of pickling lime, then whisked quickly into 1 cup of cold water. This formed a thick gel that I was able to roll out between sheets of parchment paper, although it set before I was able to get it as thin/even as I would have liked. After boiling for about 30 mins to neutralize the alkalinity and remove some of the flavor of konjac, they were quite acceptable, although a little softer in texture than what I have been buying.
I’m planning to try adding a bit more konjac and using a pasta press for my next batch. Anyone else ever try making these, and if so, any advice? The internet abounds with recipes for using the noodles, but recipes/techniques for making them at home are few and far between.
