Mee-yok Gook

Traditionally, the American birthday is celebrated with tons of sweets: ice cream, birthday cake, frosting, the works. However, Koreans choose a more healthful approach. Mee-Yok Gook, aka Korean Birthday Soup, is served to the birthday individual on every birthday. With its seaweed, broth, cooked meat bits, and other fabulous ingredients, the dish is not only delicious, but it’s also quite healthy! It’s packed with calcium, iron, protein, Vitamins A and C, and low in calorie and fat. I’d take that over cake any day.

An interesting fact about this birthday soup: traditionally, mee-yok gook is served to new mothers after childbirth. Koreans believe that seaweed helps breastmilk production and that it also helps with post-partum depression, therefore called Birthday Soup because it’s one of the first meals that babies enjoy. And Koreans are served this delicious dish every birthday. Yum!

Make some of your own, even if it’s not your birthday.

Mee-yok Gook

Preparation time: 5-10 mins / Cooking time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

• 30-40 grams of dried mee-yok (seaweed strands)

• 1 lb of beef

• 2 Tbsp of chopped/minced garlic

• 3-4 Tbsp of soy sauce

• 2 Tbsp of sesame oil

• 1 Tbsp of cooking oil

• About 20-30 cups of water (fill half the pot)

Directions:

1. Fill a large deep bowl with water

2. Soak the dried mee-yok in the water for 5-10 minutes

3. Drain and squeeze the water out of the seaweed and slice them up with knife. Leave some seaweed aside for salad

4. Slice up the beef in bite sized pieces

5. Heat up the pot in medium high heat on the stove

6. Add 1 tbsp of cooking oil and brown the seaweed for 1 minute

7. Brown the beef in the pot with garlic, sesame oil and soy sauce and mix well with the seaweed for about 2 minutes

8. Pour water in the pot and let it come to a boil

9. Serve the seaweed soup when it’s ready with hot steamy rice!

10. Add more soy sauce and sesame oil as needed

Useful Tips:

• You can also substitute beef with canned tuna or fresh clams for the seaweed soup

Enjoy!

Cathlyn Choi
Host/Producer, Cathlyn’s Korean Kitchen
Cathlyn’s 3 C Rule – Cost, Convenience and Creativity