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Stews & Soups

Classic Doenjang Jjigae – Make it the Traditional Way

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Doenjang Jjigae is one of Korea’s most traditional stews. We grew up eating this stew as children – and we still love it! In fact, it’s common for families to eat this stew at least 3x a week. Simply put, Doenjang Jjigae is a cornerstone of the Korean diet.

Doenjang Jjigae

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Last year, we showed you how to make this Doenjang stew using rice water. Today, I wanted to re-introduce the recipe. I will teach you how to make it the traditional way with anchovy-kelp broth. Both recipes taste delicious – choose either one.

When making this stew, feel free to substitute any vegetables or meat with your choice. No need to stick to the clams. A few beef pieces or shrimp are also great alternatives.

For breakfast, I like to pair this stew with a sunny side-up egg. I first get a few scoops of the stew and pour it over my rice. Then, I place the egg over the egg break the yolk in. Mix it all together and you have… well a spoonful of magic 🙂

Doenjang Jjigae
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5 from 1 vote

Classic Doenjang Jjigae

Doenjang Jjigae is one of Korea's most traditional stews. A healthy stew made from fermented soy bean paste. Throw in your favorite vegetables to make a hearty meal!
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Anchovy-Kelp Broth - 3 cups
  • Clams - 6-8 optional, can substitute with beef pieces or shrimp too

Stew vegetables

  • Onion - 1/2 a whole
  • Zucchini - 1/3 a whole length of your pointer finger
  • Potato - 1 whole size of your palm
  • Button mushrooms - 3
  • Tofu - 1/2 a block use medium-firm
  • Korean chili peppers - few slices use red and green, optional

Stew seasoning

  • Doenjang paste - 3 Tablespoons
  • Minced garlic - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Gochujang Korean red chili paste - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Gochugaru Korean red chili flakes - 1/2 Tablespoon

Instructions

Prep Ingredients

  • Pour cold water into a non-transparent mixing bowl. Put 1 Tablespoon of salt into the water and mix it in. Then put the fresh clams in. Cover the bowl with a thick book or another larger mixing bowl to make it completely dark. Let the clams sit for about 30 minutes in the darkness and they will spit out their sand. Then drain the water, rinse and set aside.
  • Cut potatoes, onion, and zucchini into small thin slices. Quarter mushroom into small pieces. Then cut the tofu into small blocks. If you have Korean chili peppers, cut just a few thin slices off for garnish.

Make Broth

  • Pour the anchovy-kelp broth into the pot. Put the pot on a high heat. Then use a strainer and a spoon to dissolve the doenjang paste into the broth.
  • Once the broth comes to boil, reduce the heat to a medium heat (Note: This is important - we want a gentle simmer). Then add the minced garlic into the soup.
  • Add in all of your vegetables - except for the tofu. Let the soup and vegetables boil together for 5 minutes. 
  • After 5 minutes, add-in the gochujang and gochugaru. Then, place in the tofu, fresh clams and chili pepper slices.
  • Finally, let the stew simmer for another five minutes. Plate it. Eat stew with a bowl of hot rice.

Notes

  • If you buy flavored doenjang - no need to add garlic, gochujang or gochugaru. Just add 3 scoops into the anchovy-kelp broth and it should taste great. 
  • Feel free to substitute with any vegetables of your choice.
  • Eat the stew with a bowl of hot rice.
  • See video below for more details.

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Galbitang – Korean Short Ribs Stew

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Galbitang. I absolutely love this dish! On a cold, monotonous winter day, it’s the perfect soup to get your endorphins running.

Galbitang

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In Seoul, there are many speciality galbitang shops. These specialty shops often have deals with local butchers or wholesale meat markets to get high-quality beef at an affordable price. So a bowl of Galbitang costs around 10,000 Won (~$10 USD). Not bad at all 🙂

On the flip side, it costs an arm-and-a-leg to make it at home. You may not know, but Korea has among the highest (if not the highest) average beef prices in the world. A steak-quality beef cut for one person easily goes over $50. So when you see beef on sale in Seoul – I go full carpe-diem mode!

The key taste variable in this dish is the broth. The flavor comes primarily from the natural juices of the Korean radish. It tastes light and has a slight sweet after-taste.

Galbitang also brings back memories from my childhood. When I was living in the States, I had two dogs. And they loved to gnaw on rib bones. So whenever I ate galbitang at Korean restaurants, I always thought about how to bring the leftover bones home. I cringed at the thought of getting caught trying to sneak-out leftover bones from a restaurant. But if it was for my dogs – I needed to get creative.

My go-to strategy was to leave about a 1/3 of the soup. Then ask the waiter to package the leftover in a go-to box. It was mental battle to stop eating! One day, when I went to eat the soup with my sister, she bluntly asked the waiter to put the leftover bones in a to-go box. She didn’t look phased or didn’t think anything of it. I asked her don’t you think its a bit embarrassing? My sister replied: I paid for the bones too! #GirlBoss

Galbitang
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Galbitang - Short Ribs Korean Stew

Korean short ribs are slowly boiled in a broth with Korean radish, onions and spring onions. A delicious hearty soup for the extra cold days.
Course: Medium
Servings: 3 servings

Ingredients

  • Galbi Beef Short Ribs - 1 kg (~2 lbs)
  • Onion - 1/2 a whole
  • Korean radish - 1/4 a whole reference video
  • Spring onion - forearm pieces use both white and green portions
  • Garlic - 10 cloves
  • Water - 8 cups
  • Mirin  or any white cooking wine - 1/3 cup 

Toppings

  • Eggs - 2
  • Dangmyeon noodles Korean Potato Starch Noodles - 1 quarter-sized bundle

Broth Seasoning

  • Soy Sauce - 2 Tablespoons if you have soup soy sauce, even better!
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Salt - 2 teaspoons add more if needed
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Dipping Sauce for Galbi pieces (Optional)

  • Soy Sauce - 1 Tablespoon
  • Vinegar - 1 teaspoon apple cider, white, rice vinegar all ok!
  • Sesame seeds - few shakes optional

Instructions

Galbi and Veggie Prep

  • Take out a large mixing bowl. Put galbi pieces in. Then fill the bowl with cold water. Let the pieces soak for at least 2 hours. (If you are not in a rush, let it sit for 4-6 hours.) Drain and rinse each piece under cold water.
  • Then take out a large pot and place the galbi pieces in. Put enough water to cover the pieces. Bring the pot up to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat to a medium-low. Let it gently boil for 5 minutes. Drain the galbi pieces and give another rinse under cold water.
  • Cut a section of the Korean radish (reference video for measurements) and peel it. Then peel the skin off the onion. Cut spring onion into the right size. Also pick out 10 garlic cloves.

Boil Stew

  • Take out your biggest pot (enough to comfortably fit in >8 cups of water). Place in the galbi pieces on the bottom. Then place in the onion, Korean radish, and garlic cloves. Fill the pot with 8 cups of water. Finally, place in mirin (or white wine).
  • Bring the large pot up to a boil on high heat. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat to a medium-low. (Note: double check that you have a gentle simmer - we don't want a roaring boil!). Then put the lid-on on the pot. Let the pot gently simmer for a total of 1 hour. However, set a timer for 30 minutes. 
  • After 30 minutes, take off the lid. Then take out the Korean radish piece only. Let it cool down. Then chop the radish into small bite-sized pieces. Set aside for later.
  • Put the lid back on the pot and let the rest boil for the final 30 minutes. 

