Makguksu is a Korean

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

 buckwheat

Buckwheat

Buckwheat refers to a variety of plants in the dicot family Polygonaceae: the Eurasian genus Fagopyrum, the North American genus Eriogonum, and the Northern Hemisphere genus Fallopia. Either of the latter two may be referred to as "wild buckwheat"...

 noodle

Noodle

The noodle is a type of food, made from any of a variety of doughs, formed into long thin ribbons, strips, curly-cues, waves, helices, pipes, tubes, strings, or other various shapes, sometimes folded. They are usually cooked in a mixture of boiling water and/or oil. Depending upon the type, noodles...

 dish served in a chilled broth

Broth

Broth is a liquid food preparation, typically consisting of either water or an already flavored stock, in which bones, meat, fish, cereal grains, or vegetables have been simmered. Broth is used as a basis for other edible liquids such as soup, gravy, or sauce. It can be eaten alone or with garnish...

. It is a local specialty of the Gangwon

Gangwon-do (South Korea)

Gangwon-do is a province of South Korea, with its capital at Chuncheon. Before the division of Korea in 1945, Gangwon and its North Korean neighbour Kangwŏn formed a single province.-History:...

 province of South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

, and its capital city, Chuncheon

Chuncheon

Chuncheon is the capital of Gangwon Province, South Korea. The city lies in the northeast of the country, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are some large lakes around the city, most notably Lake Soyang and Lake Uiam...

.

Ingredients and preparation

Makguksu is closely related to naengmyeon

Naengmyeon

Naengmyeon is a Korean dish of long and thin hand-made noodles made from the flour and starch of various ingredients: buckwheat , potatoes, sweet potatoes, 칡냉면, naengmyun made with the starch from arrowroot , and kudzu...

, the archetypal Korean cold noodle dish. Its differences lie in the high concentration of buckwheat flour in its noodles, the result of the grain's status as a staple crop in the Gangwon-do area, and the use of greater amounts of vegetables. The dish gets its name—"rough noodles"—from the fact that the buckwheat used is generally unhulled.

Makguksu is usually prepared directly from buckwheat crop, soaked, and ground into a paste. Since buckwheat is less glutinous than most grains, buckwheat flour is particularly difficult to knead, roll, and slice into noodles by hand; thus, the noodles are often created in a hand-cranked noodle-making machine instead.

It is difficult to generalize regarding makguksu's accompanying ingredients. Ingredients are traditionally determined by the customer rather than the restaurant owner, and many restaurants also carry their own unique flavoring recipes. In most cases, makguksu is very spicy, sometimes seasoned with gochujang

Gochujang

Gochujang is a savory and pungent fermented Korean condiment. Traditionally, it has been naturally fermented over years in large earthen pots outdoors, more often on an elevated stone platform, called jangdokdae in the backyard...

(hot pepper paste). Various types of kimchi can be added as well: nabak kimchi

Nabak kimchi

Nabak kimchi is a watery kimchi, similar to dongchimi, in Korean cuisine. It is made of thinly sliced Korean white radish and Napa cabbage into a rectangular shape as main ingredients and salted them with mixed vegetables and spices such as cucumber, spring onions, water dropwort , garlic, ginger,...

, dongchimi

Dongchimi

Dongchimi is a variety of kimchi consisting of daikon, baechu , spring onions, fermented green chili, ginger, bae and watery brine in Korean cuisine...

or baechu

Napa cabbage

Napa cabbage , also known as celery cabbage, is a type of Chinese cabbage originating near the Beijing region of China, and is widely used in East Asian cuisine. In much of the world, this is the vegetable referred to as "Chinese cabbage"...

 kimchi

Kimchi

Kimchi , also spelled gimchi, kimchee, or kim chee, is a traditional fermented Korean dish made of vegetables with varied seasonings. There are hundreds of varieties of kimchi made with a main vegetable ingredient such as napa cabbage, radish, green onions or cucumber. It is the most common...

. Many recipes also add various vegetables and/or soy sauce. Banchan

Banchan

Banchan refers to small dishes of food served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. This word is used both in the singular and plural....

(side dishes) vary in equal measure. In the Chuncheon

Chuncheon

Chuncheon is the capital of Gangwon Province, South Korea. The city lies in the northeast of the country, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are some large lakes around the city, most notably Lake Soyang and Lake Uiam...

 area, the dish is frequently accompanied by boiled beef

Beef

Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...

 or pork

Pork

Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....

; elsewhere, it may be served with bindaetteok

Bindaetteok

Bindaetteok is a variety of jeon, a Korean style pancake...

(mung bean

Mung bean

The mung bean is the seed of Vigna radiata. It is native to the Indian subcontinent.-Description:They are small, ovoid in shape, and green in color...

 pancake

Pancake

A pancake is a thin, flat, round cake prepared from a batter, and cooked on a hot griddle or frying pan. Most pancakes are quick breads; some use a yeast-raised or fermented batter. Most pancakes are cooked one side on a griddle and flipped partway through to cook the other side...

s) or gamjajeon

Gamjajeon

Gamjajeon is a variety of jeon, or Korean style pancake, made by pan-frying finely grated potato on a frying pan with any type of vegetable oil until golden brown. Potatoes were introduced in Korea in 1824 through Manchuria and have been cultivated mainly in the hills and mountain ranges of Gangwon...

(potato pancakes

Potato pancakes

Potato pancakes are shallow-fried pancakes of grated or ground potato, flour and egg, often flavored with grated onion or garlic and seasoning. Potato pancakes may be topped with a variety of condiments, ranging from the savory to the sweet , or they may be served ungarnished...

).

Chuncheon

Makguksu has become a large part of the identity of the Chuncheon

Chuncheon

Chuncheon is the capital of Gangwon Province, South Korea. The city lies in the northeast of the country, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are some large lakes around the city, most notably Lake Soyang and Lake Uiam...

region. In recent decades, a "buckwheat noodle street" featuring more than a dozen makguksu restaurants has developed in the downtown area. There is a makguksu museum, and the city also hosts the annual Chuncheon Makguksu Noodle Festival, featuring makguksu tastings and other celebrations.

External links

• Recipe and info of Makguksu at Korea Tourism Organization
• Makguksu museum
• Chuncheon Makguksu and Dakgalbi Festival