It’s a bright and cool late morning in New Orleans and we’re lingering over the last of our coffee (me) and tea (Christopher) on the little front porch of our rented Bywater apartment. Complete strangers walk by and wave hello. It’s these mornings on the porch that we dream of when we grow winter-weary in Truro.
Having brushed the breakfast crumbs from the table a while ago, we’re considering, naturally, what we’re going to eat for lunch. We’re thinking simple and cheap, and we could use a little exercise, so we grab our bikes and take St. Claude Avenue to Rampart Street, then, skirting the French Quarter, we make our way around Harmony Circle. As we zip across the tracks onto St. Charles, a streetcar conductor scolds us with three sharp clangs of the bell.
We’re headed up-river to a neighborhood called Central City, where we hear that Miss Linda, otherwise known as the Ya-Ka-Mein Lady, will be dishing out her New Orleans street food specialty. “A meal in a bowl” is Miss Linda’s tagline for this soup that has long been a popular late-night (or early-morning) dish, especially after a night of Carnival carousing.
I love that this soup — which countless writers say goes by the nickname “Old Sober,” though nobody I know calls it that — is still pretty much an only-in-New Orleans thing. In an age of over-tourism, it isn’t quite the secret it once was, but if you want a bowl of ya-ka-mein, you’ll have to travel — or make it yourself.
Like the muffuletta, the city’s big Italianesque sandwich, ya-ka-mein proves that what actually made America great was the intersection of cultures as happened here in the 19th century, when this was one of the largest, busiest ports in the U.S. It is made with thinly sliced beef and spaghetti noodles and garnished with scallions, hard-boiled eggs, and hot sauce or soy sauce (and some people insist on ketchup). The secret to the dish is “the juice,” which is what Miss Linda calls the beef broth.
Other versions can be found (pork, chicken, or even seafood) and I’ve seen a vegetarian ya-ka-mein, but for me the only true recipe, and the best, is made with beef.
The origins of the dish are a little fuzzy but can likely be traced back to the waves of Chinese immigrants who arrived in Louisiana shortly after the Civil War to work the plantations alongside formerly enslaved people. Here, their culinary traditions mingled with local Creole and African American cooking styles.
According to the Southern Foodways Alliance, the vaguely Chinese word ya-ka-mein may be derived from the name of the Chinese soup yā gāo miàn, which means “thin noodles.” How a traditional Chinese soup became an African American comfort food is unclear. One theory is that it reflects the fact that the original New Orleans Chinatown was established near Storyville, the city’s red-light district, where jazz flourished around the turn of the 20th century. Who knows?
Historically, ya-ka-mein was sold in African American neighborhoods, primarily from the tiny groceries that were once found on every corner. Those stores are gone now, but it used to be that learning just where Miss Linda would be serving her soup was a little hit and miss. Now, just follow her on Instagram, and you’ll know where to get your fix.
In Truro, I like to make “the juice” myself, so I’m offering my rich beef stock recipe here, though I’ll admit there are times when Swanson’s has to do.
YA-KA-MEIN
Makes 4 servings
For the marinade
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. Cajun seasoning, such as Tony Chacere’s
4 garlic cloves, minced
For the soup
1 lb. chuck roast, sliced thin
4 Tbsp. canola or other vegetable oil
2 celery ribs, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and diced
½ tsp. fine salt
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. smoked paprika
½ tsp. black pepper
¼ tsp. cayenne powder
¼ tsp. ground ginger
4 cups beef stock
8 oz. spaghetti
4 hard-boiled eggs, cooled and peeled
For the garnish: ½ cup sliced scallions, soy sauce, hot sauce, or ketchup
- Put the meat in the freezer for half an hour or so (when it’s firm it’s much easier to slice thin). Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix the marinade: Worcestershire sauce, Cajun seasoning, and garlic. Slice the beef thin, then toss it with the marinade and refrigerate for at least two hours.
- With the beef well along in its marinade, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sauté celery, onion, and bell pepper until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add salt, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, pepper, cayenne, and ginger and sauté for another minute. Remove the vegetables and set aside.
- Add remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot and, working in two batches, sauté the meat over medium-high heat, a few minutes on each side, until you get a nice crust on the slices. Put the vegetables back in the pot, add the beef stock, and stir.
- Bring the soup to a boil and immediately reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beef is tender, 40 minutes to 1 hour. Taste soup and adjust for seasoning.
- As the soup simmers, set a medium pot of salted water to boil, and about 10 minutes before serving time, cook the spaghetti. Drain the spaghetti, rinse in cool water to stop the cooking, and toss it with a teaspoon of oil so that it won’t stick together.
- Divide the noodles between 4 large bowls and then ladle in the broth, vegetables, and beef. Garnish with eggs and chopped scallions. Add soy sauce, hot sauce, or ketchup to taste.
RICH BEEF STOCK
Makes 4 quarts
About 7 lbs. meaty beef and veal bones (marrow bones, neck bones, oxtails)
3 medium onions, skin on, cut into chunks
1 small can tomato paste
2 leeks, well rinsed, cut into 1-inch pieces (use both white and green parts)
6 carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1-inch pieces (or 3 carrots and 3 parsnips)
2 celery stalks cut into 1-inch pieces
5 garlic cloves, smashed with skin on
12 sprigs parsley
6 sprigs thyme (or 1 tsp. dried thyme)
2 large bay leaves
12 black peppercorns
2 cups dry red wine
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Using your hands, smear the bones with the tomato paste and place in a single layer in a large roasting pan. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and roast until bones are brown on all sides, about 90 minutes.
- When browned bones are cool enough to handle, place them in a large stock pot. Add all remaining ingredients and enough cold water to cover by at least 2 inches. Bring to a boil, then quickly reduce the heat so that the mixture just bubbles at a very gentle simmer. Allow to simmer undisturbed for at least 5 hours. Occasionally skim off any foam that rises to the top of the stock. Once the stock is done, allow it to cool.
- Remove bones and strain the stock through a very fine sieve to remove any small particles. Refrigerate overnight and the next day remove the fat that will have congealed on top of the broth. Set aside what you’re using for the ya-ka-mein, divide the rest into containers, and freeze — the stock will keep, frozen, for several months.
LOUISIANA-STYLE SPICE MIX
Makes about 1 cup
2 Tbsp. garlic powder2 Tb
sp. onion powder
1 Tbsp. salt
4 tsp. sweet paprika
2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. white pepper
2 tsp. ground oregano
2 tsp. ground thyme
½ tsp. dry ground mustard
½ tsp. ground celery seed
½ tsp. ground cayenne pepper
Use fresh spices for best flavor. Mix all ingredients in a small bowl and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months. This works in marinades, such as the one for the ya-ka-mein, but also as a dry rub for grilling or to flavor soups and stews.
