It’s been a while since I shared a noodle dish here, so I think it is time for a new one now. We may be in winter, but let us break the silence of the noodles with a popular summer dish, Naengmyeon.
Naengmyeon means cold noodles. It is made with long, thin handmade noodles. The noodles are made with the flour and starch of various ingredients like potatoes, sweet potatoes or buckwheat and they are served cold with several other ingredients like hard-boiled eggs, cucumbers, briskets and chili sauce. It is a popular dish in Korea, and because it is very refreshing, it is usually enjoyed during summertimes, especially after barbecues.
Records show that Naengmyeon has been made since the days of the Joseon Dynasty. It used to be more popular in the Northern region of Korea, but it became widely popular after the Korean war. It is traditionally eaten without cutting the noodles, but servers at the restaurants ask customers whether they would like their noodles to be cut before eating. If they would, noodles are cut using scissors.
The two main varieties of this dish are called mul naengmyeon (물 냉면) and bibim naengmyeon (비빔 냉면). The first one is served as a kind of cold soup and the noodles are contained in the broth that is made from beef, dongchimi or chicken. The latter is served with a spicy dressing made using gochujang(Korean red chili paste).
Although the noodles are traditionally handmade, they can be found at shops as instant noodles also, with the soup broth prepackaged.
Don’t forget to check the gallery and the recipes!
Main Ingredients: Noodles (usually made from the flour and starch of potatoes, sweet potatoes or buckwheat, but can be made from the flour or starch of seaweed or green tea too.)