On a cold fall night, nothing warms you up quite like Korean soup. The cares of the day just seem to ebb away with each spoonful of steaming hot goodness. A nice bowl of guk soothes the soul, and when it’s got hearty chunks of beef and oodles of noodles, it makes you feel as though all is right in the world. When shared with friends and served up with a side of rice and kimchi, you’ve got the perfect meal.

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds of bite-size cuts of beef

• 4 slices of licorice *

• 14 cups of water

• 1 medium radish, peeled, cut in bite sizes

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

• 1 piece of fresh ginger, 1 inch long

• 1 cup of cooked transparent noodles, cut

• 1 teaspoon garlic salt

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 green onion, chopped

* Available in Asian groceries

DIRECTIONS

In a soup pot, cover beef completely with water and bring to a boil. Discard water. Add 14 cups of water and licorice, bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove licorice. Add radish, garlic and ginger. Cook 20 minutes. Skim off any surface scum. To serve, place noodles in individual soup bowls and pour the hot beef soup on top. Season to taste with garlic salt, black pepper and green onions. Makes 4 servings.