Chueo-tang (추어탕 (Chueo-tang))
Overview
Chueo-tang is a Korean soup made with pond loach, a small freshwater fish. The loaches are cleaned with salt, boiled until soft and then ground or pressed through a sieve, so the bones and flesh melt into a thick, earthy broth. Dried napa cabbage leaves, called ugeoji, are softened and seasoned with doenjang soybean paste, garlic and chilli, then simmered in the broth. Ground perilla seeds are often added for a nutty richness. The soup is served bubbling with spring onion, chopped chilli and a pinch of sancho, a tingling Korean pepper, and it comes with rice and kimchi.
History
Loaches live in rice paddies, and farmers used to catch them in autumn when they were fattest, so chueo-tang became a traditional soup to restore strength after the harvest and in the hot summer. The city of Namwon in Jeolla province is famous for its version, and its streets have many chueo-tang restaurants. Different regions make it differently, with Seoul-style versions keeping the fish whole.
Main ingredients
Pond loach, dried napa cabbage leaves, doenjang, perilla seed powder, sancho pepper, spring onion. The soup is built on loach and soybean paste broth and is usually served hot. Diet: pescatarian; usually gluten-free.
Explore: Cabbage soups · More soups from South Korea
Recipe
Method
- 130 min
Boil the loach in 2 l water for 30 minutes, until very soft.
- 2
Press the fish and liquid through a sieve, or blend and strain, to make a thick broth.
- 3
Mix the cabbage leaves with the doenjang, gochugaru and garlic.
- 420 min
Add the cabbage to the broth and simmer for 20 minutes, then stir in the perilla powder.
- 5
Serve with spring onion, chilli and sancho pepper.
- ✓
Serve. About 1h 30m from start to bowl.
Sources
Description, history and recipe written by SoupWiki and checked against the sources above. Calories and times are rough estimates.
