Back when I was in elementary school, I remember we went to school on Saturdays until the law changed in Korea, maybe in my third or fourth year. Saturday was my favorite day of the week because school ended early, at around noon, and I could run back home, expecting to eat Janchi-guksu, my favorite food at that time. I think I liked the dish not only because it tasted good, but also because it was special that our family members all gathered together on that day, eating noodles. Spending time with my family on a peaceful Saturday afternoon is one of the precious memories of my childhood. Janchi-guksu is still my family’s comfort food that we often enjoy eating together, so I decided to make and share this dish for my midterm project.

Janchi-guksu is a warm noodle soup with thin wheat noodles, somyun (somen noodles), served in a clear anchovy or beef broth. My mom would always use anchovy for the broth so I’m more familiar with the anchovy broth. The name translates to “banquet noodles” or “feast noodles”, and it originates from the traditional custom of eating these noodles on celebratory occasions such as weddings. Today, it is regarded as a simple and easy food for many people. You can eat the noodles any time, at any place, and you can find it everywhere in Korea. Many healthy ingredients, such as eggs, onions, zucchini, carrots, and kimchi, are served as the toppings and the seasoning sauce is made with garlic, green onions, red pepper, etc. You can put any vegetables you want for the toppings, and the recipe can vary from family to family. My mom would sometimes add beef or mushrooms.

Similar to Chinese culture, noodles symbolize long and happy lives in Korean culture. The dish was served on happy events to wish people long and healthy lives. Serving the white noodles on weddings blessed the married couple with a happy life until their hair turned white. The colorful vegetable toppings added to the mix a fruitful life. In addition, Janchi-guksu was a dish that didn’t take too long to cook, so it could easily be made in large amounts, which made it suitable for feasts. The other reason it was served only on special days was its low wheat production. Wheat was very expensive and rare, so it could only be served on special days. Today, even though the dish became very common in Korea, the tradition of serving Janchi-guksu on weddings is still maintained. It is not necessarily the main food, but it is always served alongside the other wedding foods. My grandparents still say, “When will I get to eat Janchi-guksu?” to me and my sister when asking us when we are going to get married.

This was my first time making Janchi-guksu, and I was surprised by the process of making the food. My mother always made it look so easy when making it for us, so I just thought it would be a very simple process. However, for me, who doesn’t cook often, preparing the broth, chopping all the vegetables, and frying each one of them didn’t seem like easy work. My appreciation for my mother’s cooking for my family grew through this project. I also began to understand how healthy this one bowl of noodle soup was. It contained so many different kinds of vegetables and the broth was very clean, not oily or greasy at all. My mother gave me advice on every single step while making this dish, and I enjoyed learning my mom’s recipe for the first time. I discovered there are many different ways of cooking Janchi-guksu; you can put meat along with the vegetables or you can use beef instead of anchovy for the broth. Now that I have learned how to make my mom’s Janchi-guksu, which reminds me of family and the memories of my childhood, I think I will be cooking this for my own family in the future and pass this recipe down to my children.