Recipe for Beef and Radish Soup (Soegogi Muguk: 쇠고기무국) made without bone stock or anchovy or fish sauce.
I have always been a big fan of soups and Korean cuisine has great soups. Unfortunately most of them will contain bone stock, anchovies and some kind of shellfish. So for a gout suffer eating soups in Korean restaurants is like walking in a minefield. This soup recipe is full of flavor but the veggie stock keeps it safe for me to enjoy.
Stock ingredients include:
Korean radish: Korean radishes are really thick. Usually, they are mild, but in the summer, they can be quite spicy. If you can not find it, the Japanese daikon will work.
Shiitake mushrooms: Wash your dried mushrooms before adding them. Since we’re going to boil this, you do not have to soak them ahead of time.
Onion: For this batch I used a medium onion cut in half.
Kombu: Kombu is a type of kelp and is high in glutamic acid for the umami flavor.
Garlic: Not pictured garlic is very common in Korean cooking and I like it.
Soup ingredients:
Bean sprouts: These are optional but I like them in the soup.
Beef: We need some beef (pork will also work). Chuck roast brisket, shank, or just about any other cut of meat will work.
Green onion: Green onions are very common in Korean cooking.
Garlic: Yes more garlic, I like it.
Korean red pepper flakes: This is optional, but I like to add a little. Keep in mind this is not usually a spicy soup.
Salt: To round out flavors
Soy Sauce: It ads saltiness and adds a depth of flavor.
Oil: I used expeller pressed canola oil.
Making the stock is quite simple. First, cut the radish into slices (I used three slices) and cut off the skin. Cut the slices into half.
Add all of the stock ingredients into the pot, even the skin from the radish. Bring to a slow boil and boil for twenty minutes. While the stock is boiling, use a skimmer skim off the foam to come to the top. This will help to give a clear stock. After twenty minutes, turn off the heat and let the stock cool down.
After the stock has cooled down, remove the veggies and strain. The radish and mushrooms will be used later in the soup.
The kelp can be used in other recipes. The onion and radish skin can be discarded.
You should now have a little over eight cups of clear vegetable stock.
This is the same stock that I made for my shiitake and radish vegetable stock.
While the veggie stock was cooking we prepared some bean sprouts. We sorted thru and removed most of the heads and roots. Then gave them a quick wash and let them soak in cold water.
For today’s recipe, we used a chuck roast.
The meat was cut up into small cubes. I was shooting for a quarter inch but most of them are a little bigger than that.
To remove some of the gunk stuff from the meat it was covered with water and let rest for thirty minutes. Then rinsed and let the excess water run off. To speed up the process some people will add salt to the soaking water but its up to you.
The radish that was removed from the veggie should be cut into large pieces. The mushrooms should be cut into small pieces. And yes, more garlic.
Cut up three or four green onions. I like to set some of the green parts aside to garnish the dish.
Add one Tablespoon of oil to a pot on high heat. Add the diced mushrooms, beef, green onion and cook until the meat is brown. Add two cups of the veggie broth and the Korean red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is almost gone.
Add the rest of the veggie stock (six cups) and the bean sprouts, salt, soy sauce, and bring to a boil. After it comes to a boil, cook for three to five minutes. Then add the Korean radish. When the pot comes back to a boil, the soup is ready.
Ingredients
VEGETABLE BROTH
- 1 Onion medium
- 350 grams Radish 12 oz Korean moo or daikon
- 5 grams kombu
- 5 Shiitake mushrooms Dried
- 2 cloves Garlic crushed
- 2.5 liters Water 2.6 quarts / 10.4 cups
Soup
- 12 oz Beef Chuck roast, brisket or, shank
- 1 Tablespoon Canola oil Expeller pressed
- 1 teaspoon garlic finely minced
- 1/2 Tablespoon Sea salt
- 1/2 Tablespoon Soy sauce
- 4 Green onions Chopped up
- 1/4 teaspoon Korean red pepper flakes
Instructions
Veggie stock
- Cut the radish into slices (I used three slices) and cut off the skin. Cut the slices into half. Soup ingredients on a table
- Add all of the stock ingredients into the pot, even the skin from the radish. Bring to a slow boil and boil for twenty minutes. While the stock is boiling, use a skimmer skim off the foam that comes to the top. After twenty minutes, turn off the heat and let the stock cool down. Stockpot with the veggie stock ingredients in the pot
PREPARATION FOR THE SOUP
- Bean Sprouts: Remove most of the heads and roots. Wash the bean sprouts and soak them in cold water. Cleaned bean sprouts soaking in a bowl of water
- Cut the radish left from making the stock into big pieces. Also, cut up the leftover mushrooms. Prepared vegetable ingredients
- For the meat: Cut into 1/4 inch cubes. Put into a large bowl and cover with water. Let sit covered for 1 hour. Pour off the water and rinse. Drain.
Make the soup.
- To your pot on high heat, add 1 Tablespoon oil: the mushrooms, meat, green onions. Cook until the meat is brown. Add 2 cups veggie stock and red pepper flakes. Boil until the liquid is almost gone. Diced beef in a pot after boiling.
- Add 6 cups of veggie stock, salt, soy sauce, and bean sprouts. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes. Check for seasoning. Add the radish and bring to a boil.
- The soup is now ready to serve.
