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Soups 국·탕

23 Korean soups explained — what's in each one, how spicy it is, and how to order it.

Guk (국) and tang (탕) both mean soup. Guk is the everyday soup that comes with a meal; tang is usually a main dish, simmered longer or made richer — seolleongtang, galbitang and samgyetang are all tang. Haejangguk (해장국) means "hangover soup" and is eaten the morning after a night out.

Good to know

Milky seolleongtang usually comes unseasoned: add the salt, pepper and green onion on the table yourself. Seafood stews such as maeuntang and haemultang arrive as big spicy pots to share. Samgyetang is famously eaten on the hottest days of summer (boknal) to restore energy.

Quick picks

From our dish notes. Recipes vary, so ask if an ingredient matters to you.

Not spicy

No pork

Questions about Korean soups

What is the difference between guk, tang and jjigae?

Guk is a soup with plenty of broth, often served as a side. Tang is a soup served as a main dish, often long-simmered. Jjigae is a stew: thicker and saltier, with less broth, eaten with rice.

What is haejangguk?

Haejangguk is "soup to cure a hangover" — hearty, hot soups such as pork bone soup, ox blood soup or dried pollock soup, eaten for breakfast or lunch after drinking.

Which Korean soups are not spicy?

Not spicy: Beef Short Rib Soup, Ox Bone Soup, Beef Bone Soup, Oxtail Soup, Ox Knee Soup, Ginseng Chicken Soup, Seaweed Soup, Rice Cake Soup, Rice Cake and Dumpling Soup, Dumpling Soup, Dried Pollock Soup, Bean Sprout Soup.

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