Dangmyeon
Also known as: dangmyeon, 당면, Korean glass noodles, Korean sweet potato noodles, tangmyon
Dangmyeon is Korean glass noodle made from starch: under the Korean food code it must contain at least 80 % starch, and the classic version is made from sweet potato.
Dangmyeon (당면) is a Korean glass noodle made from starch, in the classic version from sweet potato. It is related to Chinese glass noodles, but it is not made from mung beans.
Korean researchers in 1992 compared three kinds of dangmyeon: made purely from sweet potato starch, the common kind with half corn starch, and a pure corn one. The sweet potato noodle had the highest compression strength and the best scores for gloss, clarity and overall desirability, while the corn one scored lowest. The common blend gained the most weight and lost the most solids during cooking.
The Korean Food Promotion Institute, Hansik, describes the history this way: dangmyeon comes from China, and the 'dang' refers to the Tang dynasty. It reached the Korean peninsula at the end of the nineteenth century with Chinese immigrants, especially around the Imo Incident of 1882, and at first remained Chinese food. Dangmyeon factories were built in the Pyongan and Hwanghae regions in the 1920s and 1930s, then Koreans took over the Chinese factories, with Pyongyang the centre and much of the output exported to Japan.
Today dangmyeon is best known as an ingredient of japchae. According to the same source, however, the original japchae had no dangmyeon: it was a dish of assorted vegetable namul. The noodles came later and are regarded as a departure from the original.
Why it matters to you. The name dangmyeon does not guarantee the raw material: it may be 100 % sweet potato, a blend with corn starch, or pure corn. Read the ingredients: the texture depends on it.
Facts
| Raw material | Sweet potato starch (sometimes with corn starch) |
|---|---|
| Country | South Korea |
| Year founded | First factories in Pyongan and Hwanghae: 1920s–1930s |
How it connects to Noodles
Dangmyeon → kind of → Starch noodles → kind of → 🍜 Noodles
Links
- Where it is found
- Japchae
- Part of
- Starch noodles
- Similar and different
- Mung bean glass noodles, Mung bean glass noodles, Longkou Fen Si, Shirataki
Frequently asked questions
What is dangmyeon?
Korean glass noodle made from starch, in the classic version from sweet potato.
What is dangmyeon made of?
Sweet potato starch, sometimes half and half with corn starch, and there is also pure corn; Korean researchers compared all three in 1992.
How does dangmyeon differ from fensi glass noodles?
In raw material: fensi such as Longkou Fen Si is made from mung bean and pea starch, dangmyeon from sweet potato. Both are starch noodles without flour.
Where did dangmyeon come from?
From China: according to Hansik it reached Korea with Chinese immigrants at the end of the nineteenth century, and factories appeared in Pyongan and Hwanghae in the 1920s and 1930s.
Is it true that japchae always contained dangmyeon?
No. According to Hansik the original japchae had no dangmyeon: it was a dish of assorted vegetables, and the noodles were a later addition.
What to read next
- Mung bean glass noodles — Mung bean glass noodles (fensi) are thin, clear noodles made from starch, including mung bean starch, rather than from cereal flour.
- Longkou Fen Si — Dry starch vermicelli from Shandong, China, with an EU protected geographical indication: thin translucent threads made from green bean or pea starch.
- Shirataki — Shirataki is a thin, translucent Japanese noodle made from konjac: a gel of glucomannan, not starch.
Similar
Sources
- Korean Food Promotion Institute (Hansik): japchae and dangmyeon
- Ko and Kim, Korean J. Food Sci. Technol. 24(2) 1992: quality of tangmyon from sweet potato and/or corn starches