Topping Prep

  • While you wait on the last 30 minutes, we will create a few toppings. The first is the egg strips. Take out two small bowls. Crack both eggs and separate the egg yolks. Whisk both the egg whites and egg yolks.
  • Take out a frying pan. Put it on a low heat. Put some oil in. Then once it is hot, pour the egg white in and make a mini egg patty. Set aside on your cutting board. Then repeat for the egg-yolks. When both patties have cooled down, cut each into long-thin strips. Set aside.
  • Next, we will prep the dangmyeon noodles: Fill a mixing bowl with cold water. Grab a quarter-sized bundle of noodles (~1 serving). Place it in the water. Let it soak in the water until broth is finished.

Finish Stew

  • After 1 hour of boiling, take the lid off the pot. Pick out all of the remaining vegetables: onion, spring onion and garlic pieces.
  • Then use a soup ladle to skim the oil off the top of the broth. 
  • Take a sip of the soup - as its good to know what the unseasoned broth tastes like. Then season the soup: place in soy sauce, minced garlic, salt and black pepper. You can add more later if you want.
  • Add the diced Korean radish pieces back into the soup.
  • Put the lid back on the soup and let it cook for a final 10 minutes. The seasoning and soup will come together. After 10 minutes, turn off the heat.

Serve Soup

  • If you will not eat the whole pot (~3 servings) in one setting, I would advise to make individual servings. Take out a small pot. Then drain the soaked dangmeyon noodles and add a small handful of it into the pot. Then place-in three short ribs. Add in a few ladles of the soup - make sure to get some of the radish pieces as well. 
  • Bring the individual up to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes or until the dangmeyon noodles turn soft. Turn off the heat. Pour into a bowl.
  • Garnish with egg strips and spring onions. Now, take a sip of the soup. If it tastes slightly bland, feel free to add a few shakes of salt (or dash of soy sauce).
  • You can also make a dipping sauce for the short ribs. Simply mix soy sauce, vinegar and sesame seeds together. Bon Appetite!

Notes

  • Eat with a bowl of hot rice
  • If you have soup soy sauce, use that. It is slightly saltier and lighter in color. Makes for a clearer broth.
  • See video for more details

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Korean Stock Soup – Learning the Basics

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Korean Stock Soup. It’s an essential skill in Korean cooking. In fact, most Korean soups and stews start off with this anchovy-kelp stock base. Learn the technique and let’s start cooking Korean stews!

Korean-AnchovySkip to Recipe

When I was learning how to cook Korean food, I preferred to use instant beef powder for my stock base. It was simple and I didn’t have to peel anchovies. For a long time, I held a (natural) assumption that anchovy stock would make my stews taste fishy – and nasty.

But as I started to develop my culinary skills, I realized how subtle the anchovy-kelp stock soup is. It doesn’t overpower any of the ingredients in the stew. Nor does it taste fishy. In fact, the stock is very light and plays more of a ‘support’ role. It binds the flavor of the ingredients together.

Today, I wanted to do a bit of hand-holding and show you how to make this traditional Korean stock soup from scratch. It’s very simple and once you have done it once or twice – it becomes second nature.

For those who are allergic to seafood (or can not find dried anchovies), I also have an alternative vegetarian recipe. This alternative stock builds its flavor from the shiitake mushrooms. Full of umami and taste. Note: If you see me refer to the anchovy-kelp stock in future recipes, you can substitute it with this vegetarian mushroom stock.

Save any remaining stock in a bottle and stick in the refrigerator. This recipe should be enough for a 2-person portion.

Korean-Stock-Soup
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Korean Soup Stocks: Anchovy-Kelp Broth + Vegetarian Broth

Making stock is the first step in making Korean soups or stews.
Course: Easy
Servings: 2 person

Ingredients

Anchovy-Kelp Broth

  • Dried Anchovies - 10 Large-Sized, Used for Broth
  • Dried Kelp Dashima - iPhone-sized piece 
  • Water - 5 cups

Shiitake-Kelp Broth (Vegetarian)

  • Dried Kelp Dashima - iPhone-sized piece 
  • Shiitake Mushrooms - 3
  • Onion - 1/2 a whole
  • Spring onion - forearm-size piece 
  • Water - 5 cups
  • Korean radish optional- 150 grams (measure up to 2nd wrinkle on pointer figure) 

Anchovy-Kelp Broth Teabag

  • Anchovy-Kelp Teabag - 1
  • Water - 5 cups

Instructions

Anchovy-Kelp Broth

  • Clean dried anchovies: Take off the head. Split body in half and remove black innards. 
  • Place a pot on medium-high heat. Once it is hot, place the dried anchovies in. Do not add any oil. Stir around and "toast" them for 30 seconds. 
  • Add water in. Then put in dashima pieces. Bring up to a boil. Once it is boiling, remove dashima pieces. 
  • Reduce heat to a medium-low heat. Cook for 10 minutes
  • Strain through a kitchen towel. Set aside.

Shiitake-Kelp Broth (Vegetarian)

  • Take out a large pot and place all of the veggies in. Then place in dashima pieces. Then pour water into the pot. Put on a medium-high heat and bring up to a boil. 
  • Once water is boiling, take out the dashima pieces.
  • Reduce to a medium-low heat. Cook for 15 minutes.
  • Strain through a kitchen towel. Set aside.

Anchovy-Kelp Broth (Teabag)

  • Take out a pot. Pour water in. Bring up to a boil. 
  • Place teabag into the water. Cook for 5 minutes. Take out teabag. Set aside.

Notes

  • Make sure to reduce heat to a medium-low (gentle simmer) when boiling the stock.
  • See video below for more details

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Tteokguk Soup – Bringing in New Years

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Tteokguk Soup. It’s a dish that Korean family eat on New Years! Here is a simple way to make it at home.

Tteokguk Soup
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When I was growing up in the US, I spent New Year’s Eve with friends – at a club or at a friend’s house. Waiting for the coutndown – starting with a few beers, then a glass of wine and topping it off with champagne! However, it was an unwritten rule in my family that you had to be home, at the dining table by breakfast on New Year’s Day. We had to eat Tteokguk as a family.

Spending New Years with your family is the norm in Korea. Conversely, Christmas is the time to spend with friends (or your girlfriend/boyfriend). A slight cultural difference.

Tteokguk soup is typically made with an anchovy-kelp stock. But today, we will make it with a vegetable stock (It taste just the same). This is for viewers who don’t have dried anchovies in their local markets. Also, Tteokguk tastes similar to Korean dumpling soup. But now, we throw in the rice cakes. Soft, chewy and delicious!

