Cycle 4 – Item 4

9 (Wed) January 2013

Udong

3.0

at food cart #1

-Oksu, Seongdong, Seoul, Republic of Korea-

with the Family

In a prior post concerning food carts in general and this food cart in particular, I provided an overview of the items available on a typical menu, but left out mention of udong.  Compared to the other snack-like items, this noodle soup comes closest to a main dish, an actual meal.  With a name obviously derived from the Japanese udon, the noodles are the thick flour type.  Additional similarities to the original udon include deep-fried tofu flakes – “aburaage” in Japanese, “yubu” in Korean – and sliced fishcakes – “satsumaage” in Japanese, “odeng” in Korean.  But the broth, ladled straight from the simmering vat of odeng, is usually a much lighter stock, probably flavored with artificial fish bouillon.  Moreover, the dish is often seasoned with generous amounts of sesame seeds, shredded dried laver, and red chili powder, all of which combine to make it Korean (see also 3.317 Janchi Guksu).  Good stuff.  And only 4,000 won.

(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)

(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)