For many of my foreign guests naengmyeon is just an enigma. They just can't seem to fathom the idea that cold noodles in a chilled radish broth could be a food and they are further confused when told that adding vinegar and mustard will freshen the flavor. Oh, and before eating it, my guests are told they should use scissors to cut the noodle or they will be too chewy to eat. They look at me with eyes that ask, why would we eat food that is too hard to chew?

For many non-Koreans the idea of this particular dish is contradictory to everything they have learned about food. In their minds noodle soups are supposed to be hot and soothing-not cold and refreshing. In many cultures, only ice cream, popsicles, sodas, and desserts are supposed to be cold. Naengmyeon one of those dishes on our food tour that is as shocking to many as fermented skate or raw octopus.

So how do I get them to try it and, possible, get them to like it?
Well...I get them to try it in conjunction with other foods and tell the very interesting stories surrounding it.

According to the historical document Gyegokjip dated 1643, Naengmyeong is originally from North Korea where buckwheat grew abundantly in their short growing season. North Korea's climate is too cold to grow wheat, so the farmers had to grow other staple crops. Buckwheat, contradictory to its name, is not actually wheat or grass grain at all. It is a seed that is ground up and has a starchy composition that can be used to make 'flour' which in turn can be used to make noodles and other foods.

The grain would be ground up and it is usually mixed with some potato starch and water and pressed directly into boiling hot water for about 60 seconds. Then the noodles are then taken out and shocked in cold water. Failure to do this precisely will cause the noodles to dry out or crack. Different regions have different compositions. If it is mainly all buckwheat flour, the noodles are softer in texture which is Pyeongyang Naengmyeong style. Others like chewer noodles which have more potato starch which is Hamheung Naengmyeong.

The broth for this naengmyeong is dongchimi which is a chilled radish water broth that is made from fermented radish and cabbage. This clean, crisp broth adds zing to the noodles while also keeping them from getting soft. The best noodles are known for their silky feel and chewy texture.

This dish of chilled buckwheat noodles in light radish kimchi broth was originally a wintertime dish. It was common to eat this in winter while sitting on the hot, floor-heated rooms.

Now, according to the writer of Dongguksaeshigi (동국세시기) the most famous area for naengmyeon came from Pyeongyang city and the most noodles are from Okryugwan restaurant. In the past, all the important dignitaries and, sometimes, lucky South Korean guests would visit this famous restaurant. They said that, Kim Il-Sung, the former leader of North Korea before the Kim Jung-il and Kim Jung-eun, ordered the flavor of Okryugwan noodles to be preserved forever. And as we know, whatever the Korean dictator ordered had to be done.

Many say that the closest to Okryugan in Seoul is at Pyongyang Myeonok which is in the Jangchundong area. This fabled shop brings in guests from all over South Korea and they even have a huge car elevator parking garage for their guests. Here the noodles are made in house and have an earthy buckwheat flavor and ethereal zip. The noodles are topped with pressed beef, pork, half an egg, slivers of pear, and delightfully crunchy cucumber pickles. The broth here is very refreshing and many say that it tastes like mountain spring water. Their other dishes like their boiled beef and pork (pyeonyuk and jaeyuk) are quite good as well. Plus their massive dumplings filled with pork, vegetables, and tofu are a sublime in flavor and are supposed to taste like they would in North Korea.

For those that like chewer Naengmyeon noodles, the place to go is the Ojangdong district which is famous for the chewer brand of noodles that is topped with fermented fish and a spicy chili paste.
This dish called Hoe Naengmyeon (회냉면). The noodles from this area get their chewiness by adding potato starch and were started by families from the northern Sokcho city of Korea.