Ojingeo-sundae is a Sokcho coastal specialty in which a whole squid body is used as the casing for a stuffed-sausage-style filling rather than the pig intestine of ordinary sundae. The cleaned squid tube is packed with firm tofu, soaked glass noodles (dangmyeon), and finely minced vegetables, bound with a little egg and starch, then steamed whole and cooled before being sliced crosswise into rounds. Each slice shows a ring of white squid around a speckled filling, and the rounds are served at room temperature or lightly pan-fried, with a soy-and-vinegar or chili dipping sauce. It is the signature dish of the Abai Village neighborhood, the community founded by Hamgyong-province refugees who settled in Sokcho after the Korean War. Despite the name sundae, it contains no blood and is unrelated to blood sausage.
Ojingeo-sundae traces to the Abai Village (Abai-maeul) neighborhood of Cheongho-dong in Sokcho, Gangwon Province. The settlement was formed after the Korean War, when refugees from Hamgyong Province in the North fled south during the January 1951 retreat and, unable to return home after the 1953 armistice, built a shantytown community on the coast; abai is the Hamgyong dialect word for an older man or uncle, and gave the village its name. The North-Korean dish they brought, abai-sundae, packs sticky rice, pig blood, cabbage greens and bean sprouts into pork large intestine. Lacking ready pig casings but living on a coast rich in squid, the displaced families adapted the method, using the squid body as a natural casing — squid sundae is itself said by some Hamgyong people to be a northern dish. The dish is now firmly identified with Sokcho's markets and the Abai Village tourist quarter; the name of any single originating cook or restaurant is unrecorded.
Sliced into coins, each round is a chewy white squid ring framing a soft, speckled center of tofu, translucent glass noodles and flecks of carrot and scallion. The contrast carries the dish: the squid wall is springy and faintly briny while the filling is tender and mild, almost custardy where the egg has set. Served just-warm or at room temperature, the rounds firm up as they cool so they hold their shape. A dip of soy, vinegar and a little chili sharpens the gentle savor; a pan-fried slice adds a thin crisp, browned edge.
The filling must be bound, or it crumbles when sliced: drained, mashed tofu plus a beaten egg and a little starch (or the squid's own minced tentacles) sets into a sliceable matrix during steaming, while the glass noodles, pre-soaked and cut short, soak up moisture and lock the mass together. The squid body is dusted inside with flour so the filling grips the wall instead of sliding out, and it is filled only about seven- or eight-tenths full and pricked all over with a skewer — squid contracts sharply as its proteins denature with heat, so an overstuffed, unpricked tube traps steam and bursts. Steaming over rolling water for about 20 minutes cooks the squid through without the rubberiness of hard-boiling, and the piece is then cooled fully before slicing, because warm filling tears and only set, cooled rounds cut cleanly into intact rings.
Variations
The most common variant pan-fries the cooled slices jeon-style: each round is dipped in flour and beaten egg and browned in oil, giving a crisp golden edge and a warm center. Some cooks add a little minced beef or pork to the filling for richness, or use only tofu and noodles for a lighter, cleaner version; Sokcho market stalls often sell the rounds ready-fried for eating on the move. It stands apart from blood sundae, which steams a blood-and-rice filling in pig intestine, and from the local abai-sundae, which uses pork large intestine; ojingeo-sundae keeps the same idea of a stuffed, steamed casing but swaps in the squid body, a substitution born of what the Hamgyong settlers could find on the East Coast.
On the Palate
Where Ojingeo-sundae sits in the Korean flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
9 steps · 40 min
- 110 min
Clean the squid: pull out the head and innards, remove the clear quill, and rinse the body tubes inside and out, keeping them whole. Reserve the tentacles. Pat the tubes thoroughly dry.
- 28 min
Soak the glass noodles in warm water until pliable, about 20 minutes, drain well, and chop into short pieces. Finely mince the reserved tentacles.
- 36 min
Drain and mash the firm tofu, pressing out excess water. Finely dice the carrot, scallion and onion, and mince the garlic.
- 45 min
Combine tofu, glass noodles, minced tentacles and vegetables in a bowl; season with sesame oil, salt and pepper, then bind with the beaten egg and a spoonful of starch until the mixture holds together.
Watch outBind the filling with egg and starch until it holds together in a squeezed handful — a loose filling crumbles the moment you slice the steamed squid.
- 56 min
Dust the inside of each squid tube lightly with flour, then spoon in the filling, packing only about seven-tenths full. Seal the opening with a toothpick or short skewer.
Watch outDust the squid's inside with flour and fill only about seven-tenths full — flour grips the filling to the wall, and the gap gives the squid room to shrink without bursting.
- 63 min
Prick the stuffed squid all over with a skewer so steam can escape and the tube does not burst.
Watch outPrick the stuffed tube all over before steaming — squid contracts hard as it cooks, and unpricked it traps steam and splits.
- 72 min
Steam the stuffed squid over rolling water for about 20 minutes, until the squid is opaque and firm and the filling is set.
- 85 min
Cool the steamed squid completely, then slice crosswise into rounds about 1.5 cm thick.
- 98 min
Optionally pan-fry the rounds: dip each in flour then beaten egg and brown in a little oil. Serve with a soy-vinegar or chili dipping sauce.
Archive tool suggestions — not reviewed
These legacy suggestions have not been evidence-reviewed and are not presented as required tools.
