Kongnamul Guk

About the dish

Soybean sprouts grow easily in any season and cost little, so they long kept the tables of ordinary Koreans well filled. Simmered into a clear soup, they give a broth so clean and refreshing that it has stood by generations as everyday comfort and morning-after cure alike.

Key ingredient

Soybean sprouts (kongnamul) — vitamin C and asparagine make them a celebrated hangover remedy; fiber keeps the bowels moving and the calories stay low. Available year-round, grown nationwide.

Ingredients

Main: soybean sprouts, radish, scallion, anchovy-kelp broth · Seasoning: minced garlic, soup soy sauce, salt, gochugaru

Simple recipe

1. Trim the tails of the sprouts and rinse them.
2. Boil the sprouts in water with the lid on so no raw-bean smell develops.
3. Season with minced garlic and salted shrimp or soup soy sauce.
4. Add the scallion and gochugaru.
5. Bring to one last rolling boil and serve refreshing and hot.

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