← Nouns Cooking · Korean

Ingredients

• 200 g Somyeon (thin wheat noodles)
• 3 tbsp Gochujang
• 1 tbsp Gochugaru (Korean chilli flakes)
• 1½ tbsp Sugar
• 2 tbsp Rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp Soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Toasted sesame oil
• 1 clove Garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp apple juice (or grated apple) (optional)
• ½ Cucumber, cut into thin matchsticks
• 1 small carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
• 2 lettuce leaves, shredded
• 100 g well-fermented kimchi (vegan kimchi for vegetarians), thinly sliced
• 2 Eggs, hard-boiled and halved
• 2 tsp Sesame seeds

Method

1. Stir all the sauce ingredients together until smooth and the sugar has dissolved. Chill it while you prepare everything else.
2. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and add the noodles, stirring so they do not stick. When it foams up, add a small glass of cold water; repeat once more. The noodles are done in about 3–4 min, when soft but still springy.
3. Drain and rinse the noodles under cold running water, rubbing them between your hands to wash off the starch, until they feel completely cold. Drain very well.
4. Toss the noodles with the kimchi and about three-quarters of the sauce, adding more to taste.
5. Pile into bowls, top with the cucumber, carrot, lettuce and egg halves, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve right away while icy cold.

Tips

• Most kimchi contains fish sauce or salted shrimp; pick a vegan kimchi (or leave it out) to keep this vegetarian.
• Leave out the egg for a vegan bowl. Buckwheat noodles work too and are lovely, but check the label as most contain wheat.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Korean Bapsang Beyond Kimchee