Seaweed Soup
If you like seaweed salad, try this. Traditionally offered to nursing mothers, it’s soothing in the winter and cooling in the summer (see variation). To slice the beef thinly, freeze it until it is just beginning to harden, 30 to 60 minutes. Miyuk is the Korean word known to the Japanese as wakame and elsewhere as alaria (see page 484); you should be able to find it at Asian markets.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Mix the beef with the garlic, soy sauce, and sesame oil and marinate for a few minutes. Meanwhile, thoroughly wash the seaweed under cold running water.
Step 2
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the beef with its marinade and brown, about 2 minutes, then add the seaweed and cook, stirring, for another 2 minutes. Add the scallions and 5 cups water to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the seaweed is soft, about 1 hour.
Step 3
Season with salt and pepper, garnish with chopped scallion, and serve.
Summer Seaweed Soup
Step 4
Cook through step 2, then cool. Meanwhile, seed and thinly slice 1 cucumber and peel and thinly slice one 2-inch piece of daikon radish. Add to the cooled soup, along with 6 ice cubes, and serve.
