Gukbap

Gukbap means soup and rice, and it describes a format rather than a single recipe. Depending on the house, the broth is drawn from beef bone, pig's head, tripe or blood sausage, and each version has its own regulars and its own etiquette. The rice sometimes arrives already in the bowl and sometimes beside it, for you to tip in.

The broth is deliberately under-salted, and the seasoning is left to you: salt, fermented shrimp, chopped spring onion and chilli powder, added in small amounts with a taste after each one. It is eaten with a spoon and eaten fairly quickly, with no cutting or assembling involved. The kimchi and radish alongside can go into the bowl or be eaten separately.