Tteokguk Soup
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Tteokguk Soup

Tteokguk Soup is made by dropping sliced rice cakes in a light broth. We will add dumpling as well! It’s a traditional New Year’s dish in Korea.
Course: Easy
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

Broth

  • Shiitake Mushrooms - 3 Pyogo Mushrooms ok too
  • Spring Onion - 1 stalk use white portion, forearm-length
  • Dashima - 1 piece size of your hand
  • Water - 5 cups

Tteokguk Ingredients

  • Broth - 2.5 cups
  • Korean rice cakes - 2 cups
  • Spring onion - 1 stalk use green portion, forearm-length
  • Egg - 1
  • Soup soy sauce - 1 Tablespoon 
  • Dumplings - 1/2 cup optional
  • Seaweed sheets - few optional, garnish
  • Sesame oil - dab, garnish
  • Sesame seeds - dab, garnish

Instructions

Make Broth

  • Take out a large pot. Place spring onion, mushroom and dashima in. Then pour water in.
  • Bring up to a boil. When it comes to boil, take out the dashima pieces.
  • Reduce to a medium-heat, and let it cook for 10 minutes. Then sift out all of the vegetables. Set broth aside

Prep Ingredients

  • Soak the Korean rice cakes in some water. Let it sit in there for 5 minutes. Then drain it and set aside.
  • Chop spring onion into small pieces
  • Crack egg into a bowl and whisk it up
  • Chop seaweed sheets into thin strips.

Make Soup

  • Pour 2.5 cups of the broth into a large pot. 
  • Add in soup soy sauce and give it a stir. 
  • Then add the Korean rice cakes and dumplings into the broth.
  • Put it on a medium-high heat and bring it up to a boil. Once the soup comes to a boil, the rice cakes should float to the top - that means they are fully cooked
  • Pour in the egg mix - in a circular motion. Use your chopstick to stir it around as you pour so that it doesn't clump up into one big egg. 
  • Add in the spring onions pieces.
  • Turn off heat. Serve in bowl. Garnish with seaweed sheets, sesame oil and sesame seeds Enjoy!

Notes

  • You can add some minced beef into this as well
  • Save the leftover broth - that way you can remake the soup in less than 5 minutes!
  • See video for more details

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Odeng Soup – Skewered Fish Cake with Broth

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Its getting chilly here in Korea. Early winter winds put us at 2 degrees C the other day. As I was getting out of the subway, I noticed there was a small crowd around a pojangmacha (Korean street food cart). People were huddled over munching away at skewers of odeng.

Odeng-Stew

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Three steps past the cart, I couldn’t resist either. So I turned back around and had 2 sticks myself. It cost me a grand total of $1. Gotta love cheap street food. The best part about street odeng is that it comes with a complementary broth. It is mild seafood broth – rich and slightly salty (The street vendors like to put msg into the broth). Makes it irresistible.

That’s when I figured that we should try making this on Future Neighbor. It’s simple, easy, and very Korean. If you’ve never had fish cakes before, try it out. (We also have a stir-fried recipe.) I like to call it the sausage of the sea, well because technically it is. It is a mix of white fish scraps, surimi and minced vegetables. If you travel in Asia, you will that fish cake is everywhere.

Odeng Stew
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Odeng Soup

Odeng! It tastes so good straight off the pojang macha carts. Here's how to replicate that flavor at home!
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Korean radish - 500 grams
  • Spring onion - 10 inch piece
  • Dried anchovies - 10 pieces
  • Dashima - iPhone-sized piece
  • Water - 4.5 cups
  • Soup soy sauce - 1 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Salt - 1/2 teaspoon

Hot pot Ingredients

  • Fish cake sheets - 10-12
  • Spring onion - 2 tablespoon garnish
  • Cheongyang chili pepper - 1
  • Red chili pepper - 1
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 3
  • Crown daisy - small handful

Dipping Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoon
  • Vinegar - few drops
  • Sesame seeds - shake

Instructions

Make Soup

  • Use a peeler and skin-off a section of the Korean radish. Then cut two sections away from the radish. Slice these sections into small equal pieces (reference video).
  • Take a large pot out. Place in green onion. Place cleaned, dried anchovies into in (place them in a empty tea bag if you have). Next, put in dashima pieces. Then place in the water. Bring pot up to a boil.
  • After 5 minutes of boiling, take out the dashima pieces. Reduce the heat to a medium low and let broth simmer for additional 10 minutes.

Prep Odeng and Season Soup

  • Fold an odeng sheet and place onto each skewers (reference video). Try to make 3 folds.
  • After 10 minutes, check back on the soup. Place in the soup soy sauce, minced garlic and salt. Then gently take out the boiled radish pieces and set aside for later (don't throw away!). Strain the liquid through a kitchen cloth or towel. Broth is ready - set aside

Chop Veggies (Optional)

  • This step is all optional. Use the veggies you can find. Cut spring onion into small pieces. Cut the green and red chili into small pieces as well. Take off the stems off the mushroom. And then trim off the ends of the crown daisies.

Setup Hot Pot

  • Place skewers and boiled radish to one side of the hot pot. Then add in the vegetables to another side. Add the broth over the top. Put on a medium heat.
  • Give some time for the broth to come back up to the boil. Use a soup ladle to distribute the broth evenly throughout the pan.
  • After about 5 minutes of soft boiling, its ready to eat. Dip in the soy sauce and enjoy!

Notes

  • Broth is key. No suprise that we are using an anchovy-kelp base. But the secret ingredient is Korean Radish. The Korean radish, as it cooks, releases its flavourful juices, infusing the broth with richness and depth in flavor.
  • Make sure you don't throw away the Korean radish after cooking the broth. Use it as an ingredient in the odeng soup. It tastes delicious with some soy sauce
  • Watch video below for more details

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Spicy Korean Crab Stew – Korean Flower Crabs in Fall

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Spicy Korean Crab Stew! It is one of my Top-3 favorite stews. I forget about this delicious, hearty stew throughout the year, until September rolls around. During Fall, Korean flower crabs* are in season. These flower crabs work well in stews as they have a soft body shell. You can easily crunch through the body with your teeth and suck out the big chunks of crab meat.

Spicy Korean Crab Stew

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In Korea, these flower crabs are also eaten raw – after marinating in a flavored soy sauce! It’s called Gejang. But we’ll touch on that in the future as it is a specialty dish. Also very hard to prepare properly. Today, we will take on the stew version!

*Korean flower crabs are commonly referred to as “blue crabs” – which is a misnomer and leads to alot of confusion. The Korean “blue crab” is similar in appearance to the Chesapeake or Maryland blue crab. However, the Chesapeake blue crab has a hard shell – unlike the soft (biteable) shell of the Korean blue crabs. So I would recommend buying the Korean flower crabs if you have a large Korean mart in your area. If it is not in season, they will usually have cleaned ones in the frozen section. Taste great as well!

Note: Put the crabs in a container with cold water. Then put the container in the freezer for ~1 hour. The ice water will shock them and put them in a transitive state. An easier (and humane) way to send them off!

