A Taste of Home at Nun Namu Jip – Seoul

kimchi mari guksu @ nun namu jip gakdoogi ddukgalbi @ nun namu jip
garlic scapes @ nun namu jip ddukgalbi @ nun namu jip

It seems North Korean food is a trend in Seoul right now. With tensions running high between North and South Korea and Kim Jong Il acting crazier than ever, I’m not sure how this happened (Is it like, another missile?! That crazy motherf*cker! I wonder what he ate this morning?), but for me it was quite nice. My mom’s side of the family is from Pyongyang (the capital of North Korea), so I grew up eating a lot of North Korean food. Nengmyun (냉면, cold buckwheat noodle soup) is probably the most well-known, but another cold soup dish I grew up with is kimchi mari (김치말이). It’s very similar to nengmyun, but the soup has kimchi, kimchi liquid and/or mul kimchi (물김치, water kimchi), and sesame oil in it, and instead of the buckwheat noodles, there’s rice. (Rice noodles instead of rice is another option, but rice is more common.) Until recently, no one — unless they were North Korean — knew about kimchi mari. My mom’s friends and my friends always assumed it was something my mom made up with leftover mul kimchi and rice. Now everyone eats it, as they should, but those who doubted before, recognize my mom’s skills y’all!

On our second day, Joo Hyun took me and David to Nun Namu Jip (눈나무집, Snow Tree House), a cute restaurant in Samcheong-dong (삼청동) famous for their kimchi mari. We got there early, but there was already a line out the door. Joo Hyun said the line wasn’t so bad, so we queued up and people watched as we waited.

korean boys leaving nhttp://www.bionicbites.com/wp-admin/media-upload.php?post_id=4967&type=audio&TB_iframe=true&width=640&height=498un namu jip

Completely unrelated to food, but check out the young men leaving Nun Namu Jip. I love how Korean guys are so fabulous, even the straight ones. By the way, I think murses are hot.

After about fifteen minutes we got a table (the line moves fast) and settled in at a table on the second floor. We took Joo Hyun’s recommendations and order one Kimchi Mari Guksu (김치말이국수, kimchi mari with rice noodles) each, and an order of Dduk Galbi (떡갈비, minced galbi steak) for the table.

nunnamujipbanchan

Kimchi and some banchan arrived at the table while we waited. Clockwise from the top left: kimchi, daikon kimchi (깍두기), sautéed garlic scapes/stems (마늘쫑볶음), and pickled peppers (고추장아찌). We ate a lot of garlic scapes while we were in Korea. It’s similar to asparagus, but skinnier, more fibrous, and has a mellow garlic flavor. You can get them here in the States also, but it’s not as readily available, and also more expensive. Although I have heard, before the garlic scape craze, farmers would give scapes away for free because no one wanted them. If you don’t know a farmer living under a rock, when in Korea, take advantage of the scapes.

ddukgalbi @ nun namu jip

The Dduk Galbi (KR ₩7000/US $5.98) arrived shortly after the kimchi. Dduk galbi is made from minced beef short ribs, vegetables, and rice flour. It’s very similar to meatloaf or Salisbury steak but made with better meat and galbi (갈비, marinated beef short ribs) flavored. The version at Nun Namu Jip was pretty tasty; the meat tasted fresh and it was seasoned well. It didn’t blow me away (meatloaf never blows me away either), but it was good. I did like the soft sautéed dduk (떡, rice cakes) on the side. Dduk, similar to garlic scapes and kimchi, was seen at every meal in Korea. We even got roasted green tea dduk at a tea house as a free snack. After a while I started calling Korea “the land of the morning dduk.”

kimchi mari guksu @ nun namu jip

Kimchi Mari Guksu (KR ₩4500/US $3.84), however, was my favorite. The noodles were chewy and the soup was cold, vinegary, and had just enough spice to keep you from getting bored. Overall, it was extremely refreshing and satisfying in a familiar way. I can’t say it’s better than my mom’s, but I’d say it’s just as good.

If I lived in Seoul, I’d probably never go to Nun Namu Jip. The menu there is too similar to the menu at my mom’s house, but since I don’t, I’ll be visiting again the next time I’m in Seoul. It’s nice to have a homey spot away from home when you’re on vacation. Next time, I’ll be ordering the Nokdu Bindaedduk (녹두빈대떡, mung bean pancakes). I guess I don’t even have to mention; my mom makes the meanest bindaedduk out there.

Nun Namu Jip (눈나무집)
110-230 Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu
Seoul, South Korea (map)




There are 9 comments

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  1. Nicholas

    Been a long time between posts! It’s weird, looking at North Korean food, all of it just seems so much simpler and less ornate.

    I lol’d at “I can’t say it’s better than my mom’s, but I’d say it’s just as good.” I do the same thing, only because I’d rather not hurt my mom’s feelings.

  2. bionicgrrrl

    @Nicholas – I’ve been busy, but I blog at least once a week for Bionic Bites and once a week for Serious Eats. Unfortunately, I have to pay the bills.

    The food at Nun Namu Jip is more in the comfort food category. North Korean food can get fancy too.

    And haha, I wasn’t trying not to hurt my mom’s feelings. Her food seriously rocks!

  3. Danny

    Murses?! those things have a name?! haha, that’s awesome. And you know, I feel like there’s a whole generation of people in this country who have bad ideas about meatloaf. I say just add a bunch of ketchup and it’ll be delicious. 😛 That korean version looks way good. And the prices are all so friendly… mmm…

  4. bionicgrrrl

    @Nicholas – Oh yes, soju and kimchi is always welcome in my house.

    @Wonders – Yes, it is like a huge patty… a patty made of ribs!

    @Danny – They do have a name. Although, it does get kind of confusing cuz a murse can be a male purse or a male nurse!

    Yeah, love the prices in Korea. Food and alcohol is cheap and plentiful at all times of the day/night.

  5. bionicgrrrl

    @Joohyun – Just all the really yummy Korean places! 🙂 I think while I was there, the most expensive thing I ate was the makchang. Mmmm, that was good, even though the waitress got you so mad. I should write about that soon.


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