Kongnamulguk is typical Korean everyday soup.
In my opinion, if you see someone who can make delicious kimchi and kongnamulguk, you can say he or she is good at Korean cooking!
I’m introducing 2 versions of soybean sprout soup to you: a spicy version and a non-spicy version.
One of my aunts who passed away last year made this spicy version of kongnamulguk. When I was young, I used to go to her house during my summer vacation for a few weeks. She had no children so she always welcomed me. I have so many good memories about her.
I watched her making this soup because I really liked the taste. Even though it’s a very simple and easy recipe, since I saw her cooking this soup, I have been using this recipe for decades!
Ironically, she added a little MSG to the soup at the end, but I don’t. I like to enjoy the taste of natural ingredients. Here are my recipes!
Spicy version
Ingredients:
1 package of soybean sprouts (500 grams), water, salt, soy sauce, hot pepper flakes, onion, garlic, green onion, dried anchovies, roasted sesame seeds, and sesame oil.
Directions:
- Rinse and drain a package of soybean sprouts (500 grams) a few times over. Pick out any rotten sprouts.
- Put the soybean sprouts into a pot and add 5½ cups of water.
- Add 1½ ts salt, 1 ts soy sauce, 2 cloves of minced garlic, ½ tbs of hot pepper flakes.
- Slice half a medium sized onion and put it in the pot.
- Add a handful of dried anchovies (about 7 large dried anchovies) after removing the intestines.
*tip: this is going to be taken out later, we won’t eat it - Close the lid and bring to a boil over medium heat for about 15 minutes.
- When the soup boils over, open the lid and stir the soup with a spoon.
- Lower the heat and cook another 25 minutes.
- Add 2 chopped green onions and 1 or 2 ts of sesame oil.
- Turn off the heat.
- Grind roasted sesame seeds in a grinder.
- Put the soup in a bowl and sprinkle some sesame seed powder on top, just before serving.
Non-spicy vegetarian version
Ingredients:
1 package of soybean sprouts (500 grams), water, salt, kelp, garlic, green onion, onion, roasted sesame seeds, and sesame oil.
Directions:
- Rinse and drain a package of soybean sprouts (500 grams) a few times over. Pick out any rotten sprouts.
- Put the soybean sprouts into a pot and add 5½ cups of water.
- Add 1½ ts salt, ½ cup worth of kelp, and 2 cloves of minced garlic.
- Slice half a medium sized onion and put it in the pot.
- Close the lid and bring to a boil over medium heat for about 15 minutes.
- When the soup boils over, open the lid and stir it with a spoon.
- Lower the heat and simmer another 25 minutes.
- Take the kelp out of the soup.
- Add 2 chopped green onions and 1 or 2 ts of sesame oil.
- Turn off the heat.
- Grind roasted sesame seeds in a grinder.
- Put the soup in a bowl and sprinkle some sesame seed powder on top, just before serving.
I have made this recipe so many times now Maangchi! Thanks so much for posting it. My BF and I both feel like we have a cold coming on so I made it tonight with extra onions and garlic. It’s like a bowlfull of joy :D
Hi Maangchi,
My husband enjoys a sprout soup at a Korean restaurant in Chicago, but they won’t give him the recipe! It did learn it has 5 kinds of sprouts, tofu and pine nuts in it. It’s good for people with cancer. Any ideas what this soup might be?
Hello!
When I was in Korea, I had Kongnamul guk, but it was cold, I only ever had it cold. How do I do this? just refrigerate after cooking and serve cold? It was very delicious cold, and refreshing!
Thank you for your recipes!
Maangchi,
I followed your recipe but the soybean spicy soup came out very watery with out much taste! In the pictures, it looks like the sprouts are in alot of water -the amt in the recipe was not enough so I added more. I should have added more of the other ingredients. It looks so flavorful and I was soo disappointed but I will try again. Any suggestions?
Did it turn out too watery? Then add less water.
Maangchi!! This is delicious! I made it for breakfast two days ago and it makes an awesome first meal with a bowl of rice and natto! The subtly umami anchovy broth, the crunchy bean sprouts, rich sesame seeds~ yummy! I’ve had it two days in a row and can’t wait to make more. Thank you soooo much! This is probably my favorite recipe yet, and it’s so simple! I can’t wait to try more now :}
yeah, this is very basic everyday Korean soup. Every Korean loves it. So do I! Which version do you like better: spicy or non-spicy?
Maangchi I made this today and you are sooooo riiight!! The kaktugi is sooo good in the soup! Now I understand why you couldn’t stop eating it in the video!! Instead of Julie and Julia, I feel like this is Elisabeth and Maangchi! :)
oh, you thought about me when you had the soup with radish kimchi! You are enjoying the soup just like one of Koreans! Nice!
