Make a Lesser Known New Orleans Specialty at Home with Help from 'Cook's Country'

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There are plenty of well-known, iconic dishes from New Orleans, with its inimitable mixture of cultures and reverence for hospitality, food, and drink. Yakamein, a flavorful soup of beef, noodles, boiled egg, and scallions that's known as a hangover cure (it's sometimes called "old sober"), is iconic but not so well-known, at least outside New Orleans. To the extent that it is, it's thanks to the media-friendly Yakamein Lady Linda Green, who serves up big styrofoam cups of it at street fests and even outside her home.

Like Louisiana's lauded Creole and Cajun cuisines, yakamein emerged out of a commingling of cultures. The dish likely originated with Chinese immigrants who adapted their cuisine to American palates and ingredients, for instance substituting spaghetti noodles for the type of wheat noodles they would use in their native country. Black Creole and soul food chefs then added their own influence to the basic noodle soup, adding their own seasonings to a soy sauce-rich broth. 

It's a unique dish that's difficult to find outside New Orleans. But, thanks to Cook's Country, you can try your own version at home.

Beef Yakamein

Smaller chuck-eye roasts (such as the one called for in this recipe) are sometimes sold prepackaged and labeled as chuck steak. If you can find only chuck roasts larger than 2 pounds, you can ask the butcher to cut a smaller roast for you or cut your own 2-pound roast and freeze the remaining meat for another use. Sriracha or Tabasco can be substituted for the Crystal Hot Sauce, if desired. We developed this recipe with Kikkoman Soy Sauce and Better Than Bouillon Roasted Beef Base. Monosodium glutamate, an umami-enhancing seasoning that gives this yakamein broth a savory boost, is sold under the brand name Ac’cent. Look for it in the spice aisle next to the seasoning salts.

Ingredients

1 (2-pound) boneless beef chuck-eye roast, trimmed
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon Ac’cent (optional)
8 cups beef broth
1/4 cup soy sauce, plus extra for serving
12 ounces spaghetti
3 hard-cooked large eggs, halved
6 scallions, sliced 1/4 inch thick
Crystal Hot Sauce

Directions

1. Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add beef and cook until well browned on all sides, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer beef to plate.

2. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery to fat left in pot and cook until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic; Creole seasoning; sugar; onion powder; and Ac’cent, if using, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in broth and soy sauce, scraping up any browned bits. Return beef to pot and bring to boil over high heat. Cover; reduce heat to low; and simmer until beef is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

3. Transfer beef to cutting board and let cool until easy to handle, at least 20 minutes. Use wide spoon to skim excess fat from broth. Set colander over large bowl. Strain broth through colander, pressing on solids to extract all liquid. Discard solids in colander. Return broth to pot; cover and keep warm over low heat.

4. Meanwhile, bring 3 quarts water to boil in large saucepan. Add pasta and cook until fully tender. Drain pasta and return it to saucepan. Cover and set aside.

5. Using chef’s knife, chop beef into approximate 3/4-inch pieces. Divide pasta evenly among 6 serving bowls. Divide beef, eggs, and scallions evenly among serving bowls on top of pasta. Ladle hot broth into serving bowls to cover pasta (about 1 1/2 cups each). Serve, passing hot sauce and extra soy sauce separately.