A Mother-Daughter Love Story in 100 Recipes, Where Every Step of the Cooking Process is an Expression of Love
“Umma offers a jaw-dropping master class on Korean home cooking brought to you by a mother and daughter duo whose passion for Korean cuisine comes second only to their devotion to each other. You will love this book and fall in love with the women who made it.” Joanne Lee Molinaro, James Beard Award winner and creator of The Korean Vegan.
America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) is proud to announce the highly anticipated release of Umma: A Korean Mom’s Kitchen Wisdom & 100 Family Recipes by Sarah Ahn and her mother Nam Soon Ahn. Set to hit shelves on April 1, 2025, this heartfelt cookbook captures the flavors, traditions, and stories of multigenerational Korean cooking.
When ATK social media manager Sarah Ahn started her website Ahnest Kitchen to showcase her mother’s cooking via real-time videos of their home life, her work resonated with millions on Instagram and TikTok. Ahn’s experience living at home with her immigrant parents, reconnecting to her heritage, experiencing her mom’s love through her cooking, and the recipes that reflect the heart of Korean cuisine had a deep impact on her followers.
Now, in this 384-page deep dive into Korean home cooking, mother and daughter share decades of wisdom and techniques that help anyone cook like a Korean umma with approachable chapters that cover essentials such as building a Korean pantry and over 100 recipes that range from simple banchan and savory soups to comforting rice and noodle dishes, kimchi, street foods, desserts, and more.
Every recipe has a story, some profoundly moving (read A Conversation about Kimchi and Life on page 123) as Nam Soon shares memories of her own mother’s cooking in Korea while Sarah ties foods to family life and growing up in Southern California. Few cookbooks offer such a level of intimacy and candor, and few combine such rigorously tested technique with such rich narrative—a testament to the fact that every small step of the cooking process is an expression of love.
Accompanied by vibrant photography, Umma isn’t just a cookbook—it’s a heartfelt tribute to the love, resilience, and culinary legacy of the women who have shaped cuisine: the Korean umma.
Angel Hair Mixed Cold Noodles
Angel Hair Bibimguksu 엔젤 헤어 비빔국수 (angel hair bee-beem-gook-ssoo)
Serves 4 to 6; Total Time: 50 minutes
Sarah 세라
I started Ahnest Kitchen in 2018 during my “quarter-life crisis.” I was very unhappy and unfulfilled in my first full-time job, and I hoped this wasn’t something that I just needed to get used to and accept as an adult. During those years, one thing made me feel fulfilled: Umma’s food. It wasn’t just the taste and flavor that comforted me; the process of making these dishes also fascinated me. Learning and replicating the recipes felt like therapy, and sharing and cooking these recipes for others brought me joy, just as it does for Umma.
This newfound practice was exactly what I needed during this phase of my life, and it eventually motivated me to collect all of Umma’s recipes to keep forever.
Initially, I documented them in my notebook until I decided to upload them online to share with enthusiastic cooks around the world. Soon enough, people took notice of our work, and traction followed. We eventually received our first opportunity to collaborate with a Korean food brand we both grew up with. Umma and I felt beyond excited and determined to develop a unique recipe that would not disappoint. When we took our first bites of the final dish—after multiple rounds of testing and critiques—we both nodded in agreement and said, “This is it!”
That very dish was this unique noodle masterpiece, which relies on gochujang to create a sauce that delivers the perfect balance of spice, tang, and sweetness. Here we opt for angel hair pasta instead of somyeon (thin wheat noodles) for a different flavor and texture, as well as added convenience.
Umma’s Kitchen Wisdom
I use a mandoline to slice the cabbage about ⅛ inch thick. You can substitute fish sauce for the tuna extract sauce: Use 2 tablespoons fish sauce and reduce the sugar to 2 tablespoons.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (176 grams) gochujang
- ½ cup maesil cheong (plum extract syrup)
- ¼ cup tuna extract sauce
- ¼ cup distilled white vinegar
- ¼ cup toasted sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons minced garlic
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons gochugaru
- 12 ounces (340 grams) angel hair pasta
- 3 Persian cucumbers (240 grams), cut into 3‑inch matchsticks, divided
- 4 cups (226 grams) very thinly sliced green cabbage, divided
- 4 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted
- 2 or 3 hard-boiled large eggs, halved
- Lemon wedges
Directions
1. Whisk the gochujang, maesil cheong, tuna extract sauce, vinegar, oil, garlic, sugar, and gochugaru together in a large bowl; set aside.
2. Bring 2½ quarts water to a boil in a large, wide pot. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Drain the noodles and rinse under cold running water until chilled. Drain and gently squeeze the noodles to remove excess liquid.
3. Add the pasta, two-thirds of the cucumbers, and two-thirds of the cabbage to the bowl with the sauce. Using your gloved hands, gently toss the mixture until the noodles and vegetables are evenly coated with the sauce. Divide the pasta among individual serving bowls. Spoon any sauce left in the mixing bowl around the pasta, then sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Top with the remaining cucumber, remaining cabbage, and egg halves. Serve with lemon wedges.
Photos courtesy of Umma: A Korean Mom’s Kitchen Wisdom & 100 Family Recipes (America’s Test Kitchen)
Cover photo courtesy of America’s Test Kitchen/Kritsada Panichgul.
