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Haejangguk with greens and bean sprouts

해장국 · Haejangguk

Haejangguk

해장국

What exactly is it?

Haejangguk is a category, not one ingredient list. Blood curd, beef, pork bones, bean sprouts or dried pollack produce very different bowls. Do not assume a clear vegetable soup: read the ingredient named before haejangguk.

Main ingredients

Meat or bone broth, greens, blood, bean sprouts and more

Ordering and serving

If you avoid blood or offal, ask what is in the bowl and choose a clearly named variety. You do not need to add every condiment on the table.

Origins and changes

The name refers to the custom of eating to settle oneself after drinking. It also became a broad name for hot soups at early-opening markets and eateries, ordered for ordinary meals as well. The name is not a guarantee of a hangover cure.

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Haejangguk

해장국

Main ingredients
Meat or bone broth, greens, blood, bean sprouts and more
Flavor and character
Haejangguk is a category, not one ingredient list. Blood curd, beef, pork bones, bean sprouts or dried pollack produce very different bowls. Do not assume a clear vegetable soup: read the ingredient named before haejangguk.
How to eat it
If you avoid blood or offal, ask what is in the bowl and choose a clearly named variety. You do not need to add every condiment on the table.
Read about this dish →

Dried-pollack hangover soup

황태해장국

Main ingredients
Freeze-dried pollack strips, radish, scallion, perilla oil; optional egg or tofu
Flavor and character
Pollack dried through repeated freezing and thawing is shredded, sautéed and simmered with radish. Its porous flesh softens into a pale, savory soup. Many preparations omit chili powder, unlike red pork-backbone hangover soups.
How to eat it
Taste the broth and fish before adding separately served rice. Hwangtae-gui at the same restaurant may use a spicy glaze, so the soup and grilled dish can have very different heat levels.
Read about this dish →
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