Name: Kalguksu - Korean Noodle Soup
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 120 g of all-purpose flour; 60 ml water; 0.25 teaspoon salt; 1 L water; 7 dried anchovies; 1 tablespoon small dried shrimp (optional); 1 Piece of kombu (about 2 x 3 inches); 0.5 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon guk ganjang (Korean soup soy sauce); 100 g zucchini or Korean hobak (julienned); 0.25 yellow onion; 100 g of potatoes (julienned); 1 green onion; 85 g of ground beef; 1.5 teaspoons of mirin; 1.5 teaspoons light soy sauce; 0.5 teaspoon garlic (chopped); 1 tablespoon light soy sauce; 1.5 teaspoons by gochugaru; 2 teaspoons of green chili (chopped); 1 teaspoon rice vinegar; 1 tablespoon of green onion (chopped); 0.5 teaspoon sesame oil; 1 teaspoon garlic (chopped); 1 pinch of sugar; 1 pinch pepper; Green onions (chopped); Green Chilies (thinly sliced); Garlic (sliced)

A delicious Korean knife-cut noodle soup, served in an anchovy broth with various toppings and spicy sauce.

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5/5 (3)

The first thing you notice is the mist. A veil of fragrant noodle steam condenses on the window as summer rain “patters on the awning. Diners lean over bowls that gurgle like small hot springs. They practice”iyeol chiyeol: the Korean belief that one chases away dampness by enjoying an equally hot dish.

xiaomian in white bowl on wooden background — Similar to spicy Chinese xiaomian for hot days

In these bowls lies kalguksu: knife-cut noodles so tender they undulate, bathed in a broth reminiscent of long-simmered chicken. As humble as it may seem, the soup distills centuries of expertise and comfort, offering a history lesson, sip after sip, on how Korea transformed scarcity, ingenuity, and a bit of flour into an edible refuge.

From Royal Treat to Rainy Day Essential

Under Goryeo and early Joseon, wheat was so rare that it was locked in royal granaries. Noodles therefore only appeared on special occasions: weddings, harvest banquets, or dol, that first birthday where noodles symbolize longevity.

In her 1670 classic, Eumsik Dimibang, Lady Jang Gye-hyang already describes a method for knife-cut buckwheat-wheat noodles, the earliest written trace of the technique that would later give rise to kalguksu. For centuries, the dish remained elitist; its translucent noodles were a demonstration of the cook’s blade skills.

The Korean War disrupted this order. American aid ships unloaded bags of white flour in ports; suddenly, a food once reserved for nobility could feed refugees and the working class. Street vendors improvised portable cauldrons, and in the 1960s, Myeongdong Kyoja opened in Seoul, offering a chicken broth, to which, it’s said, a hint of pork is added, which still attracts long queues today.

In an Authentic Bowl: Noodles, Broth, Toppings

Noodles. True kalguksu noodles are never factory-calibrated. A handful of dough is thinly rolled out, folded, then sliced into 3 to 5 mm ribbons. The irregular edges offer an elastic chew that dry pasta cannot imitate.

Broth. Houses generally fall into two camps. The coastal version simmers dried anchovies and seaweed (kombu) for 20 to 30 minutes, skimming often for a clear liquid; the seaweed is removed quite quickly. Inland kitchens prefer one to two hours of simmering a whole chicken, releasing collagen that adheres to the noodles. In both cases, the seasoning remains subtle: salt, a touch of guk-ganjang; thus allowing the sweetness of the flour to shine through.

Accompaniments. Half-moons of zucchini and potato cubes travel in the broth from start to finish, their starch gently thickening the soup. Clams join the marine version, opening like briny confetti; breast shreds crown the dak kalguksu. The only red allowed is the kimchi served on the side, its cold crunch resetting the palate between sips. Optional but cherished extras: perilla seed powder for a nutty note, seaweed flakes for an ocean flavor, …

Regional Variations of Kalguksu

Travel about 230 kilometers southeast and you’ll reach Andong, where the aristocratic yangban once refreshed themselves with Andong-guksi. The noodles, enriched with soy flour, are rolled almost translucent, then boiled before being sprinkled with cold water for a clean summer bowl. A pinch of seaweed and thin yellow ribbons of egg add a courtly touch.

Jjimdak - header — Jjimdak is also typical of Andong

Heading west to Chungcheong, chicken takes center stage. The region’s light broth, sometimes enhanced with a few clams or oysters, inspired the famous bowls of Myeong-dong, proving that urban icons often owe a debt to rural cuisines. Further north, in the sea-mountain terrain of Gangwon, they serve jang-kalguksu, mixing rustic gochujang or doenjang with an anchovy broth for a scarlet soup often accompanied by a splash of icy water kimchi with radish.

Winter in Jeolla heralds pat-kalguksu: wheat noodles floating in a creamy red bean porridge, halfway between a meal and a warm dessert. Further south, windy Jeju marries buckwheat noodles with pheasant broth, a bowl that tastes of basalt and open fields – a reminder that terroir can be served by the ladle.

A few Key Points to Identify a Real Kalguksu

Authentic kalguksu whispers; it doesn’t shout. If the broth assaults you with excess salt or exhales the smell of a bouillon cube, move on. Beware of industrial noodles: they swell and become slimy, just like a soup so thick it coats the spoon.

Innovation has its place: a kimchi-infused broth that tingles or creamy variations that willfully depart from tradition, as long as they’re labeled “modern” so everyone knows it’s an adaptation, not the original matrix. When chefs swap wheat for quinoa flour or flavor the broth with truffle oil, the best continue to honor the heart of kalguksu: handmade noodles, an honest broth, a measured balance.