Naengmyeon or raengmyŏn is a Korean noodle dish of long and thin handmade noodles made from the flour and starch of various ingredients, including buckwheat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, arrowroot starch, and kudzu. Buckwheat predominates. Other varieties of naengmyeon are made from ingredients such as seaweed and green tea.
History
According to the 19th-century documents of Dongguksesigi, naengmyeon has been made since the Joseon Dynasty. Originally a delicacy in northern Korea, especially in the cities of Pyongyang and Hamhung in North Korea, naengmyeon became widely popular throughout Korea after the Korean War. Naengmyeon is served in a large stainless-steel bowl with a tangy iced broth, julienned cucumbers, slices of Korean pear, thin, wide strips of lightly pickled radish, and either a boiled egg or slices of cold boiled beef or both. Spicy mustard sauce and vinegar are often added before consumption. Traditionally, the long noodles would be eaten without cutting, as they symbolized longevity of life and good health, but servers at restaurants usually ask if the noodles should be cut prior to eating, and use scissors to cut the noodles.
Varieties
The two main varieties of naengmyeon are mul naengmyeon and bibim naengmyeon. The former is served as a cold soup with the noodles contained in broth made from beef, chicken or dongchimi. The latter is served with a spicy dressing made primarily from gochujang and eaten all mixed. In the case of bibim naengmyeon, a bowl of the soup broth used in mul naengmyeon or plain broth from the boiled noodles itself are often served on the side. This broth can be served hot or cold depending on the restaurant and type of broth. Also boiled eggs and sliced cucumber are add as garnish. Mul naengmyeon originates from Pyongyang. Pyŏngyang naengmyŏn is mainly made from buckwheat and the broth of beef or pheasant. It also uses dongchimi broth or a mixture of it, while adding the sliced pieces of the radish to the dish. Vinegar, mustard oil, and sugar is added according to taste before eating. South Koreans do not add sugar and use beef broth exclusively. In South Jeolla Province, mul naengmyeon is often served with red chili paste that is mixed in with the broth. The effect is similar to adding the broth to a bowl of bibim naengmyeon. A version of bibim naengmyeon originates from Hamhung, the hwe naengmyeon. Hwe naengmyeon is bibim naengmyeon with additional marinated raw fish, usually skate. It is eaten with the spicy gochujang dressing and other ingredients all mixed. Vinegar, sugar, and sometimes sesame oil is added according to taste. The noodles of Hamhung naengmyeon are usually made from potato or sweet potato starch, so the noodles are very chewy in texture compared to those of Pyongyang naengmyeon. In addition to skate, pollock can also be used in hwe naengmyeon. In this case it is referred to as myeongtae hwe naengmyeon. Another variety of naengmyeon is yeolmu naengmyeon which is served with yeolmu kimchi. Jungguk-naengmyeon is a Chinese-influenced cold noodle soup in Korean Chinese cuisine. Morioka reimen is derived from naengmyeon which was introduced by Korean immigrants, part of Japanese regional cuisine in Tohoku region. Instant naengmyeon noodles are available, with the soup broth prepackaged with the noodles. A plastic package of mustard oil is often supplied.
During the first summit between North and South Korean leaders, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in, Kim presented Moon with Pyongyang-style raengmyŏn as a gift.
