Kongguksu (Soy Milk Noodles)

The night before, rinse the dried soybeans and soak them in a large bowl of water for at least 8 hours, or overnight. They will expand significantly.

Drain the soaked soybeans. Place them in a pot with enough fresh water to cover and bring to a boil. Cook for about 10-15 minutes. Skim off any foam that forms.

Drain the cooked soybeans and rinse with cold water. Now comes the tedious but important part: rub the beans between your hands to remove the skins. The skins should slip off easily.

In a high-powered blender, combine the peeled, cooked soybeans with 2-3 cups of cold water and the toasted sesame seeds. If you want an even creamier broth, you can add a handful of pine nuts or walnuts.

Blend on high speed for several minutes until the mixture is completely smooth and creamy. You want to pulverize the beans as much as possible.

For an ultra-silky broth, strain the soy milk through a fine-mesh sieve or a cheesecloth-lined strainer, pressing on the solids to extract all the liquid. Discard the pulp. Chill the broth in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

While the broth is chilling, cook your noodles (somen or other wheat noodles) according to package directions. Drain and rinse thoroughly under cold water.

To serve, place a portion of the cold noodles into a bowl.

Ladle the chilled, creamy soy milk broth over the noodles.

Garnish with fresh julienned cucumber and a few slices of tomato.

This dish is traditionally seasoned with only salt at the table. Serve with a small dish of salt so each person can season their own bowl to their preference.