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NYT Syndicate

With temperatures soaring, I give you three little words of comfort: Korean! Cold! Noodles!
A traditional dish, it's called bibim guksu ” mixed noodles ” and it's packed with kimchee and other kicky condiments that form a sort of sweet-and-sour kimchee dressing. Usually made with cold buckwheat noodles, naengmyeon, or thin wheat flour noodles, somyeon, it's also good with Vietnamese rice noodles (or so I say, but I'm a heathen).
Could this be the anti-ramen, a trend on the rise? I don't know, but it's my new favourite cold pasta, custom-made for summer ” refreshingly and unapologetically hot and spicy, and perfect for lunch or dinner.
Like some venerable Italian pasta dishes that are seemingly made from an empty cupboard ” Korean staples are used here instead ” this cold noodle dish is a breeze to put together despite the long list of ingredients. Many of these are available at an ordinary supermarket, and virtually everything can be bought online, but it's more fun to go to a Korean grocery, if only to see all the different types of kimchee.
Korean food famously makes frequent use of hot pepper. But the bright red Korean red pepper flakes, gochugaru, are without seeds and are only medium hot, so you can use a lot of them. The fermented red pepper paste gochujang, also used in many dishes, tastes sweet and mellow at first, then fiery.
As for the how of it, you first assemble the sauce, with chopped kimchee, ginger, garlic, sesame and the aforementioned two types of red pepper. I add a little miso for depth. A little brown sugar, some vinegar, some lime juice. There's no flame involved.
Then, cook your noodles, rinse them and keep them cool. Too easy, almost.
You can add or subtract ingredients to your heart's content, and the assortment of raw vegetables is entirely adaptable to what's on hand.
Sometimes it's nice to make little portions to serve in lettuce leaves. Some Korean cooks make decorative platters of the accompaniments, then serve the noodles and sauce separately. A hard-cooked egg, one with a slightly runny centre, goes on top in my version to add richness.
You can absolutely make the sauce well in advance and pop it in the fridge, but wait to combine it with the noodles until just before serving. Iced tea is also recommended.
Cold Spicy Kimchee Noodles
Total time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

INGREDIENTS
For the dressing:
1 cup finely chopped kimchee, plus 2 tablespoons kimchee juice
1 medium garlic clove, grated
2 teaspoons grated ginger
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
1 tablespoon Japanese red miso
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
Salt
For the noodles:
8 ounces flat rice noodles or soba noodles
1 medium cucumber, peeled, halved and sliced into half-moons (about 1 cup)
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
3 or 4 large red radishes, sliced into thin rounds
1/2 cup scallions, slivered
1 serrano chili, thinly sliced (optional)
3 eggs, boiled for 7 minutes, cooled in ice water, peeled and halved (cook 9 minutes for a firmer yolk)
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Cilantro sprigs or chopped cilantro, for garnish
Lime wedges, for serving

METHOD
1. Make the sauce: Put the kimchee, juice, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, gochujang, miso, sesame oil, rice vinegar, lime juice, orange zest, fish sauce and gochugaru in a mixing bowl, and stir well to combine. Taste and adjust salt. Let stand at room temperature for at least 10 minutes (or you can store overnight in the fridge, covered).
2. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add noodles and cook for about 5 minutes, or until cooked through but still firm. Drain in a colander, transfer to a bowl of cold water to cool, then drain again and set aside, covered with a towel.
3. Just before serving, put noodles in a large mixing bowl. Add the sauce, along with cucumber, tomatoes, radishes, scallions and chili (if using) and toss gently to coat. Divide among individual serving bowls. Top each bowl with a halved egg, sesame seeds, cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice.
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17/07/2016
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