Bibim Guksu: La Maestra's Take on a Spicy Korean Classic

 Ever since becoming a mother of two under two, I find I have less time to cook than ever before. My diet has taken a big hit as a result, as I've been relying on takeout and delivery more than I'd care to admit. As someone who loves cooking, eating clean, and also wants to run a more minimal household, this upsets me. Ideally, we should be meal planning and cooking/eating every meal at home but this is a skill I'm still developing as I juggle my duties as a mother, which include (but are not limited to) frequently nursing my son and pumping for my toddler, and my duties as homemaker, keeping our home tidy, clean, and orderly. Come August, when my maternity leave is up, returning to my full-time teaching position will be added to that list.

Thankfully, my interest in Korean cooking led me to discover how quick, simple, and satisfying many Korean dishes are. What I love about many of these recipes is how they emphasize a variety of vegetables and whole grains over animal products. Although many recipes, including the one I will be sharing with you today, traditionally include some meat and eggs, it's very easy to convert these recipes into plant-dense vegan meals due to the heavier emphasis Eastern cuisine places on plant foods. Unlike a lot of Western cuisine, the meats in many of these dishes act as flavor agents but do not comprise of the substance of the meal. The fact that such recipes lend themselves to easy personalization means you can tailor them to your family's specific tastes by changing measurements or swapping out one ingredient for another. It's almost impossible to "mess up" one of these meals so you don't have to worry about winding up with something completely inedible for dinner if you don't have the same exact vegetables on hand or use precisely the same  measurements. 

"Bibim guksu" was the first Korean meal I learned to prepare. It is a simple dish of noodles and spicy red pepper sauce. Although it is usually served with thin wheat noodles called "somyeon," I've prepared this with whatever noodles we have on hand, from spaghetti to ramen, so if you don't have thin wheat noodles just use what you have in your pantry. There are a few ingredients on the list that you will need to secure beforehand in order to achieve the vinegary, salty-sweet spiciness that makes the flavor of bibim guksu so distinct: gochugaru, which is a spicy red pepper powder (not the same as American red pepper flakes!), and gochujang, a spicy red pepper paste. Without these ingredients, you won't be able to make the sauce. These are the only two ingredients you will not be able to swap out because there are no comparable alternatives that I know of in Western markets. You may, however, be able to find these two items at your local oriental market. If you don't have access to an oriental market, follow the links in the recipe for information on where you can buy these. 

La Maestra's Bibim guksu Recipe
(Serves 4-6)

For the sauce:
1 tbsp gochugaru (Korean red pepper powder)
3 tbsp sugar of your choice (I prefer brown rice syrup but you could easily sub in table sugar, honey or maple syrup; use whatever sweetener you have on hand)
8 tbsp of vinegar of your choice (I use apple cider vinegar)
4 tbsp of sesame seeds
1-2 tbsp of soy sauce (low sodium is best)
1-2 tbsp of sesame oil 
2-3 tsp of chopped fresh garlic
6 tbsp of gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)

Combine the ingredients for the sauce in a tupperware container or lidded bowl, chances are you won't be using all of the sauce in one sitting since it is VERY spicy and a little bit goes a very long way in flavoring your noodles. I like to keep it on hand for adding to other dishes, such as bibimbap, a similar Korean dish that uses rice instead of noodles and includes a colorful array of carefully arranged vegetation. 

For the noodles:
1 pack/box of noodles of your choice

Boil the noodles of your choice according to the package instructions. Traditionally, this dish is served at room temperature or cold. If following a traditional format, you may want to let them cool in the fridge or rinse your noodles until they are cool. If you prefer your noodles warm, skip the rinse.  I've had them both ways and can't say I prefer one over the other. They are delicious either way.

For the garnish:
2-4 cucumbers, chopped into matchsticks
4-6 hard-boiled eggs
Kimchi to taste

Chop up 2-4 cucumbers into little matchsticks as best as you can and set it aside for the garnish. If you eat eggs, you can also slice a hard-boiled egg to put on top along with the cucumber garnish. If you don't eggs, like us, keep reading for some excellent vegan alternatives below in my modifications section. Add  kimchi to each serving, to taste.

La Maestra's modifications:
1 large bunch of alfalfa sprouts
4-6 generous handfuls of spinach
1 block of extra firm tofu, cubed
2 hass avocados, sliced (about 1/2 an avocado per serving)

I personally like to serve my noodles on a bed of fresh spinach and add in some avocado slices, cubed firm tofu, and alfalfa sprouts on top to make it even more nutrient-dense. These additions are not traditional, but as I stated earlier, this is a dish that you can easily modify to make it your own. Since we don't buy or consume eggs at our house, I find that avocado and tofu are wonderful vegan substitutes for the hard-boiled egg in this recipe; the creaminess of the avocado and the neutral, palate-cleansing flavor of the tofu steady the growing intensity of the red pepper spice as you partake of your meal, much like the egg would in a more traditional context.  The sprouts provide a nice nuttiness that plays well with the creamy avocado and the addition of spinach is a veggie boosting tactic that I like to employ in all of my family's grain-based dishes.

Bibim guksu is usually served cold, as I mentioned above,  but I personally love to eat it warm in the winters and cool in the summers. In the winter months, there's nothing like setting a batch of warm noodles on a bed of fresh spinach; I love the way the spinach wilts under the heat of the noodles just enough to take off the raw edge without losing its rich, leafy texture. In the summers, the cold noodles coupled with the sweet, vinegary, spicy sauce topped with freshly chopped cucumbers is refreshing and uplifting. 

This dish takes me about 10-15 minutes to make and it is simple enough that I don't have to dirty more than one pot to make it. Minimal effort with maximum flavor and who doesn't love that?

If you aren't afraid to experiment and spice things up in the kitchen, I do hope you give this dish a try.

Até já,
Ali