한국국제교류재단

Author : Ye Jong-suk Food Columnist; Professor of Marketing, Hanyang University | Ye Jong-suk Food Columnist; Professor of Marketing, Hanyang University

In all of Korea, it would be difficult to find a dish that is more beloved and ubiquitous than kalguksu. Across the country, from the capital Seoul to any city and town in the provinces, you can easily find kalguksu restaurants, some of great repute and enjoying a loyal following. This noodle dish is especially popular in Daejeon, a city in the Korean heartland, some two hours south of Seoul. According to a recent local newspaper report,

Noodles the Old-fashioned Way

Next to rice, kalguksu has long been one of the mainstay dishes served in the Korean home. Many Koreans fondly associate their childhood memories with the kalguksu prepared by their mothers. Former Korean President Kim Young-sam is known to have loved kalguksu so much that he would often have it served to guests at the Blue House, Korea’s presidential residence. Kalguksu is indeed one of the favorite dishes of many Koreans.

Anyone with an understanding of the Korean language might wonder about the name kalguksu, which literally means “knife noodle,” a rather scary reference for a food dish. But, similar to the well-known pun about the Korean pastry shaped like a fish, “There’s no fish in bungeo bbang” (literally, “carp bread”), kalguksu has no kal, or knife, in it. The name is derived from the use of a knife to slice the layers of folded dough into thin noodles. Admittedly, it is somewhat unusual for a Korean dish to be named after a kitchen utensil instead of its main ingredient or preparation method. Some restaurants advertise their specialty as son-kalguksu, meaning “hand knife noodle,” to stress that the dough is made and cut by hand, rather than a mechanical process. Kalguksu is sometimes called kaljebi to distinguish it from sujebi, a similar dish that, instead of having noodles, uses dough flakes torn roughly by hand.

There are three traditional noodle-making methods: napmyeon, which is made by repeatedly throwing and stretching the dough to form noodles; apchakmyeon, made by forcing the dough through a large bowl with small holes to produce thin noodle strands; and kalguksu, prepared by spreading the dough into a thin layer with a rolling pin, folding it over several times, and then cutting thinly sliced sections that unfold into slender noodles. Of the three, napmyeon, a typical Chinese technique, is hardly mentioned in ancient Korean documents, while apchakmyeon, the method for making the cold noodle dish naengmyeon, has largely been replaced by mechanized equipment. On the other hand, kalguksu continues to be made in the old-fashioned manner even today.

Buckwheat Instead of Wheat

In the past, when wheat was rarely available and thus very expensive, noodles made with wheat flour were reserved for special occasions. The widely quoted text, Xuanhe fengshi Gaoli tujing (Illustrated Record of Chinese Emissary to Goryeo during the Xuanhe Era), written by the Song Chinese envoy Xu Jing in 1123, notes: “Goryeo produces little wheat and imports it from Huabei (North China). Wheat flour is thus very expensive and cannot be used except for wedding ceremonies.” In Korea, cookbooks from the 17th century, such as Eumsik dimibang (Gourmet’s Recipes) and Jubangmun (Kitchen Literature), mostly mentioned kalguksu made with buckwheat, due to its general availability. An encyclopedic series on agriculture, Gosa sibijip (Treatises on Rural Affairs in Twelve Volumes), written by Seo Myeong-eung about a century later in late Joseon, likewise mentions: “Noodles were originally made with wheat flour but are often made with buckwheat in our country.” Buckwheat kalguksu can still be found in Gangwon Province, where this crop is raised in abundance; In Gyeonggi Province, it is known as kalssakdugi.

Kalguksu made with wheat flour became more common after the Korean War, when flour was shipped in as U.S. food aid in large quantities. Also, due to an insufficient supply of rice in the 1960s, the Korean government encouraged the use of flour as an alternative staple food, leading to a steady increase in the domestic consumption of flour.

Endless Variety

There are as many types of kalguksu as there are varieties of flour available to make the noodles, such as wheat, buckwheat, bean flour, and acorn flour. The diversity is further enhanced by the endless variety of ingredients that can be used for the broth, garnish, and seasoning. The kalguksu broth can be prepared from chicken, beef bone, anchovy, clam, red bean, perilla seed, kimchi, green laver, and small octopus. In inland regions, the broth is typically made with beef leg bone and beef, while along coastal areas it is often prepared with anchovy, clam, and various kinds of seafood. In the past, broth was made with pheasant meat, soy sauce, or omija, the Chinese schisandra berry, entirely different from today’s versions. Various sorts of garnish would be added, such as young squash slices, shredded beef, chicken, mushroom, or strips of egg, at times with the white and yolk prepared separately.

As for the preparation of noodles, there are two primary methods: geonjin-guksu and jemul-guksu (or nureum-guksu). Geonjin-guksu, meaning “scooped noodles,” was served to the guests of noble families of Andong, the hub of Korean Neo-Confucianism in North Gyeongsang Province. A mixture of wheat and bean flours was kneaded into dough, cut into thin strips, and cooked in boiling water, then scooped out and rinsed with cold water. Broth was added, then garnish, before being served. Jemul-guksu, meaning “same-water noodles,” is more straightforward: noodles and the broth are boiled with other ingredients, instead of being prepared separately. The noodles and broth thereby acquire a thicker consistency than the “scooped” version. The “same-water” version is considerably more common nowadays among the majority of kalguksu addicts.

Kalguksu is usually served as a main course, but sometimes as a final dish to top off a meal, with the noodles cooked in the leftover broth of maeuntang, a spicy fish stew, or shabu-shabu, a Japanese-style hotpot dish.

In Seoul, for beef leg bone (sagol) kalguksu, knowledgeable customers will seek out Hyehwa Kalguksu in Hyehwa-dong, and Hanseong Kalguksu in Nonhyeon-dong. For chicken (dak) kalguksu, Myeongdong Gyoja in Myeong-dong can boast of its longstanding tradition. For clam (bajirak) kalguksu, Im Byeong-ju Sandong Kalguksu in Seocho-dong, and for anchovy (myeolchi) kalguksu, Chungmu Kalguksu in Chungmu-ro, are well-known favorites. Moreover, these popular kalguksu restaurants all offer tasty kimchi, of a variety that well complements their noodle specialty.