Korean Seafood Knife-Cut Noodle Soup
Quick answer
- Total time
- 40 min
- Level
- Medium
- Servings
- 2 servings
- Ingredients
- 10
About this dish
Haemul kalguksu simmers hand-rolled, knife-cut wheat noodles in a broth built from dried kelp, Manila clams, shrimp, and squid.
Read more
The kelp forms the stock's clean mineral base, and as the clams open during cooking they release a briny liquor that enriches the broth considerably without any additional seasoning. Sliced zucchini adds a mild sweetness while green onion brings a fresh fragrance to the pot, and soup soy sauce with minced garlic rounds out the flavor into something clean and umami-rich without heaviness. Because kalguksu noodles are rolled thin and cut wide by hand, they release some starch into the broth as they cook, giving the soup a subtle natural body. The wide, flat noodles have a distinctive chewy texture and soak up the seafood broth with every bite, so that lifting a chopstick-full of noodle and clam delivers a concentrated taste of the sea in a single mouthful.
Ingredients
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Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Season
Purge 300g Manila clams in 1 liter water mixed with 1 tablespoon salt for at least 30 minutes.
Thaw the shrimp, remove the vein, and prepare the squid so the seafood can cook quickly later.
- 2Control
Soak 10g dried kelp in 1.2 liters water for 20 minutes, then set the pot over medium heat.
When small bubbles gather around the edge, remove the kelp before a full boil to keep the stock clear.
- 3Step
Add the purged clams to the kelp stock and keep the heat at medium.
As the shells open, skim off foam from the surface so the broth stays clean and the briny clam liquor remains balanced.
- 4Control
Add 100g shrimp and 100g cleaned squid, then simmer only 1-2 minutes.
Once the shrimp and squid turn opaque, avoid extended boiling because seafood becomes tough quickly in the hot broth.
- 5Season
Separate 200g kalguksu noodles as you add them, then season with 2 tablespoons soup soy sauce and 1 tablespoon minced garlic.
Boil 5-7 minutes, stirring during the first minute so the wide noodles do not clump.
- 6Finish
When the noodles look slightly translucent and chewy, add 80g half-moon zucchini and sliced green onion.
Simmer 1 more minute, adjust with salt, and serve immediately while the broth is hot and lightly thickened.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Briny clam liquid and kelp stock flavor the hand-rolled noodles in haemul kalguksu.
- Finish cue
- Simmer 1 more minute, adjust with salt, and serve immediately while the broth is hot and lightly thickened.
- Avoid this
- Once the shrimp and squid turn opaque, avoid extended boiling because seafood becomes tough quickly in the hot broth.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official cooking and food safety guidance.
This recipe
40min, 10 ingredients
Category median
35min, 9 ingredients
Based on 233 recipes
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