Dish guide · Noodles and dumplings
Sujebi
수제비
Hand-torn dough soup
Soft, chewy pieces of wheat dough torn by hand into a light broth with potato and vegetables. It's Korea's classic comfort soup.
What it is
- The dough is pulled off in rough flakes and dropped into boiling broth, often made with anchovies and kelp.
- Kalguksu uses cut noodles, while sujebi uses torn pieces, and some shops combine the two.
How to eat it
- 1Eat it with kimchi. Add seasoned soy sauce or chili from the table if you want more taste.
History
- Wheat dishes date from Goryeo, and the name is recorded from the mid Joseon period, but sources differ. It became a mainstay during and after the Korean War, when wheat flour from overseas aid was plentiful and rice was short.
Allergies and diet
Usually contains
- The broth is often made with anchovies.
- Some versions add clams.
Recipes differ between restaurants. If you have an allergy, always ask the staff before you order.
🗣️ Allergy card for the staff
Pick your allergy to see the sentence in Korean.
📍 Where to try it
- 🍜
Samcheongdong Sujebi 삼청동수제비
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon · Since 1982
The busiest door on Samcheong-dong's main street since 1982: hand-torn dough soup (sujebi) in a light anchovy broth, served in a little pot, with crispy potato pancakes on the side. A Michelin Bib Gourmand pick near Bukchon and the palaces.
Try: Sujebi (hand-torn dough soup)
30-60 min wait - 🍜
Sinchon Sujebi 신촌수제비
Noodles · Sinchon & Ewha · Since 1988
A cheap, cheerful sujebi shop from 1988 by Sinchon Station. Hand-torn dough soup comes with radish kimchi, and a simple gimbap is the classic side. It's one of the last true student-priced meals in the area.
Try: Sujebi (hand-torn dough soup)
Locals' pickShort wait - 🍲
Won Daegutang 원대구탕
Soups & stews · Itaewon · Since 1977
The oldest house on Samgakji's cod-stew alley, open since 1977. Daegu-tang is a big pot of fresh cod, radish and a mound of minari (water dropwort) in either a spicy red broth or a clear one, simmered at your table. Locals add fried cod on the side and finish with fried rice in the pot.
Try: Daegu-tang (cod stew), spicy or clear
Locals' pickShort wait - 🍜
Chebu-dong Janchijip 체부동잔치집
Noodles · Seochon & Bukchon
A cheap, cheerful noodle house at the start of the Sejong Village food street near Gyeongbokgung. Bowls of janchi-guksu (banquet noodles), perilla sujebi and kalguksu are remarkably affordable, and a pancake with makgeolli turns it into a long afternoon.
Try: Janchi-guksu (noodles in anchovy broth)
Short wait - 🍲
Somunnan Seongsu Gamjatang 소문난성수감자탕
Soups & stews · Seongsu
The 24-hour gamjatang house in the middle of trendy Seongsu, now as full of foreign visitors as of locals. A big pot of pork backbones, potatoes and dried cabbage leaves simmers at your table in a spicy, nutty broth topped with perilla seeds; add hand-torn noodles, then fry rice in what's left. Solo diners can get a single bowl.
Try: Gamjatang (pork-bone stew, small to large)
30-60 min wait
Sources
We check every fact against at least two sources and write it in our own words. Last checked: 2026-10-31.