If you have 20 minutes, you need to make this Kimchi Bibim Guksu dish. The dish tastes super flavorful and perfect for a warm day. The noodles are served with sliced cucumbers and a boiled egg. I like to add lots of toasted sesame seeds and seaweed for garnish.
Hope you enjoy this easy and quick noodle dish!
What are Bibim Guksu Noodles?
Bibim guksu or korean spicy cold noodles is a popular dish served during the summers in Korea due to it’s refreshing taste. The noodles are mixed in a spicy kimchi sauce and topped with lots of sliced cucumbers and crushed sesame seeds. You can also add additional broth to the noodles and make it Bibim Naengmyeon. In the next section, I can tell you the difference between two of the most popular types of cold noodles: Bibim Guksu and Bibim Naengmyeon .
Bibim Guksu vs. Bibim Naengmyeon
Both noodles are mixed Korean cold noodles dishes. The differentiation between the two dishes is the TYPE OF NOODLES and BROTH. Bibim Guksu is mixed with spicy gochujang (red pepper paste) and kimchi with NO broth added. As for the Bibim Naengmyeon, it is mixed with gochujang, asian pears and has a radish broth. The radish broth is usually made from pickling radish. The broth has a sweet and tangy taste and sometimes is served frozen and icy.
Type of Noodles
Bibim Naengmyeon uses buckwheat noodles with a darker brown color. As for Bibim Guksu, you will use somyeon (thin wheat flour noodles) – see image below. The toppings for both dishes vary. Common toppings for Bibim Naengmyeon is brisket, asian pear, boiled egg and radish. For Bibim Guksu, the toppings can vary from lettuce, cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, seaweed and boiled egg. However, if you’re making your noodles at home…feel free to add your topping of choice!
INGREDIENTS YOU NEED FOR YOUR KIMCHI BIBIM GUKSU:
These noodles are great for quick dinners or lunches. The recipe is for one serving only. Feel free to double or triple the portions if you’re cooking for your family.
Bibim Guksu Sauce
- 1 tablespoon kimchi, cut in bite size pieces – I get my kimchi from H-mart. I love to buy the ones from CJ (Bibigo) and Jongga.
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon gochujang (korean red pepper paste) – this is the base of the bibim guksu sauce. If you want more spicy, you can add korean red pepper powder!
- 1 garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
Assemble
- 3 ounces somyeon (thin wheat noodles)
- cucumbers, sliced thinly
- 1 boiled egg sliced in half
- roasted seaweed, cut in small pieces
- roasted sesame seeds – I crushed my roasted sesame seeds for extra fragrant flavor!
STEPS TO MAKE THE KIMCHI BIBIM GUKSU:
- Step 1. Make sauce by cutting kimchi in smaller pieces. Mince garlic. In a bowl, make your sauce by adding 2 tablespoons water, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon gochujang, 1 minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Mix sauce well and set aside.
- Step 2. Boil water in a kettle or in a large pot. Add your egg and make sure you take a look at the time ◡̈ If you want a soft boiled egg, it will take 7 minutes. Hard boiled will be 8-9 minutes.
- Step 3. I boil my egg with my somen noodles to make things quicker. Add your somen noodles to the boiling water and cook according to package directions (my noodles take 3 minutes).
- Step 4. Transfer noodles to an ice bath and wash the starch off thoroughly. Strain noodles well to ensure they are chewy. Transfer hard boiled eggs to the ice water as well.
- Step 5. Peel hard boiled eggs and slice in half. Slice cucumber in julienne pieces (thinly sliced cucumbers).
- Step 6. Mix sauce (from Step 1) with the strained noodles. I like to use my hand with a glove to mix throughly. Top mixed noodles with sliced cucumbers, boiled eggs, and sesame seeds. This is optional but highly recommended; add some roasted seaweed on top. Please enjoy fresh so the noodles are not soggy.
Looking For More Quick & Easy Noodles Dishes? Some of my favorites:
- kimchi udon – udon noodles stir fried in a delicious kimchi sauce
- hong kong rice noodles – rice noodles mixed with hoisin and peanut sauce for a HK classic street food
- walnut noodles – noodles with a crunch from the walnuts and chili is a must for my asian fusion lovers.
Kimchi Bibim Guksu
Ingredients
sauce
- 1 tablespoon kimchi cut in bite size pieces
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon gochujang (korean red pepper paste)
- 1 garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
assemble
- 3 ounces somyeon thin wheat noodles
- ½ cucumber (english or persian) sliced thinly
- 1 boiled egg sliced in half
- roasted seaweed cut in small pieces
- roasted sesame seeds crushed
Instructions
- Make sauce by cutting kimchi in smaller pieces. Mince garlic. In a bowl, make your sauce by adding 2 tablespoons water, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon gochujang, 1 minced garlic, and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Mix sauce well and set aside.2 tablespoons water, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon gochujang (korean red pepper paste), 1 garlic, 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- Boil water in a kettle or in a large pot. Add your egg and make sure you take a look at the time ◡̈ If you want a soft boiled egg, it will take 7 minutes. Hard boiled will be 8-9 minutes.1 boiled egg
- I boil my egg with my somen noodles to make things quicker. Add your somen noodles to the boiling water and cook according to package directions (my noodles take 3 minutes).3 ounces somyeon
- Transfer noodles to an ice bath and wash the starch off thoroughly. Strain noodles well to ensure they are chewy. Transfer hard boiled eggs to the ice water as well.
- Peel hard boiled eggs and slice in half. Slice cucumber in julienne pieces (thinly sliced cucumbers).½ cucumber (english or persian)
- Mix sauce (from Step 1) with the strained noodles. I like to use my hand with a glove to mix throughly. Top mixed noodles with sliced cucumbers, boiled eggs, and sesame seeds. This is optional but highly recommended; add some roasted seaweed on top. Please enjoy fresh so the noodles are not soggy.roasted seaweed, roasted sesame seeds
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Jess says
Made this for lunch today and it’s delicious! Perfect for those days when you literally have 15-20 minutes to make a meal
Cook With Dana says
Thank you so much Jess for trying the recipe ◡̈
Mel says
Seriously only took me 20 minutes and it was so yummy! Definitely making again 🙂