Makguksu

Rustic buckwheat noodles from Gangwon Province, served cold with a spicy-tangy sauce or clear broth.

Makguksu is Gangwon Province's answer to naengmyeon — coarser, earthier buckwheat noodles that carry the mountainous terroir of Korea's northeastern highlands where buckwheat has been grown for centuries. Unlike the refined naengmyeon of Pyongyang tradition, makguksu embraces a deliberately rough texture; the noodles are extruded thick and cut with less precision, giving each bowl a hearty, farmhouse character. The most celebrated version comes from Chuncheon, the provincial capital famous for dak-galbi, where makguksu restaurants line the streets and locals debate whose sauce is the most perfectly balanced blend of gochugaru, doenjang, vinegar, and sesame. Diners can choose between mul (broth) and bibim (sauced) styles, and many mix the two by requesting dongchimi (winter radish water kimchi) broth on the side to dilute the spice. A trip to Chuncheon without eating makguksu is considered genuinely incomplete.