Ganjang Bibim Guksu.
It’s spring here in Korea – and the sun is warm!
Lately, I’ve been taking silent, afternoon walks around my neighborhood and it feels… oh, so good!
Like free therapy.
With this warm weather, I’ve been also craving cold Korean noodles.But it’s always a debate on whether to eat Naengmyeon – made with Buckwheat Noodles…
Or to slurp-up some Bibim Guksu – which is made with Thin Wheat Noodles.
[Note: There are spicy and non-spicy versions of both noodles.]
Today, I’ll settle on the non-spicy version of Bibim Guksu!
The non-spicy version is called Ganjang Bibim Guksu in Korean.
Ganjang means Soy Sauce in Korean.
[Note: Ganjang Bibim Guksu is rarely served at Korean restaurants – it’s more of a homecooking dish. However, you’ll find the spicier version at many shops – it’s the preferred style!)
Key Cooking Notes for Ganjang Bibim Guksu
Remove the harshness from the onion slices by soaking them in water with vinegar.
After cooking the pork belly slices, pour them onto paper towels. Let the oil drip off them before adding it as garnish.
After cooling the noodles down in cold water – remember to shake off any excess water from the noodles. We don’t want the water leftover on the noodles to dilute our soy sauce mixture too much.
For the soy sauce mixture, I highly recommend using toasted perilla oil.
It provides a nutty, yet uplifting flavor!
(But toasted sesame oil will also work as a substitute).
Use any leftover juice from mixing the noodles as final garnish.
If you end up making these noodles, tag us on IG with a pic of your dish – we love flipping through your pictures in the morning.
P.s. If you’re cooking alone, don’t get too bored. Consider listening to our latest podcast episode while you cook!
Bon Appetit ya’ll.
Daniel out 🕺 (Look at my happy face - heh!)
Ingredients
- ½ Whole Onion
- 1 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar (to mix with water for onion slices)
- ½ Cucumber
Seasoned Pork Belly Slices
- 200 grams Thinly Sliced Pork Belly (aka Daepae Samgyeopsal)
- ½ Tablespoon Minced Garlic
- 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Mirin
- 1 Tablespoon Oligodang Syrup (or Honey)
- 1 teaspoon (!) Oyster Sauce
- Few gratings of Fresh Ginger
- Few cracks of Black Pepper
Thin Wheat Noodles
- 150 grams Korean Thin Wheat Noodles (aka Somyeon Noodles) (size, about diameter of a quarter)
- 1 Tablespoon Vinegar (to mix with water when boiling noodles)
Bibim Guksu Sauce
- 3.5 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1.5 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons Toasted Perilla Oil (Or Toasted Sesame Oil)
Instructions
Prep Ingredients
- Dice ½ an onion into thin slices. Fill a bowl with cold water, and add-in some Rice Vinegar (1 Tablespoon). Place the onion slices into the bowl - set aside to let it soak.
- Dice ½ a cucumber into thin slices - then julienne into thin strips.
- Mince a few pieces of garlic - set aside ½ Tablespoon worth.
- Peel the skin off a small piece of ginger, then set it aside for grating later.
Stir-fry Meat
- Place 200 grams of thinly sliced pork belly into a hot frying pan. Stir-fry it around.
- Once the red is gone from the meat, add-in: Minced Garlic (½ Tablespoon), Soy Sauce (1 Tablespoon), Mirin (2 Tablespoons), Oligodang Syrup or Honey (1 Tablespoon), Oyster Sauce (1 teaspoon!).
- Then use a grater and finely grate some ginger over the pork (just a small amount, ~½ teaspoons worth)
- Give it all a good final stir. Finish with a few cracks of black pepper.
- Place the meat pieces onto a paper towel lined plate - so it can soak up the excess oil. Set aside for later.
Cook Noodles
- Add Water to a pot. Place-in 1 Tablespoon of Vinegar (It will give flavor to the noodles). Bring it to a boil.
- Once the pot is boiling, add-in the noodles (150 grams). After 15-20 seconds, foam will start to rise. When the foam reaches the top of the pot, add a dash of cold water. The foam will settle down. The foam will rise again and you should repeat the process of adding a dash of cold water - do it a total of 3x.
- After the 3rd time, check to see if the noodle if cooked through. If so, turn heat off and drain the pot through a strainer. Wash the noodles in cold water and cool it down completely. Drain water through a strainer.
- Let the noodles sit in a colander or strainer to drip off excess water. Set aside.
Make Bibim Noodle Sauce
- Take out a mixing bowl and stir: Soy Sauce (3.5 Tablespoons), Sugar (2 Tablespoons), Rice Vinegar (1.5 Tablespoons), Toasted Perilla Oil (2 Tablespoons).
- Note: This will be enough sauce for 2 servings of noodles!
Make Noodles.
- Drain the soaking onions through a colander. Let it drip off the excess water.
- Add the cooked noodles into a mixing bowl.
- Then add-in ½ the Bibim Sauce (for a 1-person serving).
- Add in a few pieces of the sliced onions, as well some of the pan-fried meat. Toss it all together.
- Place the mixed noodles into a bowl. Garnish with more sliced onions, chopped cucumber & grilled meat.
- That's it - Bon Appetit Ya'll!
Christine says
Tasty and simple. Love it!
Renee says
Delicious! The flavours are super tasty and nicely balanced between the fat, salt, acid, and fresh vegetables. I added a little julienned carrot, fresh green onion and an extra 1/2 tbsp vinegar for my taste. And sesame oil worked well too. I’ll definitely be making this again!
Michelle Powell says
This was amazing! I had to order Perilla oil... So worth it only thing I was missing was ginger, mine was a lil too old to use but it still came out perfect and refreshing. I'm so excited cause I have another serving left for today! Thanks so much for the recipe!!
Cindy Wilson says
Easy is the word...absolutely delicious...this is a must to try,
Cindy Wilson says
Delicious ...맛있는