Oi Naengguk (Korean Cold Cucumber Soup)
A refreshing Korean summer dish ready in just 10 minutes with no cooking required. Crunchy cucumber and seaweed float in a sweet-and-sour icy broth that revives your appetite on hot days.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Cucumber1
- Red chili pepper1
- Dried seaweed (miyeok)15g
- Onion1/2
- Carrot1/4
- Ice cubes5
Broth & Seasoning
- Water600ml
- Salt1 tbsp
- Sugar4 tbsp
- Vinegar6 tbsp
- Toasted sesame seeds1 tbsp
Directions
- 1
Prepare 1 cucumber, 1 red chili (or 1 cheongyang chili), 15g dried seaweed, 1/2 onion, 1/4 carrot, 600ml water, 1 tbsp salt, 4 tbsp sugar, 6 tbsp vinegar and 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds. All spoon measurements use a regular tablespoon.
- 2
Soak 15–20g of dried seaweed in cold water for about 10 minutes to rehydrate. Don't soak too long or it turns mushy and loses its texture, so keep an eye on the time.
- 3
Julienne 1/4 carrot, 1/2 onion and 1 cucumber into thin strips.
- 4
Slice the red chili diagonally. You can use cheongyang chili instead, but red chili gives a prettier color.
- 5
The key to naengguk is the broth ratio. Mix 600ml water, 1 tbsp salt, 4 tbsp sugar and 6 tbsp vinegar to make a sweet-and-sour broth.
- 6
Rinse the soaked seaweed in cold water and chop it into bite-sized pieces.
- 7
Add the sliced vegetables and seaweed to the broth.
- 8
Add 1 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds for a nutty flavor.
- 9
For an even cooler soup, top with 5 ice cubes and the sliced red chili.
- 10
Your oi naengguk is ready. The toasted sesame seeds definitely make it nuttier and tastier.