Spicy Korean Crab Stew
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Spicy Korean Crab Stew

If you enjoy fresh crab, you are gonna like this soup! Take a little bit of the seafood broth and mix it into your rice. Then suck out the crab meat with your fingers and mouth! Forget the wet wipes - dig in!
Course: Medium
Servings: 3 people

Ingredients

  • Korean flower crabs - 3
  • Korean radish - 150 grams
  • Onion - 1/2 whole
  • Spring onion - 10 inch piece of
  • Oyster mushrooms - 100 grams
  • Cheongyang chili peppers - 1
  • Medium Firm Tofu - 1/2 block

Stock base

  • Dashima Kombu - iPhone sized piece of
  • Dried Anchovies - 10 dried
  • Water - 4 cups

Soup Seasoning

  • Doenjang - 2 Tablespoons
  • Gochujang - 1 Tablespoon
  • Korean red chili flakes - 1 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Mirin - 2 Tablespoon

Instructions

Prep live crab

  • Place crab in a container with cold water. Then place the container in the freezer for 1 hour.
  • Take out the container and thoroughly wash crab under cold running water. Use a old toothbrush to get any gunk and debris off the crab.
  • Flip the crab over and lift-up the tail end. Tear that piece off. You will then see a small crevice where you can fit a thumb in. Then use some force and separate the top-shell off the crab. There will be lot of crab juice in the head shell - careful not to tip this over. Pour this crab juice out onto a small dish for later use.
  • Then use your knife and cut it down the middle. Then in the top-shell (near the mouth), you will find a sack - rip that out and throw it away. Then use kitchen scissor to cut out the mouth piece.
  • Let's move to the crab body. Remove the gills. Then use scissors to cut off any left-over mouth pieces that are attached to the body. (Don't wash off the crub mustard or innards. It will flavor the broth).
  • Use scissors to cut off the big claws from the body. Then trim off the pointy ends from the crab legs as well as the back fins. Then cut the body pieces in half.

Make Anchovy Kelp Broth

  • Remove black innards from dried anchovies. Put a large pot on a medium-high heat.
  • Once it is hot, place in the anchovies and stir-around (without oil) for 10-20 seconds (Give them a light roast).
  • Then place water in. Once water comes up to boil. Add dashima pieces. Place timer for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, take out dashima pieces.
  • Then let the rest of broth cook for 10 minutes. Place a kitchen towel or cloth in a large mixing bowl and strain the broth.
  • Place broth back into pot

Prep other ingredients

  • Cut onion into thin strips. Cut spring onion and chili pepper into thin circles. Cut Korean radish into thin squares.
  • Cut the stem off the oyster mushrooms and separate each piece with your hand.
  • Cut tofu block in half and into small rectangles.

Cook Stew

  • Place stock broth on a medium heat. Add in the onion and Korean radish pieces.
  • Once soup starts to boil, mix in the doenjang through a sieve.
  • Then add-in the gochujang, Korean red chili flakes, minced garlic, crab juice (from Step 2) and mirin into the soup.
  • Then add in all of the crab pieces. Place a lid onto the pot and increase the heat to a medium-high heat. Let it boil for 2 minutes.
  • Then add-in oyster mushrooms, tofu, green onion and chili pepper into the soup. Reduce the heat back down to a medium and boil for 1 more minute.
  • It should be ready to eat. Great job with this recipe - enjoy with some hot sticky white rice!

Notes

  • When you lift the shell off the crab, don't throw out the leftover juices in the shell. Save that to season the broth
  • In the video, I forgot to add in minced garlic. Still tasted great but add 1 Tablespoon for a nice kick!

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Korean Pumpkin Soup – From Kabocha Pumpkin

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Korean Pumpkin Soup (or Porridge). As a child, I was never a big fan of this soup. It always felt like “old-people food”. My parents and grandparents would like to eat it from time-to-time. Lately, I have started to crave this soup. Perhaps its an age thing? When you’re young, you are looking for sharp, salty, strong tastes! But as you get older, you look for healthier, simpler foods.

Korean Pumpkin Soup

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Korean Pumpkin Soup is made with the Kabocha pumpkin. This pumpkin has a very sweet taste – even sweeter than butternut squash. And the texture is similar to that of a sweet potato. Overall, it tastes great as a light soup.

There is another variation of this soup where rice is mixed into the soup – turning it into a rice porridge. It is a popular among Koreans when they lose their appetite, feeling under-the-weather, or as part of a weight-loss diet. If you want to turn it into a porridge, simply add some cooked white rice when you mix in the blender.

Whether you choose the soup or porridge version, it works well for breakfast – alongside some eggs and toast!

Korean Pumpkin Soup
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Korean Pumpkin Soup

Korean pumpkins have a very sweet taste. Turn it into a simple soup for a light breakfast, alongside some eggs and toast.
Course: Easy
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • Korean Pumpkin - 1 whole
  • Water - 2 cups

Soup Thickener

  • Glutinous rice powder - 2 tablespoons
  • Water - 1/3 cup

Seasoning

  • Sugar - 2 tablespoons
  • Salt - 1 teaspoon

Instructions

Cook Pumpkin

  • Put the pumpkin up-side down in a (microwaveable) bowl and place in the microwave for 5 minutes.
  • Let it cool down (be careful - its hot!) and cut it in half.
  • Use a spoon and scrape out the seeds from both halves. Halve again into 4 pieces.
  • Then, use your knife to cut off all the skin from each piece. Chop the skinned pieces into smaller chunks.

Make Soup

  • Place chunks into mixer. Then place 2 cups of water in. Blend on a medium until it turns into a nice, smooth soup.
  • Then pour it out into a large pot. Put the soup on a medium heat and wait until it comes up to a boil.
  • In the meanwhile, make a thickener by mixing the glutinous rice powder with water.
  • Add the thickener sauce into the soup once it starts boiling. Stir it in well. Then season the soup with sugar and salt.
  • Reduce heat to a low and let the soup simmer for 1 more minute. Make sure to mix so it doesn't burn.
  • Turn off the heat and allow the soup to cool down for 5 minutes. Then serve in a bowl. Enjoy!

Notes

  • Don't forget to season the soup with some salt and sugar. Or else, it will taste flat.
  • The soup tastes best once it cools down. Give it like 5 minutes to cool before serving.
  • Please note that you may need to add more salt/sugar/thickener - as your pumpkin may be bigger in size.
  • Watch video below for more details

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Bulgogi Stew – Bulgogi, Mushrooms and Tofu

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Bulgogi Stew combines a few of my favorite ingredients all in one stew: Bulgogi beef, tofu and mushrooms.

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Many people have tried bulgogi as a stand-alone beef dish, but not as an ingredient in a stew. This stew is quite popular during the fall and winter season. Combined with a bowl of rice, bulgogi stew is hearty and filling dish. Guaranteed to fill your belly and the endorphins running!

Typically, we use soy-sauce as the base in a bulgogi marinade, but today we will try something different – fish sauce. I saw this idea from a Korean cooking TV show and tried it a few time. Was amazed by the taste!

In this dish, we will also use a mushroom trio: Shiitake, Enoki and Oyster. It’s a perfect dish (reason) to try mushrooms that you do not normally use. But no need to stick to the script – use any local mushrooms that are in season.

