Did you enjoy the Soju party last night? 
Or are you planning to have one on the weekend? Either way, here is one good and simple recipe for people who have or will have a hang over.
Apparently, Bean Sprout soup helps people recover from a hangover quickly. If I reword it using chemical terms, here it is. “The roots of the sprouts have lots of asparagine which reduces the acetaldehyde, that is formed after drinking alcohol.” Bean sprout soup is also good for recovering from a cold, because it has lots of vitamin C. I could feel my body getting warmer after having this soup. What is more, it is really cheap to make. (If you buy 1 pack of sprouts which is about 1000 won – US $1, you can make soup for 6 people) So it is very popular soup on a regular menu.
Ingredients for 3 people – Though if you have bad hang over, it is just right for 1 day care worth. 
(Expected preparation time – 3 minutes, Cooking time – less than 10 minutes)
- Sprouts 2 fistfuls
- 10 dried anchovies (for broth)
- Dried kelp 10×10 cm size (for broth)
- Squashed garlic 1/2 tsp
- 1 green chili
- Salt 1tsp
- Water 6 cups
Preparation
- Rinse the sprouts in cold water and discard any bad beans.
- Make a long cut in the middle of the chili and wash out the seeds in cold water (Make sure you don’t touch them. Scrub it out with a spoon or knife, if it is necessary. It makes you sting all night if you touch the seeds.) Then thin slice it.
Cooking
- Pour the water into the pot and add the kelp and anchovies.
- Boil it.
- When it boils, take out the kelp and anchovies. (You can discard them.)
- Add the sprouts and boil it for 1 minute.
- Add the garlic, salt, and chili.
6. In 30 seconds, serve it in a bowl.
For your curiosity, this is the sprouts pack, I am using.
By the way, don’t confuse these with green bean sprouts (Sukju in Korean). I saw some foreigners misusing green bean sprouts, instead of bean sprouts (Kongnamul). Read the label right, it looks very similar from the outside.
Related Posts
Sprouts on Rice (Kongnamul bap in Korean)
Spicy Mussel Stew (Honghap Jjim in Korean)
Spicy Chicken & Vegetable Stew (Dak doritang in Korean?)
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Oh! My mother used to make this soup all the time when I was little. Sometimes she would add cubed potato or radish to the dish. We had this very often (it was one of my fathers favorite) so I remember not liking it so much then as I do now. I used to call it ’salt water soup’ when I was younger. I appreciate the delicate flavor of this soup much more now as an adult
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You might not be expecting comments to your blog entries from 2006, but I for one am so thankful you posted this!
Years ago, Korean friends in my college dorm made this soup for me when I was sick (from a cold; I didn’t know it was hangover soup!). It was so good and so simple, I couldn’t believe it! Ever since then, I think about it from time to time, but I’ve never found what seemed like exactly what they fixed.
I think this might be it! Certainly your pictures look exactly like what they fixed for me
Anyway, just wanted to say thanks and I can’t wait to try this.
the dried fish is important. I also add garlic and some green onion on top…maybe thats not truely korean but i like it.
Hi John,
)
Some sul jip cooks might not cook the broth with kelp and anchovies, maybe they just use boiled water and salt, that would make the difference.
If you cook it with my recipe you can adjust the amount of salt to your taste (if you like it a bit saltier). Mine was just right for me and my husband. (Even my Mom approved of it
Nice one,I like this for sipping soju with actually,not for recovery!^^
Often when I’ve had it at a sul jip though,it’s tasted little better than dishwater.What are they likely to have done wrong so I can avoid that too.
Cheers~~