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Home Soups and Stews

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi-Naengguk)

gf df vg lc <30
Posted:6/19/201812 Comments
Recipe Print
Korean Cold Cucumber Soup in bowl with cucumber in soy sauce broth with ice

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi-Naengguk) is the most refreshing and cooling summer food that is low calorie but loaded with nutrients. Gluten free and vegan, it can be ready in just a few minutes with simple ingredients.

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup in bowl with cucumber in soy sauce broth with ice
Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi NaengGuk 오이냉국) with cucumber in soy sauce seasoned broth

Oi Naeng Guk (Korean Cold Cucumber soup) reminds me of my years in Florida because this was the first soup I learned to make as a newly wed. Summers in Florida was so hot that even someone like me kind of lost their appetite.

The crazy hot Florida summers always made me crave for something cooling and this was the perfect dish to make in just a few minutes with very little effort. My husband is not a fan of cucumber but he actually enjoyed having this Korean Cold Cucumber Soup every time.

Tips for Serving Korean Cold Cucumber Soup

  • Oi Naeng Guk is enjoyed as a substitute for hot soups in the summer so serve it in small individual soup or cereal bowls
  • Add ice right before serving to keep the soup chilled during the meal. But ice will melt and dilute the soup so therefore it is good to season a little more aggressively (as I have done in my recipe).
  • Korean, Japanese, Persian or English cucumbers work best. These have the best crunch, thin skin and flavor for this recipe.

Food to go with Korean Cold Cucumber Soup

  • Omurice, Kimchi Fried Rice or any kind of fried rice
  • Bibimbap, Bulgogi Rice Bowl
  • Hobak Buchimgae (zucchini fritters), Bindaetteok (mung bean pancake)

Why This Soup is a Great Summer Food

Cucumbers have great nutritional value containing various minerals that you can often lack in the summer. Here’s a great article on it’s health benefits. Some highlights –

  • cucumber contains 95% water – great for hydration
  • high in potassium (152 mg per cup) – good for heart health
  • high in vitamin K (22% of DV)  – good for bone health

How to Make Cold Korean Cucumber Soup – Step by Step

Servings: 3              Time: 15 min (10 Resting + 5 Prep)           Difficulty: EASY

  1. Soak dried miyeok (seaweed) in lukewarm water. It should take about 10 minutes to fully rehydrate. Skip this step if you don’t have miyeok or don’t love the seaweed taste. (See below 0-4)

    Stages of Korean Seaweed (Miyeok) rehydrating In Water (4 different pics)
    Korean Seaweed (Miyeok) Soaking In water
  2. Make broth by mixing water, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar and salt in a bowl.

    Cucumber soup ingredients on cutting board - cucumber green onion seaweed and soy broth
    Ingredients for Korean Cold Cucumber Soup
  3. Julienne cucumber to make about 1 cup. It will be about 1/2 of an English cucumber and 1 whole cucumber for the other varieties.

    Julienned Cucumbers on cutting board
    Cutting cucumber for Oi Naengguk
  4. Chop green onion. Set aside.
  5. Add cucumber and soaked miyeok (seaweed) to seasoned broth. Finish seasoning by adding green onions, red chili pepper powder (gochukaru), sesame seeds.
  6. Keep chilled in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Right before serving, add few ice cubes to bowl. Serve in individual soup or cereal bowls.

Tips for Making this Simple Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi NaengGuk)

  • For even a quicker and cleaner tasting version, omit seaweed and you can make this in 5 minutes or less.
  • Don’t leave seaweed in too long because the flavor can be overpowering.
  • Add 1/4 tsp chopped garlic for extra zing.
  • Reduce salt by 1/2 tsp and add 1/2 tsp Guk Ganjang (Korean soup soy sauce) for extra umami flavor.
Korean Cold Cucumber Soup in glass bowl with all ingredients added
Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi NaengGuk) Ready To Serve

If you have tried this Korean Cucumber Soup or any other recipe on my blog then please don’t forget to rate the recipe (top right of the recipe card) and leave me a comment to let me know how you like it! I’d LOVE to hear from you! 😍

