Once, "cold noodles" was considered the most favorite summer food among Koreans.

Naengmyeon is considered the best food to cool down during the hot summer. In a broth with floating ice cubes, chewy

When you pick up the noodles along with the toppings and take a big bite, you can feel the sensation of the sweat running down your back quickly cooling down.

 

However, it turns out that the cold noodles that delight us are actually the main culprit of a 'sodium' bomb.

Then, besides cold noodles, how should we eat the foods we seek in summer healthily?

Seoul Metropolitan City's Food Safety Information introduces ways to enjoy summer delicacies healthily.

 

 

A health food that backfires as a 'salt bomb' when trying to cool down from the heat

 

A nourishing dish sought to restore energy when the intense heat is at its peak.

Hot soups such as ginseng chicken soup, loach soup, and beef bone soup come to mind as representative health foods.

 

Health foods are literally high-protein, high-fat foods that aid digestion and absorption, greatly helping to boost physical strength, but

Not all foods are good for everyone's body. Since most health-boosting foods are often in the form of broth,

The sodium content dissolved in the broth is excessive, which could potentially harm health. The same goes for cold noodles.

 

Usually, when eating this kind of food, I wipe out even the broth with a high salt content.

The sodium intake naturally increases as kimchi served as a side dish and fermented seafood are added.

Most health foods not only have high sodium content but also have very high calories, so after a meal

If you gain weight, the remaining calories are likely to be stored as fat.

When eating nourishing food, it is best to focus on the solid ingredients and consume less of the broth.

Since most of the seasoning is already adjusted, it is recommended not to add salt separately.

Summer delicacy Naengmyeon, high in 'high carbohydrate' and calories

 

Naengmyeon, a representative summer delicacy. A dish that harmoniously combines various ingredients and is seasoned with naengmyeon sauce.

Chili peppers are rich in vitamins A and C, and capsaicin, which gives them their spiciness, stimulates gastric juice to boost appetite.

It promotes secretion and helps improve digestive function.

 

However, cold noodles that stimulate our appetite are actually a high-carbohydrate food with a high calorie content.

It generally varies depending on how the broth and noodles are prepared.

Bibim naengmyeon has approximately 623 calories (550g), and mul naengmyeon has about 552 calories (800g, Korea Food & Drug Administration).

 

Based on a weight of 100g, each contains 113 calories and 69 calories.

It is at or above the level of jjambbong, a high-calorie food known for its 69 calories per 100 grams.

 

Even though the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a daily sodium intake of 2000 mg,

 

According to data from the Korea Food and Drug Administration, a bowl of mul-naengmyeon contains 2,618 mg of sodium, and bibim-naengmyeon contains 1,663 mg.

 

Therefore, it is better to leave the broth when eating cold noodles.

Adding lettuce, radish sprouts, and cucumbers, which are high in potassium that helps with sodium excretion, is recommended.

 

When eating bibim naengmyeon again, since there is already a seasoning sauce, please try to...

Avoid vinegar and mustard, and try to enjoy them together with other vegetables.

 

 

 

Journalist Jung Ji-in (heung@kormedi.com)