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    Home » Simple Seoul Food - Ggori Gom-tahng (Korean Oxtail Soup)

    September 2005 Uncategorized

    Simple Seoul Food - Ggori Gom-tahng (Korean Oxtail Soup)

    ggori gook, korean oxtail soup
    I make fun of Dad a lot, but really I shouldn’t. Of course, it’s not nice to make fun of one’s parents, but in poking fun at Dad, I’m simply exhibiting my own self-hatred. Certainly there are a few things about me which make Dad wonder if I truly am his biological daughter, like every time the Captain, who keep his ship in perfect shape, visits and sees my mess of an apartment. But in so many ways, Dad and I are practically the same person. So snide comments, for example, about my Dad’s sweet tooth turning him into the Korean version of the stay-puff marshmallow are really self-deprecating remarks about my own lack of self-control around desserts. There must be some strange parent-offspring reverse personality projection psychology in there somewhere. I never took a psych class at Cal, so, yes, I don't really know what any of those words are.

    My tastesbuds are a perfect representation of my parents. Half are directly descended from Mom – cocktails that aren’t sticky sweet, wine with dinner, sushi, foods that are so fiery hot we sweat, and dehn-jahng (Korean fermented soybean paste). The other half are genetic copies of my Dad – sweets, desserts, and, uh, anything with sugar and fat. Did I mention ice cream? Dad loves Spanish mackerel and I always order anchovies and sardines, but in the end, it’s all strong, oily fish. We also both like clear, brothy soups, but are on polar ends of the flavor spectrum. Dad likes the simple ones with one or two ingredients, and a very bland (not bland-boring, but bland-not spicy) base, like galbee-tahng. I prefer my soups with lots of different vegetables, meat optional, and always screaming with spice, like yook-gae-jahng. But ggori-gook, Korean oxtail soup, is one where Dad and I will meet in the middle.

    ggori gook (korean oxtail soup) meat
    oxtail meat tendril with fatty striations
    ggori gook (korean oxtail soup) bones
    tail bones after a delicious feeding frenzy

    I’m not sure what it is about ggori gook that turns us into five year olds at the dinner table. We snatch bones out of the soup bowl with our bare hands, tear at the tendrils of meat and fat, splash broth and bits of beef and garlic all over the tablecloth, slurp broth, and let out a noisy mmm with every bite. When we look up from our bowls, Mom and the Twins are staring wide-eyed and horror-stricken at our delightful feeding frenzy. Dad and I just ask for seconds.

    As incredibly flavorful and delicious as the broth is, ggori gook is probably the simplest Korean soup to make with respect to ingredients. Aside from enough water to cover two times deep, it requires only two to three pounds of oxtails and four to five lightly crushed whole garlic cloves to cook. Salt, pepper, and chopped green onions for individual seasoning are served alongside the soup at the table. But though the ingredients are few, the effort comes in the long, watchful simmering. The oxtails, garlic and water simmer for at least two to three hours, with occasional skimming of foam from the surface. If you have the time, simmering longer creates a richer, darker soup, and the meat will fall away from the bones.

    ggori gook (korean oxtail soup) soup in bowl
    season with salt, pepper to individual taste
    ggori gook (korean oxtail soup) meat
    cooked so tender meat falls off bone

    Mom taught me the trick of preparing soups a day in advance to let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. Fat rendered from meat and bones will harden in a solid layer of lard at the surface, making it much easier to remove. It’s not always necessary for other soups, but oxtails are very fatty. That’s why they taste so good. But Mom has to be mindful of Dad's waistline. :)

    There are plenty of places in LA’s Koreatown that serve ggori gook. Jinju on Western Avenue just south of 6th Street specializes in gom tahng and other long simmered beef based soups. Because gom tahng, suh lung tahng, and yook gae jahng are considered pre-emptive hangover cures (ancient Korean secret, I’m sure) Jinju is open 24 hours, packed with shiny red-faced twenty-somethings at 2 am. And few *ahem* thirty-somethings every once in a while.

    tags :: food : and drink : korean : cooking : restaurants : los angeles

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    Comments

    1. Anonymous says

      September 19, 2005 at 4:39 am

      Did you have to take a picture of the bones? That looks pretty disgusting. It's like showing us a carcass after eating a roast chicken.

      Reply
    2. sarah says

      September 19, 2005 at 11:24 pm

      lol! i thought it was so interesting that my mom simmered the broth so long that the meat fell off the bones so cleanly! sorry if it grosses anyone out :)

      Reply
      • lily says

        November 05, 2010 at 9:16 pm

        todaly

        Reply
    3. e d b m says

      September 20, 2005 at 5:54 pm

      oh man that looks so good sarah. especially when you're hungover. do you ever make gum ja tang with the huge pork bones and potatoes? i always get it at the food court in the Ktown Galleria (olympic/western).

      Reply
    4. Eddie Lin says

      September 30, 2005 at 5:07 am

      Sarah,

      I can't believe you ate oxtail!! Isn't that on the funky side for you? I for one am glad you took a photo of the dust dry oxtail bones because now I can vicariously experience the marrow sucking that you must've done to get dem bones in that pristine condition. Sluurpityburp!!

      Now I want to go to K-town this weekend and have a bowl then get piss drunk at a karaoke bar. There, you just planned my weekend! Thanks!

