Sogogi Muguk (Korean Beef and Radish Soup)

• 500 g beef brisket (yangji), cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 tbsp plain flour, to draw the blood out of the beef (rinsed off)
• 600 g Korean radish (mu), cut into thin 4–5 mm squares
• 2 tbsp guk-ganjang (Korean soup soy sauce), for salting the radish
• 1.5 litres water, then 1 litre more (some boils away)
• 20 g dried kombu (dasima), lifted out at the end
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp kkanari-aekjeot (sand lance fish sauce)
• 120 g oyster mushrooms (neutari), torn
• ½ tbsp salt, or to taste
• 1 stalk daepa (Korean large green onion), halved lengthways and finely sliced
• 2 pinches of ground black pepper

Method

The cook speaks Korean; every step is written here in English. Tap a time to watch that step on YouTube.

1. Cut the radish into thirds, then into thin 4–5 mm squares (nabak-sseolgi). 0:35
2. Toss the radish with 2 tbsp soup soy sauce and leave it for about 20 minutes so it seasons and doesn't break up. Halve the daepa lengthways and slice it finely. 1:06
3. Sprinkle the beef with 1 tbsp flour, add a bowl of water and squeeze it for about 5 minutes to draw out the blood. Rinse it in cold water three times and drain well. 1:42
4. Bring 1.5 litres of water to the boil and add the beef straight in (don't fry it first, which clouds the broth). Skim off all the foam, lower to medium, cover and simmer 15 minutes. 2:59
5. Skim a little fat off the top. Add the radish with its soy sauce, 1 litre more water, the kombu, minced garlic and fish sauce. Cover and simmer another 15 minutes; don't try to adjust the salt yet. 3:56
6. Lift out the kombu and add the oyster mushrooms, stirring them through. 4:55
7. Taste and season with about ½ tbsp salt, then add the sliced daepa and two pinches of pepper, stir once and serve. 5:25

Tip. Serves 4. A Korean everyday and holiday soup, usually eaten with rice and kimchi; the soup alone is light and low in carbs. Season gently if you are watching salt.

The method is a summary in our words — the video shows every step.