Bulgogi Stew
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Bulgogi Stew - Bulgogi, Mushroom, Tofu

Bulgogi stew combines savory bulgogi, soft tofu and an eclectic mix of mushrooms. When these flavors mix, you get something amazing 😉 

Ingredients

Marinated Beef

  • Thinly sliced beef - 500 grams
  • Sugar - 2 Tablespoons
  • Fish sauce - 4 Tablespoons
  • Minced garlic - 2 Tablespoons
  • Sesame oil - 1 Teaspoon
  • Spring onion - 3 Tablespoons
  • Onion - 1/2 a whole

Fresh Ingredients

  • Shiitake mushrooms - 4
  • Enoki mushrooms - 1 handful
  • Oyster mushrooms - 1 handful
  • Tofu - 1 block

Broth Sauce

  • Water - 3/4 cup
  • Sugar - 1 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoon

Instructions

Marinade Beef

  • Tear larger sirloin cuts into smaller pieces and place into a mixing bowl. Place sugar into the bowl and mix it into the beef with your hands. Set aside for 5 minutes to absorb the sugar.
  • In the meanwhile, cut spring onion and onion into smaller pieces.
  • After 5 minutes, put fish sauce and minced garlic into the mixing bowl with the meat. Mix it in with your hand. Then toss in the onion and spring onions. Finally, put in sesame oil and give a final mix. Set aside.

Make Broth + Prep

  • In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients listed under “broth”.
  • Then cut or tear all of your mushrooms into smaller pieces.
  • Cut the block of tofu into smaller pieces as well.

Cook Stew

  • Use a frying pan with walls (>3 inches). Then place tofu, mushrooms and marinated bulgogi inside.
  • Put in the broth sauce as well into the frying pan.
  • Then put the frying pan on a medium-high heat. Let the broth come up to boil.
  • Use chopsticks to dis-entangle the meat pieces while the broth is boiling. (Important!)
  • Then let the stew gently boil on a medium heat for a good 5 minutes. Use a soup ladle to mix around the soup as well. Turn off the heat and enjoy with a bowl of rice.

Notes

  • If you do not have or like fish sauce, you can simply replace it with (equal parts) soy sauce.
  • When the broth comes to a boil, use your chopstick to de-tangle the clumped beef slices apart. Otherwise, they will lump together and you will end up with large meatballs!
  • Also, give about 5 minutes to let the broth gently boil and the flavors to come together. Use a souple ladle and mix around the soup as it simmers.
  • Watch the video below for more details.

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Budae Jjigae (Korean Army Stew) – Stew from the Korean War

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Budae Jjigae (Korean Army Stew) is one of my favorite comfort foods. It is an interesting history, rooted in the Korean war.

Korean Army Stew

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After the devastating Korean war, food was scarce in Korea. Locals who lived near the US army bases (particularly Uijeongbu) made use of surplus US foods. Ham, hot-dogs, Spam and canned baked beans were mixed with kimchi stew to create the popular stew we know today. According to Wikipedia, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson also raved about the taste of Budae Jjigae during his visit to Korea at the time! Another interesting fact. During the military dictatorship of Park Chung-hee (in the 1970s), American products were not legally accessible to Koreans. Things like Spam had to be smuggled into the country – an offense punishable by death. It made budae-jjigae even more notorious and sought after.

Nowadays, the interest in SPAM is waning, as consumers seek healthier diets. However, I still like to periodically eat it for breakfast, along with eggs. Or as part of this budae jjigae dish. Without further adieu, here is a great recipe to try at home.

Cooking note: The anchovy broth does a great job in bringing the flavors of each ingredients together. If it is hard to find anchovy and kelp in your area, use store-bought chicken stock. Mix 2 cups water with 2 cups of chicken broth.

Korean Army Stew Budae jjigae
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Budae jjigae - A recipe from The Korean War

A dish that comes from the Korean War. We mix American sausage and baked beans with Korean spice and broth. 
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

Broth

  • Dried medium-sized anchovies - 10
  • Dashima - iphone-sized piece
  • Water - 4 cups
  • Korean radish - 200 grams

Spicy Marinade

  • Soup soy sauce - 1 Tablespoon
  • Gochujang Korean red chili paste - 1 Tablespoon
  • Gochugaru Korean red chili flakes - 2 Tablespoon
  • Mirin - 1 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 1 Teaspoon
  • Black pepper - couple shakes

Pot Ingredients

  • Spam - 200 grams
  • Sausages - 2
  • Baked beans - 3 Tablespoons
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 4
  • Onion - 1
  • Tofu - 1 block
  • Kimchi - 1/2 cup
  • Ramen noodles - 1
  • Spring onion - 10
  • Salt - few shakes

Instructions

Anchovy Stock

  • Take out the black innards from the dried anchovies (as show in the video) and place in a frying pan.
  • Put frying pan on a high heat. Once it is hot, place anchovies in (without oil) and mix around for 20-30 seconds with a spatula.
  • Then pour 4 cups of water into the pan. Then place in dashima and Korean radish. After water comes to boil, reduce to medium heat and let broth cook on a gentle simmer for 5 minutes.
  • After 5 minutes, take out dashima pieces.
  • Let the rest of broth cook for another 10 minutes. Then drain the broth. Set aside.

Make Marinade

  • Mix all of the ingredients listed under 'Spicy Marinade' in a mixing bowl.
  • Prep Pot
  • Cut spam, sausage, mushroom, tofu, kimchi, spring onion into pieces and place them into a large frying pan. Then drop in three tablespoons of baked beans as well into the pan.
  • Finally, place the spicy marinade on top.

Cook Stew

  • When you are ready to eat, pour stock broth into the pot. Put it on a high heat.
  • Once it comes to a boil, let the broth and ingredients cook for 10 minutes. Use a soup ladle and mix the soup around a few times.
  • After 10 minutes of boiling, taste the soup and add a few shakes of salt (to taste).
  • Then place the ramen noodles in. Once the ramen noodles are ready, reduce the heat to a low. Eat the ramen first - before they turn soggy.
  • Then eat the stew, alongside a bowl of hot rice!

Notes

  • After you pour the broth into the pot, bring it up to boil and give it at least 10 minutes to boil. The broth needs some time to develop a deep flavor from all of the ingredients.
  • If it is hard to find anchovy and kelp in your area, use store-bought chicken stock. Mix 2 cups water with 2 cups of chicken broth.
  • Watch video for more detail

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Korean Seaweed Soup – Birthday Soup

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Korean Seaweed Soup (known as Miyeok guk) is also known as the Korean Birthday Soup. In Korea, it is customary to eat this soup on your birthday. In fact, relatives and friends will often call-in on your birthdays and ask if you had the chance to eat Seaweed Soup. If you did, you have successfully “aged” a year.

Korean Seaweed Soup

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Miyeok-guk is a popular home recipe that is eaten regularly throughout the year. Most likely because it is simple to make and very healthy. With a few ingredients, you can make a nutritious soup to accompany a bowl of rice and banchan.

Seaweed is a super-food and also a staple in Korean cuisine. I see that there is a growing interest in seaweed and kelp among Western countries. This is great! Seaweed retains rich minerals from the sea, while being low in calories and easy on the digestion system.

Key taste variable: Soup Soy Sauce
Soup Soy Sauce is unique to Korean cuisine. It is much saltier and lighter in color to regular soy sauce. It provides the right depth in flavor without turning the broth too dark.

