Bong Joon Ho’s Ram-Don

I saw the movie Parasite a couple weeks ago, and it was one of those movies that really stuck with me. I kept replaying certain scenes in my head – in particular, the glorious ram-don scene. The high-low contrast between the cheap packet of noodles and the expensive top sirloin was such a brilliant way to represent the movie’s message with food, but more importantly, I couldn’t stop thinking about how delicious those noodles would be.

Armed with the comforting fact that the dish could be made in about 8 minutes, I made a special trip to my local Korean grocery store to pick up the ingredients. Neoguri is available at most grocery stores, but the Chapagetti is more of a niche instant noodle. In the movie, they use Hanwoo sirloin, a premium cut of beef particular to Korea. Since my budget isn’t *quite* as extensive as the Park family’s, I opted for striploin steak that was on sale, but if you want to make the dish as true to the movie as possible, a Wagyu beef steak would be your best bet.

PRO TIP: Unlike most of the other recipes on this site, this dish doesn’t actually keep well for leftovers because the noodles consistency breaks down, so you’re better off eating it hot off the stove!

INGREDIENTS

• 4 oz sirloin or striploin steak, cubed
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• Salt and pepper, to season
• 5 cups water
• 1 package Chapagetti instant noodles
• 1 package Neoguri instant noodles
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Toss the steak cubes in sesame oil with salt and pepper and let rest for at least 5 minutes.
2. In a non-stick pan pan, heat cooking oil on medium-high and cook steak cubes for about 5 minutes, or until thoroughly browned on the outside.
3. Meanwhile, bring 5 cups of water to a boil.
4. Open noodle packages and set aside dry flakes and soup packets.
5. Once the water has come to a boil, add in both noodle bricks and continue to boil for 2 minutes.
6. Drain half of water from pot, leaving just enough so that water is still covering noodles. 
7. Return the pot to heat and reduce to a simmer. Add in all of Chapagetti dry seasoning and half of the Neoguri dry seasoning (feel free to add more if you want it extra salty and spicy).
8. Continue to simmer noodles for 2-3 minutes, or until liquid has mostly reduced and noodles are well coated in spice.
9. Add in steak cubes and remove from heat, serving immediately.