Beef Seaweed Soup (Miyeokguk) and Its Elements

Miyeokguk is the seaweed soup Koreans eat on birthdays and after childbirth. The app tags this beef version Water and Earth, warm in nature, for autumn, winter and spring.

Elements	Water · Earth
Good in	autumn, winter, spring
Suits	a cold-running constitution
Serves	2 · 35 min

Water from the sea, Earth from the pot

Seaweed is the heart of the soup. The app calls it "a sea vegetable that fills up Water (水)", and soup soy sauce adds salty taste, which the tradition also reads as Water.

Beef, sesame oil and the long simmer bring Earth (土). The app describes the beef as Earth protein that makes the body feel steady, and the sesame oil is used to fry the meat and seaweed first, which gives the broth its deep, nutty smell. For a meat-free pot the app suggests 3 tbsp of perilla seed powder, another nutty Earth ingredient.

Ingredients of Beef and Seaweed Soup (Sogogi Miyeokguk) and the element the app gives each
Ingredient	Amount	Element
Dried seaweed (miyeok)	15 g	Water
Beef for soup	150 g	Earth
Sesame oil	1 tbsp	Earth
Soup soy sauce (guk-ganjang)	1.5 tbsp	Water

Season and body type

Unlike the chilled seaweed soup, this one is warm in nature. The app lists it for autumn, winter and spring, the cooler parts of the year. The tradition says warm dishes suit a cold constitution, someone who often feels chilly. It is also a cultural dish: many Korean families serve it on birthday mornings.

This dish at a glance (haru app data)
Item	Value
Elements	Water (水) + Earth (土)
Nature	warm
Suits (tradition)	cold constitution
Seasons	autumn, winter, spring
Time	35 minutes
Serves	2

Swaps the app suggests

If an ingredient is missing or does not suit you, the app offers these alternatives, each with its own element:

Perilla seed powder (3 tbsp) instead of Beef for soup (Earth): Fills the broth with nutty Earth.
Perilla oil instead of Sesame oil (Earth): Gives a nutty aroma.
Salt (0.5 tsp) instead of Soup soy sauce (guk-ganjang) (Water): For seasoning.

Ingredients

Dried seaweed (miyeok) 15 g (Water)
A sea vegetable that fills up Water.
Beef for soup 150 g (Earth)
Earth protein that makes the body feel steady.
Sesame oil 1 tbsp (Earth)
Used to fry the ingredients for a nutty aroma.
Soup soy sauce (guk-ganjang) 1.5 tbsp (Water)
Its saltiness supports Water.

How to make it

Soak the seaweed for 20 minutes and cut it into bite-size pieces.
Fry the beef in sesame oil, then add the seaweed and fry a little longer.
Pour in 6 cups of water and simmer for 20 minutes.
Season with soup soy sauce.

Questions

Why is it eaten on birthdays?

It is a long-standing Korean custom tied to the soup mothers eat after giving birth, so a birthday bowl remembers that day.

What is soup soy sauce?

Guk-ganjang is a lighter-coloured, saltier soy sauce made for soups. It seasons without darkening the broth.

How is it different from the chilled seaweed soup?

The chilled version is cool in nature and pure Water. This one is warm, adds Earth through the beef, and is meant for cooler months.

Solar terms in this season

Lichun 立春, Start of Spring Yushui 雨水, Rain Water Jingzhe 驚蟄, Awakening of Insects Chunfen 春分, Spring Equinox Qingming 清明, Clear and Bright Guyu 穀雨, Grain Rain Liqiu Chushu Bailu Qiufen Cold Dew Frost Descent

Yin-Yang and the Five Elements: The FoundationWhat yin-yang and the five elements mean in the East Asian calendar, how ten stems and twelve branches are sorted by them, and how a chart is counted.Start of Winter (立冬, Lidong): Dates, Kimjang and the 亥 MonthStart of Winter (立冬) begins on 7 November 2026 at 18:52 KST and opens the 亥 month. Read its meaning, the kimjang season and early-winter habits.Chilled Cucumber Seaweed Soup and Black Bean RiceA 15-minute chilled seaweed and cucumber soup with black bean rice: a cool, Water-element summer meal and how the five-element tradition reads it.Abalone Rice Porridge (Jeonbokjuk) and the Water ElementKorean abalone porridge in 40 minutes: 2 abalone, 1 cup of rice, 6 cups of water. Why the tradition reads it as an even, all-season Water dish.Ginger and Jujube Chicken Soup for Cold MonthsChicken soup with ginger, 6 jujubes and 5 garlic cloves, simmered 45 minutes. A warm Fire and Earth dish the tradition sets for autumn and winter.

See it for your chart → Open Haru

Traditional Four Pillars (myeongni) and yin-yang five-element interpretation. Not a medical diagnosis or advice.