Korean Beef and Radish Soup is a soup that uses Korean radish as the main ingredient. The soup has a natural sweetness and will definitely bring comfort in a bowl!Ā
āMuā means radish, while āGukā means soup, together it literally means Radish soup. This one may not be as famous as Kimchi Jjigae or Soondubu Jjigae, but it is one of the staple soups in any Korean home.Ā
Ask any Korean friend you have, and they will definitely tell you that Beef and Radish soup is their comfort soup especially when they are sick or itās just plain cold outside. It is often a soup that brings back many childhood memories for us.
The Star of the Dish: Korean Radish
For starters, you may get confused by how different this is than the usual slender or small radish in supermarkets. What sets Korean radish apart is that it has a white bottom and is green near its stems. It looks round and chunky compared to other radishes and is very firm.
Korean Radish is one of the most common crops in Korea, so we cook and preserve them by making Spicy Radish Salad, Radish Kimchi, Dongchimi, or Soybean Paste Stew to name a few. It isn’t just because of the abundance that we love it, itās also because it has a distinct crunch, spice, and sweetness when you pickle it. Moreover, the sweetness or āradishnessā comes out when you boil it and make it into a soup!Ā
The peak of its sweetness is during late autumn to winter in Korea. Thatās why this soup really hits!! I usually get mine in Hmartās produce and I hope you get to find one near you too! If you happen to chance on it, donāt miss the opportunity to try it out!
Enhancing Mugukās Flavor
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I often use Dashi Pack in my soup recipes. Dashi pack contains dried kelp and dried anchovy, and you can boil it for 10 minutes to get an umami flavor in your soup base. I recommend you get one from Hmart or Amazon since it can be used in many different recipes like this Soybean Sprout Soup!Ā
If you donāt have a dashi pack, or youāre allergic to anchovies, you can:
- Use dashida or dashi powder, it just might taste a little bit stronger since those already have other flavor enhancers on them
- Soak 5g of dried kelp in water for 15 minutes, and you can use that as your soup base
Generally, since the star of this soup is the radish, it is good enough on its own. However, it is also common to add beef because its combination with the radish is definitely something else! The broth may look plain but it has depth!
You can basically use any cut of beef you like, but remember the short rib trimmings I got for my Galbi Fried Rice?? I used the leftovers for this soup because I just loved the marbling that it had. The fat in the beef will definitely add flavor to the soup!Ā If you like, you can also boil the beef bones with it and that will make the soup even better!!
Lastly, we are aiming for a slightly clear soup here, so make sure to add nothing more than 2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce for soup. If you ever find any scum coming up while youāre boiling the soup, skim it out to keep it beautifully clear, then finish with a dash of sesame oil~
A Versatile Soup
Muguk is often also cooked in big batches and is used as a base for other soups like Tteokguk (Rice Cake Soup), Miyeokguk (Seaweed Soup), or Acorn Noodle Soup! You can literally make this ahead and store it in the fridge for four to seven days, and youāve got soup any time you need!Ā
When I have a lazy day, I personally think you can just serve it with some rice, kimchi, and nori! Reheat the soup until itās super super hot and youāve got an easy, cheap, and complete meal!Ā
Make sure to leave a rating, a comment, or tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok when you chop them up! Yeobosayo!
Korean Beef and Radish Soup (Muguk)
Ingredients
Soup Base
- 5 cups Water
- 1 packet Dashi Pack
Soup Contents
- 100 grams Beef Short Ribs Cut into small pieces
- 500 grams Korean Radish Quarter thin slices
- 1 tbsp Garlic
- 2 stalks Scallions Sliced to matchstick sizes
- 2-3 tbsp Gukanjang (Soy Sauce for Soup)
- 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
- Salt and Pepper To taste
Instructions
- Boil water then put in dashi pack and let boil for 10 minutes. Remove dashi pack after.
- Throw in your radish and let it boil for another 10 minutes.
- Add garlic, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Give it a taste then adjust with salt and black pepper according to preference.
- Throw in the beef. Let boil until cooked.
- Finish with some scallion. Serve and enjoy!
Jenny says
Excellent and so easy! It’s the dashi pack that makes all the difference! Other recipes online do not have the dashi pack so the soup turns out bland. And the short ribs are perfect too. I use half a tablespoon of garlic instead, the 1 tablespoon makes it too garlicky for me. Thanks for such an easy soup recipe, Chris!
Chef Chris Cho says
Yooo! Thanks fam! Glad you enjoyed it!
Mila says
Is the dashi pack an actual pack as is or do you make it? I can’t find it at my stores sadly. So if I make it, how much of each the anchovies, shrimp, and kombu?
Chef Chris Cho says
Hi Mila, you can both buy or make your own. Dashi packs can be bought here https://amzn.to/40Dbz36
If you plan to make your own, use 30 grams of dried seafood combination (pollack, anchovy, shrimp, etc) and 2 small pieces of dried kelp. Boil in 5 cups of water and then season to taste~ Don’t forget to clean any scum that comes up then strain before using the actual soup base you made~
Mila says
Thank you so much! Picking everything up at H-Mart this weekend cuz this soup looks amazing! Love your site and videos!
Chef Chris Cho says
Go go go!!! Thank you Mila, hope you enjoy the recipe!!!
Kayla says
This recipe was so easy and ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!! 10 out of 10 from everyone in my family.
Chef Chris Cho says
I am soooo happy you guys liked it!!!!