Korean Seaweed Soup
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Korean Seaweed Soup

In Korea, we eat this Korean Seaweed Soup on our birthdays. Simple, delicious and part of Korean culture! 
Course: Easy
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Dried Seaweed - 1/2 cup
  • Beef - 150 grams

Seasoning Beef

  • Soup soy sauce - 1 Tablespoon
  • Sesame oil - 1 teaspoon
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Soup seasoning

  • Sesame oil - 1 teaspoon
  • Water - 3 cups
  • Soup soy sauce - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Salt - 3 shakes
  • Minced garlic - 1/2 Tablespoon

Instructions

Prep Ingredients

  • Put dried seaweed in a mixing bowl. Place some water in the bowl and let the pieces hydrate for 15 minutes. Drain seaweed. (If you bought uncut seaweed, cut them into bite-sized piece).
  • Cut beef into bite-sized pieces.

Build Soup Base

  • Take out a large pot. Place meat in. Season with soup soy sauce, sesame oil, black pepper. Then put it on a medium-high heat and cook the meat.
  • Cook the meat until most of the red is gone. Then add the seaweed into the pot.
  • Add 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Cook and stir around for 2 minutes.

Finish Soup

  • After 2 minutes, add 3 cups of water into the pot.
  • Once the soup starts to reboil, add soup soy sauce and salt.
  • Let it cook on a gentle simmer (medium-low heat) for 10 minutes.
  • After 10 minutes, place minced garlic in. Then let it cook for 5 additional minutes.
  • You're finished. Eat with rice!

Notes

  • Follow the measurements carefully on this recipe. This broth is light and simple - so its easy to overpower or underseason with ingredients.

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Korean Dumpling Soup – Mandu in Broth

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Korean Dumpling Soup is a go-to comfort food in Korea – like chicken noodle soup. The soup is made by boiling mandu (Korean dumplings) in a beef or anchovy broth mixed with a beaten egg.

Korean Dumpling Soup

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If you visit a Korean grocery mart, you will see two types of mandu – one that is long (like a potsticker) and another that is round in shape. The long-ones are good for pan-frying and the round ones are good for steaming (or soups). So go with the round ones. If you can’t find them, no worries. Simply use any Asian dumpling (Korean, Chinese, Japanese – all ok!).

The key taste variable for this soup is the broth. The anchovy stock broth has a clean color and surprisingly, mild taste. If you are worried about it tasting too fishy – believe me, it doesn’t. By the time you finish adding all of the ingredients, the broth tastes amazing (without any seafood taste). It has depth but is not overwhelming – serves as a good base for the meatiness of the dumplings.

Korean Dumpling Soup pairs well with a bowl of white rice as well as some kimchi on the side. The spiciness of the kimchi will cut through the meaty filling of the dumpling and provide balance.

Korean Dumpling Soup
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Korean Dumpling Soup

Break apart your favorite Korean dumplings in a light broth. Fun, refreshing and filling. My favorite are the pork and spring onion dumplings. 
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Water - 5 cups
  • Dried Medium-Sized Anchovies - 15 pieces
  • Dashima - iPhone-size piece
  • Mandu - 6 Large-sized or 10 medium-sized
  • Onion - 1/2
  • Spring onion - 10-inch piece
  • Egg - 1
  • Beef - 100 grams

Broth Flavoring

  • Mirin - 1 Tablespoon
  • Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
  • Soup soy sauce - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Salt - few shakes
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Instructions

Make Broth

  • Split the dried anchovies in half and throw out out the black innards and heads. Place them in a large pot.
  • Put the pot on a high heat and roast the anchovies (without oil) for 20-30 seconds. Make sure to stir them around so they don't burn.
  • Then pour the water into the pot. Place your kombu pieces into the water. Once the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a medium and let the broth simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Take out the kombu pieces after 5 minutes.
  • Let the broth cook for another 10 minutes with the anchovies. After the 10 minutes, strain the liquid.
  • Also, I forgot to mention in the video, but after straining, you can add 1 tablespoon of Mirin to the broth. This will neutralize any remaining fishy smell in the broth. Set the broth aside.

Prep Veggies

  • Cut onion and spring onion into thin strips.
  • Cut beef into small bite-sized pieces.
  • Crack egg and mix the yolk together.

Cook Soup

  • Pour broth into a smaller pot (pot should be deep enough that dumplings are fully submerged). Bring broth up to a boil.
  • Place beef pieces in and cook for 30 seconds. Then reduce heat to a medium so your broth doesn't reduce too quickly. Put your dumplings into the broth.
  • Then mix in soup soy sauce to the broth. Let the dumplings cook in the broth for 2-3 minutes (or until they turn slightly translucent).
  • Then place in the sliced onions, minced garlic and spring onions.
  • Turn off the heat and gently pour in your egg mixture.
  • Season the broth with a few shakes of salt and pepper. Serve in a bowl. Remember to share!

Notes

  • To neutralize any fishy taste in the broth: Put frying pan on high heat and stir the dried anchovies in the frying-pan (without any oil) for 30 seconds - you will be roasting them. Also, add 1 tablespoon of Mirin (or any cooking wine) to the broth after it comes to a boil.
  • Watch video below for more details

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Kimchi at home – Your First Batch

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Kimchi is the quintessential Korean dish. There are many different types of Kimchi, but the most famous one is Napa Cabbage Kimchi.

Korean Kimchi

You will find this healthy dish in virtually every refrigerator in Korea. It is so important to the culture of Korea that there is even a “Kimchi Index” in Korea. It helps Koreans track the change in price of the main ingredients used in Kimchi – Napa cabbage, chili, radish and anchovies. When the price volatility is high, it makes national headlines.

It seems with the ever-busy lifestyle of Korea, the art of making Kimchi is being lost. It is rare to see families (let alone, single dwellers) to make it at home. Traditionally, a family would schedule a weekend in winter to make a large batch of Kimchi for the year, often using up to 10 Napa cabbages at a time! It is a labor of love.

Today, we show you a simple recipe that you can make at home – using only one head of Napa cabbage. This way, you can sample the flavors, gauge spice level and reduce prep time. Also, it’s okay if you mess up with one cabbage. Big deal – just buy another one! However, if you mess up with a batch of 10 cabbages, chances are you will never try making Kimchi again! Our recipe is simple and has the right balance of Korean flavors

Key taste variable: Time
The taste of the Kimchi will change slightly as you leave it longer in the refrigerator. This is normal and you should try it at its different stages.  Try tasting it fresh – right after you finish coating it with the Kimchi paste. Then sample it after 1 day of sitting out (and fermenting). Then try it cold, after it has had time to chill in the refrigerator. You will notice the flavor get deeper and more concentrated. I think it taste best when it has had some time to sit in the refrigerator for a few days.

