Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup Recipe- Oi Naengguk

I'm definitely a soup person. Year round, fill me up a bowl of delicious soup and you'll find one happy girl.It doesn't matter what time of year it is; I love it no matter what.
But no, I'm not the type who can sit down to a bowl of steaming chicken soup when sweat is dripping down my face. When I prepare and eat soup, I keep the weather in mind and choose the type of soup accordingly. My love affair with soup can partly be attributed to the fact that via soups cheap foods and seasonal produce can easily be put together to make the most delectable, palate pleasing combinations. Not only that, if prepared correctly, soup can not only made to complement the weather, but can also be used to effectively combat uncomfortable temperatures. Hot heavy soups warm tummies in the winter, but most people don't think about the terrific cooling properties of chilled light soups during the warmer months.
I try to serve cold soups as often as possible during the summer. Not only does adding this extra course automatically turn any meal into a fancy meal, but I feel so refreshed after imbibing that chilled dish, despite the weather.

Here is a really awesome chilled cucumber soup I discovered recently and have since fallen in love with it. Its refreshing, delicious, crisp, simple to make, and ultra frugal. Best of all, as with everything on my blog recently, it is also gluten free!

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup Recipe- Oi Naengguk

Ingredients:
2 regular cucumbers or 4 pickling cucumbers
2 cups cold water
3 tbsp soy sauce (use gluten free soy sauce if you need this to be gluten free)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
3.5 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp roasted sesame seed
2 green onions


Instructions:
1. If your cucumbers are waxed, peel them. If they're unwaxed, wash them well. Slice the cucumbers as thin as possible, preferably with a mandolin, slicer, or sharp knife.

2. Mix together soy sauce, lemon, sugar, water, garlic, and salt until you have a homogenous mixture.

3. Add the cucumbers to the soy sauce mixture.

4. Heat a skillet on the stove and add raw sesame seeds. Mix around until they brown somewhat, and then remove from the fire.

5. Chop green onions into small pieces. Add green onions and roasted sesame seeds to the soup.

6. Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours or until it is completely chilled and ice cold.

7. Enjoy the slightly sweet and sour taste of this refreshing recipe and watch it cool you down instantly.

Notes: If desired, cut cucumbers into thin matchsticks instead of circles.
If you'd like a thinner soup, double the amount of liquid mixture made.

Have you ever had Korean Cold Cucumber Soup-  Oi Naengguk- before? Have you ever eaten any Korean food? What type of Korean food did you eat, and did you enjoy it?
Do you enjoy cold soups? What types of cold soups have you had? Do you ever make cold soups?
Are you the type that can drink hot soup or hot coffee on a boiling hot day, or like me, do you switch to ice coffee and chilled soups when it is too hot to manage?

Linking to the KOAB recipe exchange

1 comment:

  1. I'm sorry I didn't see this recipe here before. I'll be making it for sure!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for leaving a comment on your blog. Comments are moderated- please be patient to allow time for them to go through. Opposing opinions are permitted, discussion and disagreements are encouraged, but nasty comments for the sole purpose of being nasty without constructive criticisms will be deleted.
Just a note- I take my privacy seriously, and comments giving away my location or religion are automatically deleted too.