Hi Maangchi, I’m impressed by your videos… I’m a vegetarian who does not take onion and garlic, is there any way that i can modify this receipe to suit my diet??? And for the non-spicy version, could i cooked it with addition of the red pepper flake to make it spicy?? Please advices.. THank you!!! =)
Yes, you could add the red pepper flakes in non-spicy version recipe. The amount depends on your taste! mild hot, super hot.. or suicidal hot! : ) If you can’t eat garlic and onion, skip them. Without garlic, kongnamulguk is still delcious. But how about green onion? Can you eat it? If so, use it instead of onion.
as long it is onion, i cant eat it… But anyway, really thank alot… I tried cooking your pan-fried tofu with the soya-sweet sauce, it tastes great without any onion and garlic added to it… Thanks alot for your guidance… I shall continue to try other receipes and hope that you will post more vegetarian receipes up on your website… =)
hi maangchi,
this is probably a silly question but how do you make jak ko bap? i call it the purple bap. i usually buy the bag of mixed grain (brown rice, alot of different beans etc..) i soak it for a couple hours and then i cook it in the rice cooker but it never comes out right…should i add regular rice and sweet rice too it? please help!
I make my multi-grain rice this way using a pot.
1. Combine 1 cup of short grain rice, 1/2 cup of sweet brown rice, 1/2 cup of barley rice, and 2 tbs of black sweet rice
2. Wash and drain a couple of times and put it in a pot with a thick bottom
3. Pour 3 cups of water into the pot and soak it for a few hours and close the lid.
4. Bring the pot to a boil over medium heat for 10 minutes.
5. Open the lid and turn the rice over with a rice scoop or spoon.
6. Simmer it over low heat for another 10 minutes!
Hi, Maangchi, how do you cook the black sweet rice? I want to cook it to go with my kongnamulguk (which is absolutely delicious by the way! I love your recipe! It’s especially tasty if you let the soup soak overnight in the fridge so the flavors seep in more, ive found) and kimchi (which I also love your recipe for! So much better than the kimchi I had at a Korean Restaurant! Yummy!)
Thank you for your interest in my recipes! Here is the recipe for my multi-grain rice including the black sweet rice:
1. Combine 1 cup of short grain rice, 1/2 cup of sweet brown rice, 1/2 cup of barley rice, and 2 tbs of black sweet rice
2. Wash and drain a couple of times and put it in a pot with a thick bottom
3. Pour 3 cups of water into the pot and close the lid,and let it sit for a few hours
4. Bring the pot to a boil over medium heat for 10 minutes.
5. Open the lid and turn the rice over with a rice scoop or spoon.
6. Simmer it over low heat for another 10 minutes!
This is very helpful! Thank you so much!
Maangchi,
I just found your site and I really love it! You are sooo super duper cute!
I loved the part in the video where you just kept on eating the soup even though you were filming… hahah! Thank you so much for doing this! <3
haha, thank you very much! kongnamulguk is my favorite!
Hi Maangchi,
you day if one can cook KONGNAMULGUK, she can cook good korean food….I think I can consider myself a good Korean cook! My husband loves this soup even my daughter whose taste is not easy to satisfy….and I must say…you are making me a good korean cook.
More power to you Maangchi…and may you be more inspired to bless lots of peopl’es heart through your website…by the way I introduced your website to two other friends…they are also excited to pass it on.
regards,
chit
Yes, you are good at Korean cooking as long as you can make delicious kongnamulguk. : ) I’m so happy to hear that it sounds like you have confidence in Korean cooking. Congratulation!
I have to say that I enjoyed the entire soup all to myself. I brought it to work for my lunch for the whole week with whole-grain rice and ground sesame seeds. So good and so healthy! My next recipe to try is the soybean sprout salad. I just love soybean sprouts and it is very healthy to eat that. I am trying out one recipe at a time from your site so I love the fact that I can watch your videos over and over to refresh myself on a recipe.
yes, it’s very healthy food. Yeah, make soybean sprout side dish (kongnamul muchim)http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-chigae-kongnamool
And you make make bibimbap with it. Mix rice and kongnamul muchim and add some sesame oil and hot pepper paste according to your taste. It’s very simple bibimbap and delicious!
Oh Maangchi! Hammer! LOL
I love your channel. :)
Hi Maangchi: I finally made this spicy version of this soup and love it. I did exactly to your video demonstration, even used dried anchovies. Remember, I didn’t want to touch the anchovies at first, but got strong and decided to do exactly how it should be. Even removed the guts of the anchovies. I am not sure if I cooked the soup too long because the soybean sprout was a bit soft while the bean part of the sprout was still crunchy.