Korean Kimchi
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Kimchi - A simple recipe for your first time

Kimchi is spicy, fermented cabbage. A quintessential dish to Korean cuisine. We eat it with just about everything.
Course: Hard
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • Napa cabbage - 1 head
  • Kosher salt or Sea Salt - 1.5 cups Don't use regular dining salt - the salt crystals should be large
  • Korean radish - 2 inch piece
  • Asian Chives - 20 stalks

Kimchi Paste

  • Dashima Kombu - iPhone size piece of
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 4
  • Glutinous rice powder - 2 Tablespoon ok to use all-purpose flour as well
  • Gochugaru Korean red chili flakes - 1 cup
  • Minced garlic - 2 Tablespoon
  • Minced ginger - 1 Tablespoon
  • Anchovy sauce - 1/4 cup
  • Honey - 2 Tablespoon
  • Sugar - 1/2 Tablespoon
  • Kosher Salt - 1 Tablespoon

Instructions

Brine Cabbage

  • Cut the Napa cabbage into 4 pieces. Wash thoroughly and get off any dirt - especially near the stems.
  • Fill a large plastic bowl with 6 cups of water. Then add-in 1/2 cup* of kosher salt.
    [*NOTE: In the video, we state to add 1 cup of kosher salt. That's because we purposely didn't stir the water until the salt pieces completely dissolved. Some of our viewers have stirred the water until all of the salt crystals disintegrate - which makes the water too salty! To avoid confusion, we recommend using only 1/2 cup of kosher salt.]
    After adding the 1/2 cup, give the water a few stirs with your hands. (Again, no need to completely dissolve the salt into the water.) Then quickly dip each cabbage piece into the water - just so its wet, don't leave it sitting in the water. Afterwards, set it on a strainer and let it drip-off excess water for a few minutes.
  • Then pour-out 1 cup** of kosher salt - we'll use roughly this amount for the entire 4 cabbage pieces. Now, grab some salt with your fingers and toss it onto each layer of the cabbage - just a few sprinkles for each layer. (Imagine sprinkling salt on an egg - thats the amount you want to put on each layer.) Focus the salt onto the white stems of the cabbage.
    [**NOTE: You do NOT need to sprinkle on the whole 1 cup of salt - okay to use like 3/4 cup and have some leftover (as cabbage sizes are not always the same). Don't over-salt in this stage or your Kimchi will taste too salty]
    Then cover it with a lid (to prevent bugs from getting in) and let it sit in room-temperature for at least 6 hours (or overnight).

Check Cabbage

  • Next day, bend the cabbage stem and check that it doesn't snap. If it does snap, let it sit for longer in the salty water.
  • Drain the cabbage from the brine and wash each layer thoroughly under a running faucet. After one round of washing, wash again! This second wash will help reduce the overall salty flavor from the leaves.
    [IMPORTANT: At this point, taste the cabbage leaf - it should taste slightly-salty, but not overly salty.]
    Wash it again for a third time - if it tastes too salty. 
  • Set the washed cabbage pieces on a strainer and get rid of excess water.

Prep Veggies

  • Peel Korean radish. Then cut each section into thin circles. Then cut each circle into thin match sticks.
  • Cut asian chives into 2 inch sections.

Make Paste

  • Take out a pot and fill with 2 cups of water. Place in 4 Shiitake mushrooms and dashima pieces. Put it on a medium heat and cook for 10 minutes to extract broth. Strain the broth and let it fully cool down. (Note: It is important to let the stock broth cool down completely)
  • When the broth is cooled down, place in the glutinous rice powder (or flour) and mix into the stock. Mix thoroughly to get rid of all clumps. (Note: Don't turn on the heat until you have fully mixed the powder into the stock). Then place the pot onto a medium heat. Keep stirring until the paste thickens up and gets a gravvy-like consistency.
  • Get a large plastic bowl. Put in Gochugaru, minced garlic, minced ginger, anchovy sauce, honey, salt and sugar. Then put-in the paste as well. Give all of the ingredients a good mix.
  • Then put-in the Korean radish and garlic chive pieces as well. Mix veggies in and coat them in the thick paste.

Layering Kimchi

  • Place Kimchi paste on each layer of the cabbage leaf (reference video). Repeat for all 4 cabbage pieces.
  • Place the finished Kimchi pieces into a large Tupperware or large mason jar.
  • Place plastic wrap over the container and poke some holes into it. Let it sit out in room temperature for one day.
  • The next day, you will see bubbles in the kimchi liquid (from the fermentation). Now place the fermenting kimchi in the refrigerator. Let it chill in the refrigerator for a few hours
  • Once the kimchi is cold, chop the cabbage into sections and serve! Enjoy! 

Notes

  • Make sure to cool down the stock soup before placing in the glutinous rice powder. Fully stir in the powder until you see no lumps - then turn on the heat.
  • With each week, the Kimchi will taste more sour as it ferments longer. Kimchi is edible for many months. "Aged" Kimchi is popular in Kimchi Jjigae or Kimchi panackes.
  • If you have any specific questions, leave us a comment.
  • Watch video below for more details.

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Soondubu meal prep – How to cook it under 10 minutes

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Soondubu is a dish that I usually eat at Incheon International airport. After spending months abroad, I want nothing more than Korean food – something with lots of gochugaru.

Soondubu
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Soondubu is my go-to dish that tells me that I am indeed back in Korea. It is a spicy Korean stew that is made with freshly curdled soft tofu, vegetables, and some sort of meat (seafood).

In our recipe, we will cook by first making a Soondubu paste. If you make the paste, you can cook up Soondubu for future meals in less than 10 minutes. It is a good way to meal prep for those who are looking for a fast dinner after work.

Key taste variable: Gochugaru
The key to a rich deep broth is Gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes). It provides a smoky spice that is hard to replicate with other chili peppers. I found the brand we use on Amazon – a safe choice if you do not have any Korean marts nearby. Also, you can enrich the flavor of the broth with other meats. I like to use seafood – drop in a few fresh oysters (de-shelled) or 3-4 small clams.

Soondubu
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Soondubu - Spicy Korean Tofu Stew

Soondubu is a spicy Korean stew that is made with freshly curdled soft tofu, vegetables, and meat. Make it under 10 minutes!
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Onion - 1 cup
  • Spring onion - 1/2 cup
  • Minced pork - 1/2 cup

Soondubu Paste

  • Gochugaru Korean red chili flakes - 1 cup
  • Salt - 1/4 cup
  • Sugar - 3 Tablespoons
  • Minced garlic - 1/3 cup
  • Soy sauce - 1/3 cup
  • Vegetable oil - 4 Tablespoons
  • Sesame oil - 1 Tablespoon

Soondubu Stew

  • Soondubu paste - 2 Tablespoons (shown above)
  • Water - 1/3 cup
  • Extra soft tofu - 1 Tube (silky tofu)
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 1
  • Clams - 3-4
  • Eggs - 1
  • Spring onion - 1 Tablespoon
  • Black pepper - few shakes

Instructions

Prep Paste

  • Dice onions and spring onion into small pieces. Give your minced meat one more chop.
  • Place each ingredient listed under "Soondubu Paste" onto small dishes (except for the vegetable and sesame oil).
  • Mix the vegetable oil and sesame oil together in a separate dish. Set aside.

Make Paste

  • Pour the mixed oil into a large frying pan. Once oil is hot, place in spring onions.
  • When spring onions are sizzling, place in minced pork. Then add in chopped onions. Cook onions until they turn translucent and there is little left-over liquid in the pan.
  • Then add in minced garlic and mix well. Then add in Korean chill flakes. Lower heat.
  • Add in salt and and sugar. Then add in soy sauce. Give final mix and set the paste aside in a bowl to cool-off.

Make Soondubu

  • Pour water and Soondubu paste into pot. Thoroughly mix-in the paste as the water comes to a boil.
  • Once the water is boiling, add in the mushrooms and seafood (or other meats). Add in tofu. Break tofu up with a spoon. Let it cook for one minute.
  • Drop in egg. Garnish with spring onion slices and black pepper. Eat with rice!