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Enjoy~ ❤

JinJoo

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Print
4.87 from 15 votes

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi NaengGuk)

Korean Cold Cucumber Soup (Oi-Naengguk) is the most refreshing and cooling summer food that is low calorie and loaded with minerals that will help you hydrate on a hot day! Gluten free and vegan, it can be ready in just a few minutes with simple ingredients.
Prep: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
serves: 3 bowls

Ingredients

  • 1 cucumber (Korean, English, Persian, Japanese, julienned – about 1 cup)
  • 1 g miyeok (seaweed or 1/4 cup wet - OPTIONAL)
  • 1 green onion (chopped)
  • 1 1/2 cup water

seasoning

  • 2 Tbsp soy sauce (jin ganjang)
  • 4 Tbsp rice vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp sea salt (Trader Joe’s)
  • 1 tsp Korean red chili pepper (gochukaru)
  • 1 tsp sesame seeds
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Soak dried miyeok (seaweed) in lukewarm water. It should take about 10 minutes to fully rehydrate. Skip this step if you don’t have miyeok or don’t love the seaweed taste. (See below 0-4)
  • Make broth by mixing water, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar and salt in a bowl.
  • Julienne cucumber to make about 1 cup. It will be about 1/2 of an English cucumber or 1 whole cucumber for other smaller varieties.
  • Chop green onion. Set aside.
  • Add cucumber to seasoned broth. Finish seasoning by adding green onions, red chili pepper powder (gochukaru) and sesame seeds.
  • Keep chilled in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Right before serving, add few cubes to the bowl.
  • Serve in individual soup or cereal bowls.

Tips & Notes:

  • Oi Naeng Guk is enjoyed as a substitute for hot soups in the summer so serve it in small individual soup or cereal bowls
  • Add ice right before serving to keep the soup chilled during the meal.
  • Season on the aggressive side as ice will melt and dilute the soup. My seasoning does account for some ice but you may want to add additional seasoning to taste.
  • Korean, Japanese, Persian or English cucumbers work best for this recipe. These have the best crunch, thin skin and flavor.
  • If you add too much seaweed or leave the seaweed too long in the soup, the seaweed flavor may be too strong. Seaweed is optional so leave it out or add right before serving.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 63kcal (3%)| Carbohydrates: 13g (4%)| Protein: 2g (4%)| Sodium: 1466mg (64%)| Potassium: 185mg (5%)| Sugar: 10g (11%)| Vitamin A: 340IU (7%)| Vitamin C: 3.5mg (4%)| Calcium: 26mg (3%)| Iron: 0.8mg (4%)
Author: JinJoo Lee
Course:Soup
Cuisine:Korean
Keyword:cold soup, cooling, summer
KoreanCategory:Guk (국)
Did You Make This?I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @Kimchimari or #kimchimari and don’t forget to leave a comment & rating below!

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12 Comments
  1. Abby says

    Posted on 24 February 2021 at 12:43 pm

    5 stars
    I made this on the first day of warm weather of the year – it was perfect! So tasty and so light. Ingredients are easily on hand if you cook Korean cuisine.
    Thanks 🙂

    Reply
    • JinJoo says

      Posted on 24 February 2021 at 10:08 pm

      Yay!! I haven’t made it this year yet but def. my favorite way to cool down in the summer! Thank you for the feedback.

      Reply
  2. Elizabeth Lewis says

    Posted on 10 June 2020 at 3:04 pm

    5 stars
    Adding the rating…so yummy!

    Reply
    • JinJoo says

      Posted on 10 June 2020 at 5:53 pm

      Thank you ❤️❤️

      Reply
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Nutritional Facts in my recipe cards are provided as an estimate and may not be accurate. Due to different brands of ingredients having different nutritional values, the values I provide here may be different from your preparation.
– MSG & Corn Syrup FREE – these are never used in my recipes
– Gluten Free recipe assumes you are using gluten free soy sauce (since many soy sauces contain gluten or wheat).

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