      Reply
    5. Eddie Lin says

      September 30, 2005 at 5:07 am

      Sarah,

      I can't believe you ate oxtail!! Isn't that on the funky side for you? I for one am glad you took a photo of the dust dry oxtail bones because now I can vicariously experience the marrow sucking that you must've done to get dem bones in that pristine condition. Sluurpityburp!!

      Now I want to go to K-town this weekend and have a bowl then get piss drunk at a karaoke bar. There, you just planned my weekend! Thanks!

      Reply
    6. sarah says

      September 30, 2005 at 5:16 am

      you know, i've never made gam-ja tahng before, and i'm pretty sure i've never eaten it before, either. it's so weird how certain things you just never eat all your life because it's not something you ate with your parents. like, one of my friends just never eats dahk-wahng (the bright yellow pickled radish) b/c she never ate it when she was little. weird.

      eddie - are you kidding me!??! oxtail isn't weird, lol! that's like OG korean style. deep end dining is very relative, huh? lol! okay, but your octopus tentacles just ain't right in any cuisine. ;)

      Reply
    7. JC says

      November 10, 2005 at 7:18 am

      I love the korean oxtail soup! I simply call all korean, clear beef soup korean pho. I usually go to this place near the intersection of wilshire and western (near the M Grill on wilshire) Anyway, thanks for the information. I am going to check out ggori gook at Jinju.

      Reply
    8. sarah says

      November 10, 2005 at 5:10 pm

      korean pho?!?! i just might be offended by that...but then again, i have started to develop this strange taste for pho AS LONG AS NO ONE PUTS THAT NASTY SOAP-TASTING CILANTRO in it...something about steaming hot clear broths. in fact, i am coughing pretty badly today and pho sounds perfect!

      Reply
    9. James from lostseouls.com says

      January 19, 2006 at 8:59 am

      there are restaurants here in Seoul that leave seoullung tang and ggori-gum tang bubbling in giant vats for days on end.

      They put the vats by the huge windows for passers-by to admire.

      Tis pretty cool.

      Reply
    10. sarah says

      January 23, 2006 at 5:03 pm

      hey james...cool site name! it's been a long time since i've been to korea, but seeing those vats would make me crazy hungry!

      Reply
    11. bitstreamer says

      June 18, 2006 at 10:08 pm

      That oxtail soup looks great! I've decided that I'm gonna have some for dinner tonight (canned :( ).

      Reply
    12. sarah says

      June 21, 2006 at 9:49 pm

      bitstreamer: sometimes, you can't be picky though. if you gotta have oxtail, you gotta have oxtail.

      Reply
    13. sarah says

      June 21, 2006 at 9:49 pm

      bitstreamer: sometimes, you can't be picky though. if you gotta have oxtail, you gotta have oxtail.

      Reply
    14. halfkoreanstudmuffin says

      January 18, 2007 at 3:54 am

      I just had a entire pot full of this to feed my cold...so tasty.

      Reply
    15. Jackie says

      October 25, 2007 at 3:03 pm

      wow i just love ox-tail soup. being sick was practically celebration time because i knew mom would start on the soup right away. mmm... the onions and garlic... a little bowl of rice. salting the meat. my mom made it for me last time i went to visit with my boyfriend and he was completely horrified and disgusted by the premise. i think the fat scared him. now i can show him your website and confirm that ox-tail soup and spam is just how we koreans roll. i love your site and will be checking it frequently. i am so glad i found it while looking for duk bok ki recipe. i hope you post more korean-related food stuff. THANKS!!!!

      Reply
    16. Jackie says

      October 25, 2007 at 3:03 pm

      wow i just love ox-tail soup. being sick was practically celebration time because i knew mom would start on the soup right away. mmm... the onions and garlic... a little bowl of rice. salting the meat. my mom made it for me last time i went to visit with my boyfriend and he was completely horrified and disgusted by the premise. i think the fat scared him. now i can show him your website and confirm that ox-tail soup and spam is just how we koreans roll. i love your site and will be checking it frequently. i am so glad i found it while looking for duk bok ki recipe. i hope you post more korean-related food stuff. THANKS!!!!

      Reply
    17. yangster says

      January 24, 2008 at 1:41 pm

      Wow, was thinking about making some ox-tail soup cause we're having a cold spell here in Atlanta. Haven't had any in at least 15 years. Mom used to use to take half of the meat, season it with soysauce, sesame oil and other things. Then she would ad it back our bowls right before she served it. Does this sound familiar? Looking for that recipe, but I'm sure it's pretty easy.

      Reply
    18. yangster says

      January 24, 2008 at 1:41 pm

      Wow, was thinking about making some ox-tail soup cause we're having a cold spell here in Atlanta. Haven't had any in at least 15 years. Mom used to use to take half of the meat, season it with soysauce, sesame oil and other things. Then she would ad it back our bowls right before she served it. Does this sound familiar? Looking for that recipe, but I'm sure it's pretty easy.

      Reply
    19. fawn says

      October 29, 2009 at 3:08 pm

      Looks Perfect, one of my favorites!
      Do you give Korean cooking lessons in L.A.?
      If not would you consider it?

      Reply
    20. Dlhawkboy says

      December 12, 2011 at 5:18 pm

      so i made ur oxtail  soup tonight it was good but the color could of been browner . it was easy to make . thanks daniel

      Reply
    21. Tasting Korea says

      January 02, 2012 at 12:17 pm

      Your recipe has been feature on Tasting Korea, "Korean Food is Not Peasant Food, But Comfort Food."  http://tastingkorea.blogspot.com/2012/01/korean-food-is-not-peasant-food-but.html

      Reply

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