I have a question about washing the soybean sprout. I had some sprouts with root tails about 3 inches long and was a bit stringy looking. Do I remove those. It didn’t look too appealing to me so I spent time to remove all the stringy root tails of each one. I had a 1/2 cup of tails at the end. Your video didn’t show you removing any tails, but I wasn’t sure if my bag of sprouts was getting old so I removed them.
This soup makes quite a bit so I will have some for my lunch tomorrow with some whole-grain rice. This is not my husband’s or my son’s type of soup so the soup is all for me. Thanks so much for this post and making this video. I must of watch this video 5 times before I finally was able to make it. Even after I made it, I had to watch the video again to see if I did it correctly.
Yayee, you could remove dried anchovy’s gut! Congratulation! : )
“..soybean sprout was a bit soft while the bean part of the sprout was still crunchy.”
Yes, it’s very normal. well done!
The tails of soybean sprouts are more than 3 inches? Then they should be removed. Soybean sprouts sold in a package here don’t have long tails, so I don’t have to pinch the tails off.
“I must of watch this video 5 times before I finally was able to make it. Even after I made it, I had to watch the video again to see if I did it correctly.”
You are right! Good job! Congratulation again! You can make this delicious and healthy soup forever. Isn’t it cool?
Hi Maangchi,
Can i replace kelp with anchovies if i’m making the non spicy version for my children?
yes, of course. I sometimes use dried anchovies in the non spicy version of kongnamulguk. It’s very good! : )
hey, maangchi! i finally made your delicious kongnamul guk and posted it here. it’s almost as good as my grandma’s, i can’t believe it! (:
awesome! vegetarian version of soybean sprout soup! Beautiful!
What can I substitute for the anchovies in the spicy version?
Also, do you have a stir-fry recipe for the soybean sprout?
You could use chopped beef, or clams. No, I don’t stir-fry soybean sprouts.
Maangchi, Hello! Can I use Mung Bean Sprouts instead of the Soybean Sprouts. Would it make much difference and would you cook it longer or shorter?
Thanks,
Dina
Not for this soup. You will have to get soy bean sprouts (kongnamul) to make this soup.
Whats Reason Behind Adding MSG? .
I’ve Heard Its Quite Bad For Health
Hi..!!
Maangchi i Made It Today It Was Delecious
And Idea Of Roasted Sesame Powder is Great^^
But I Used Anchovies I Removed Intestine & Head But
Anchovy Divided Into Several Parts While Boiling;(
It was Coming To My Mouth
I Tried To Find That Strainer Kind of Dish Which U Used But They r not availiable right now
& Yes I Want To Make Myulchi Bokkeum
Those Myulchi Made Good Stock
But i dont Do They Could Be Used For Myulchi bokkum or not how can i show you pic
Do you have E-mail address?
yes, maangchi@gmail.com Send me some photos of food that you made! Thank you for updating us!
can you freeze this soup and some of your other soups ?
hmm, good question,
I never like to freeze soup. When I make soup more than enough, I keep it in the fridge and eat it in a few days.
Don’t freeze kongnamulguk, but Yukgaejang could be frozen and eat it later.
http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/yukgaejang
If you want, leave your question on the forum. It could be a good topic to discuss.
Maangchi, i couldn’t find any anchovies here…. can i skip it?
hmm, you can skip it, but someday if you find dried anchovies and make this soup, you will see the difference. Just a little thing makes it big difference.
Hi!
I wondered if you ever tried to incorporate squid into this dish. My mom uses the body of a fresh cleaned squid and gives the soup an very “refreshing” taste. Please try it and let me know if you like it!
Jenny
I already like it because you like it, Jenny! : )
I’m going to post my squid soup recipe someday. Thank you!
hi maangchi,
this soup looks very good.
my question is, how do YOU roast sesame seeds? i think i would burn them if i tried on my own… any suggestions/techniques?
thanks!
You could get roasted sesame seeds at a store.
To roast raw sesame seeds, first wash and drain them,and use a heavy bottomed deep pan over medium heat. Stir them constantly until the sesame seeds are light brown and crispy.
Maangchi,
I am so happy you posted this recipe. It was cold and rainy outside today so I decided to make the spicy version for lunch. I ate it with kaktugi and it was so delicious! I thought that the ground up toasted sesame seeds were a nice touch at the end. I will definitely be making this soup often :) keep up the good work!
Cheers,
Karen
yayee, the soup sounds perfect with cold and rainy weather!