Notes

  • After you drop-in the paste, make sure to use a spoon to dissolve it into the boiling water. After you place in the tofu, break it into smaller pieces with your spoon so that all of the tofu curds can get flavored in the sauce. If you are vegetarian, replace the minced pork (in the paste) with diced button mushrooms.
  • Place left-over paste in a few ziploc bags. Use your hands to flatten out the paste. Then store in the freezer. Will keep for 2-3 months.
  • See video below for more details

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Mille Feuille Nabe – Beautiful Japanese Hot Pot!

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Mille Feuille Nabe borrows from French pastry and Japanese stew. Mille Feuille is a french pastry that has layers of razor-thin puff pastry and cream filling, while ‘Nabe’ is Japanese hot pot. The two terms perfectly describe this hot-pot.

Mille Feuille NabeSkip to Recipe

It is a hot pot layered with stacks of fresh cabbage, perilla leaves and mushrooms. I first saw this recipe on a Korean celebrity chef TV show and I was amazed by how beautiful it was – looked like an art piece.

Mille Feuille Nabe is a perfect dish for a special occasion. The hot-pot is healthy, light on the stomach and fun to eat. The down-side is that it may require a visit to the Korean (or Asian Mart) for some of the ingredients.

For the stock, we will be using an anchovy-kelp base. Don’t worry – the broth doesn’t taste fishy at all. Smell as the broth simmers and gets infused with the natural flavors of each vegetables.

Mille Feuille Nabe
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Mille Feuille Nabe - Beautiful Japanese Hot Pot

Mille Feuille Nabe is a hot-pot stuffed with layers of Napa cabbage, perilla leaves and beef slices. 
Course: Medium
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • Napa cabbage - 15 leaves
  • Shabu Shabu Beef - 300 grams
  • Perilla leaves - 100 grams
  • Bok choy - 200 grams
  • Enoki mushrooms - 50 grams
  • Shiitake mushrooms - 3 save stems for broth

Broth

  • Dried anchovies - 10
  • Dashima - iPhone-sized piece
  • Korean Radish - 50 grams optional
  • Shiitake mushroom stems - 3
  • Water - 6 cups
  • Soy sauce - 1/2 teaspoon use soup soy sauce if you have
  • Salt - 1/2 teaspoon

Dipping Sauce

  • Soy sauce - 2 Tablespoon
  • Vinegar - 1 Tablespoon
  • Cooking wine - 1 Tablespoon
  • Honey - 1 Tablespoon

Instructions

Make Veggie Stacks

  • Start with a cabbage leaf. Place two pieces of perilla leaves on top of the cabbage leaf. Then place two beef slices on top. Put another piece of cabbage leaf on top. Then place another layer of perilla leaves and beef slices. Finish the stack by topping it off with a third cabbage leaf.
  • Repeat this process until you have used up all of your leaves or other ingredients. Cut each stack into thirds with a knife.

Assemble Pot

  • Break off the leaves off each bok-choy. Take out a large pot and place the leaves on the bottom of the pot.
  • Then place each stack on top of the bok choy leaves. Place each in a circular path.
  • Finish the pot by placing enoki and Shiitake mushrooms in the middle.

Prepare Broth

  • Clean out the 'black' insides from each dried anchovy. Discard the head. We will only use the cleaned bodies.
  • Place the cleaned anchovies, dashima pieces, daikon piece, shiitake stems and water into a large pot.
  • Turn on a high heat and set a timer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, take out the dashima pieces. Let rest of the ingredients boil for another 10 minutes. After 20 minutes, take-out all of the ingredients. Season the broth with soy sauce and salt.

Dipping Sauce

  • Mix soy sauce, vinegar, cooking wine and honey together. It will be enough for two people.

Cook Hot-Pot

  • Gently pour your broth into the pot. Turn on a high heat until you can hear the pot boiling.
  • Then reduce the pot to a medium heat and let it continue to simmer.
  • When you see that the beef has fully cooked through (like shabu-shabu), it is ready to eat. Take out one stack, dip in dipping sauce and enjoy!

Notes

  • When making the stock base, take the kelp out after 10 minutes of boiling
  • Feel free to use any store-bought shabu shabu dipping sauces as well
  • Watch video below for more details

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Kimchi Jjigae – An Iconic stew of Korea

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Kimchi Jjigae is one of the most iconic dishes of Korea. It is a staple in virtually all Korean households and served as a meal a few times a week.

Kimchi-Stew

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With an angry red color, the stew looks aggressive and intimidating! However, the broth is surprisingly mellow, neither too spicy nor too salty. The stew is typically paired with a bowl of hot sticky rice. To eat, take a spoon of the broth, along with a piece of kimchi and pork and pour over your rice. Then balance it on your spoon and take a large bite!

Kimchi Jjigae is comfort food for virtually all Koreans. When Koreans travel or stay abroad, the first thing we crave is a bowl of hot kimchi jjigae. While many people have tried kimchi by itself, few have tried it as a stew! Try it at home and sample how Koreans eat everyday! If you can enjoy it, I think it’s a good sign that you will enjoy traveling and/or living in Korea.

Note, that this stew tastes best with “aged kimchi“. The longer the kimchi ages, the more sour it becomes. That flavor provides a deep flavor to the broth.

Kimchi-Stew
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Kimchi Jjigae - Taste of Korea

Kimchi Jjigae is one of the most iconic stews in Korea. Spicy, hot and refreshing. It is an ultimate comfort food for most Koreans.

Ingredients

  • Kimchi - 1.5 cup If you have Aged Kimchi, even better!
  • Pork - 1/2 cup Choose a cut with some fat on it - I like pork collar/neck
  • Rice water - 3 cups or use anchovy-kelp broth
  • Cheongyang chili peppers - 2 or use 1/2 Jalapeno, no seeds
  • Spring onion - 10 inch piece size of your forearm
  • Gochugaru - 1.5 teaspoons
  • Minced garlic - 1 teaspoon
  • Soup soy sauce - 1 teaspoon
  • Salt - 1 teaspoon

Instructions

Prep work

  • Chop green chili peppers and green onion into small circular pieces.
  • Chop pork and Kimchi into bite-sized pieces.
  • Rinse rice a couple of times and extract rice water - see video below for reference. (Or you can use an anchovy-kelp broth - reference this video)

Make the broth

  • Place pork in a large pot. Put rice water (or anchovy-kelp broth) into the pot as well. Turn on medium heat and bring water up to a boil.
  • Boil for one minute or longer (until pork is fully cooked through). Skim the surface and get rid of any scum. Add your kimchi to the broth as well as your green onions and chili peppers (save a few onions and pepper pieces for garnish).
  • Then add in the garlic, Korean red chili flakes, soup soy sauce, salt.
  • Let the soup boil for an additional 10-15 minutes on a medium heat. This will reduce the stew and combine all of the ingredients together.
  • Garnish the stew with spring onion and chili peppers. It is ready to eat now.

Notes

  • If you can resist... save some of the soup. Let it sit overnight (or 6 hours) and give it another boil in the morning. You will see that the soup tastes even better!

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