Have you ever woken up after a big night out feeling a little under the weather and prepared to sell your kidney for a cure? I remember going to a chemist(when I was back in Sydney) one afternoon in search for a cure for the worlds biggest hangover. I was hoping I’d be told to “take one of these and you will be fine in 5minutes!” Instead, I was pointed to a nearest McDonald for a greasy hamburger. Just thinking of it made me sick.
After years of experimenting, I discovered my own cure – a Korean beef chilli soup called Yukgejang. I used to drop by a Korean stall (Mana) at the food court of Takashimaya after a big night when I first moved here. The soup was not the greatest, but after a bowl or two, I was human again! Yukgejang takes at least an hour to make at home so after a big night out at friends engagement party last weekend, I needed something quick. As I hadn’t thought to prepare something the day before I just threw what I had in fridge into a soup stock. A handful of noodles completed the concoction and another hangover cure was born – it’s called Sujebi!
>How to make Sujebi:
Make some dough with some flour, a pinch of salt, a few tablespoons of vegetable oil and some water. Kneed for a few minutes and then leave it to rest in the fridge. I usually make a stock with Korean dried anchovies and whatever vegies I can find, but preferably use potatoes and zucchini at a minimum. Add some carrots if you have them for colour.
Take the dough from the fridge and tear off thin pieces (it gets better with practice) and throw them in the boiling stock. The dough is cooked when it floats to the surface.Garnish with some chillis and spring onion and voila! – instant reprieve from the pain! If you are so inclined, create a quick sauce to add, using soy sauce garlic, chilli and sesame oil.
This soup became very popular in the last 4 or 5 years. There are kimchi, seafood and even miso paste versions. My father told me it used to be a poor man’s dish especially during the Korean war. It’s also great on a rainy day with seafood pancake.
I will be teaching this soup in June and July. Come and join in and say goodbye to hangovers forever!