A Spicy Summer Noodle Mix

Preparation 1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cucumbers, kimchi, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sesame seeds, vinegar, and sugar, using your hands to distribute the seasoning evenly. Keep aside. 2. Bring 10 cups of water to a boil, then add noodles. Cook for about 7 minutes, stirring to prevent clumping. Korean wheat-flour noodles are thin and cook fairly quick. Strain and run through cold water to chill. 3. Add the strained noodles to the salad mixture and mix roughly to dress the noodles. Put some ice in a shallow bowl, the noodles on top in a neat swirl, then use some of the salad mixture to spread over the top. Complement with Korean barley tea water to make the meal even more complete. Restaurateur Jenny Kwak shares her tips with Epicurious:• Long, skinny Korean cucumbers, crisper than their American counterparts, are the perfect texture for this salad. If you can't get to a Korean market, common American Kirby cucumbers can be used instead. • Use kimchi that is overripe (more than 10 days old if made from scratch) to add the proper pungency to this dish. Kimchi is also available jarred in Asian grocery stores and the refrigerated section of some supermarkets. Keep it in the fridge for a few days to ripen. • Look for Korean or Japanese wheat-flour noodles (called somen) in Asian and gourmet grocery stores; Asian vermicelli (also called potato starch or glass rice noodles) can also be substituted. From Dok Suni: Recipes from My Mother's Korean Kitchen by Jenny Kwak and Liz Fried. Copyright ©1998 Jenny Kwak and Liz Fried. Reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Press, LLC

Preparation 1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cucumbers, kimchi, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sesame seeds, vinegar, and sugar, using your hands to distribute the seasoning evenly. Keep aside. 2. Bring 10 cups of water to a boil, then add noodles. Cook for about 7 minutes, stirring to prevent clumping. Korean wheat-flour noodles are thin and cook fairly quick. Strain and run through cold water to chill. 3. Add the strained noodles to the salad mixture and mix roughly to dress the noodles. Put some ice in a shallow bowl, the noodles on top in a neat swirl, then use some of the salad mixture to spread over the top. Complement with Korean barley tea water to make the meal even more complete. Restaurateur Jenny Kwak shares her tips with Epicurious:• Long, skinny Korean cucumbers, crisper than their American counterparts, are the perfect texture for this salad. If you can't get to a Korean market, common American Kirby cucumbers can be used instead. • Use kimchi that is overripe (more than 10 days old if made from scratch) to add the proper pungency to this dish. Kimchi is also available jarred in Asian grocery stores and the refrigerated section of some supermarkets. Keep it in the fridge for a few days to ripen. • Look for Korean or Japanese wheat-flour noodles (called somen) in Asian and gourmet grocery stores; Asian vermicelli (also called potato starch or glass rice noodles) can also be substituted. From Dok Suni: Recipes from My Mother's Korean Kitchen by Jenny Kwak and Liz Fried. Copyright ©1998 Jenny Kwak and Liz Fried. Reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Press, LLC