냉면 — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

Ice-cold buckwheat noodles in a tangy, icy beef broth, topped with sliced cucumber, pear, a hard-boiled egg, and a swirl of spicy mustard — the ultimate Korean summer refresher.

Ingredients

300g naengmyeon noodles (buckwheat)
1L beef broth, well-chilled (ideally partially frozen)
200g beef brisket
1 Korean pear, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, julienned
2 hard-boiled eggs, halved
4 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
Korean mustard (gyeoja)
Salt
Ice cubes

Instructions

1 Simmer beef brisket in water for 1.5 hours until tender. Strain broth, chill until partially frozen. Slice brisket thinly.
2 Season the chilled broth with rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. It should be tangy, slightly sweet, and very cold.
3 Cook naengmyeon noodles in boiling water for 30-60 seconds (they cook fast). Drain and rinse aggressively under ice-cold water, rubbing to remove starch.
4 Place noodles in chilled metal bowls. Pour the icy broth over them.
5 Top with sliced brisket, cucumber, Korean pear, and halved hard-boiled egg.
6 Add ice cubes to keep the broth freezing cold. Serve with mustard and vinegar on the side. Use scissors to cut the noodles.

Did You Know?

Korean restaurants provide scissors alongside naengmyeon because the chewy buckwheat noodles are intentionally long and difficult to bite through, symbolizing longevity.